Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gladstone and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,846 a month against $2,533 in Gladstone, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Gladstone
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Gladstone Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Gladstone

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,533

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,846

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Gladstone and in Nosara

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Gladstone and in Nosara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,533 in Gladstone versus $1,846 in Nosara.

Gladstone $2,533
Nosara $1,846

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,459 in Gladstone versus $2,833 in Nosara.

Gladstone $3,459
Nosara $2,833

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,385 in Gladstone versus $3,820 in Nosara.

Gladstone $4,385
Nosara $3,820

Living in Gladstone is roughly 37% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Gladstone 86% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.68 A$25.14

$12.36 ₡5,575

43.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$81.1 A$115

$60.8 ₡27.4K

33.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.89 A$16.91

$7.88 ₡3,557

50.89%

Cappuccino

$4.13 A$5.87

$4.40 ₡1,986

-6.14%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 A$4.41

$1.72 ₡776

80.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 A$3.91

$1.34 ₡603

105.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.52 A$10.69

$3.34 ₡1,505

125.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.28 A$13.20

$4.54 ₡2,048

104.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 A$2.17

$1.64 ₡739

-7.32%

White Bread (500g)

$2.73 A$3.88

$3.16 ₡1,426

-13.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.27

$2.39 ₡1,080

-3.77%

Eggs

$4.85 A$6.90

$3.47 ₡1,564

39.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.23 A$13.13

$7.13 ₡3,217

29.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.21 A$13.09

$10.32 ₡4,655

-10.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.50 A$20.61

$13.97 ₡6,302

3.79%

Apples (1kg)

$3.83 A$5.45

$2.29 ₡1,031

67.25%

Banana (1kg)

$3.12 A$4.44

$1.62 ₡731

92.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.30 A$4.69

$4.81 ₡2,169

-31.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.67 A$6.64

$1.68 ₡758

177.98%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 A$3.75

$3.91 ₡1,765

-32.74%

Onion (1kg)

$2.38 A$3.38

$3.63 ₡1,640

-34.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.41 A$3.42

$1.13 ₡509

113.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 A$2.29

$2.63 ₡1,188

-38.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$41.88 A$59.6

$5.02 ₡2,267

734.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.91 A$19.78

$19.71 ₡8,893

-29.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.85 A$6.90

$2.91 ₡1,314

66.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.35 A$7.61

$3.54 ₡1,597

51.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.83 A$4.02

$1.21 ₡545

133.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$84.8 A$121

$73.8 ₡33.3K

14.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.02 A$5.72

$2.15 ₡969

86.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.39 A$1.98

$1.63 ₡738

-14.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$44.05 A$62.6

$8.77 ₡3,958

402.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 A$1.80

$1.55 ₡700

-18.06%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$26.9K A$38.2K

$33.9K ₡15.3M

-20.67%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$24.9K A$35.4K

$38.5K ₡17.4M

-35.21%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$205 A$291

$95.2 ₡43.0K

115.06%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$27.56 A$39.19

$36.29 ₡16.4K

-24.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.4 A$77.3

$52.0 ₡23.5K

4.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.1 A$79.8

$67.6 ₡30.5K

-16.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.63 A$25.07

$35.55 ₡16.0K

-50.41%

Cinema Ticket

$13.90 A$19.77

$7.54 ₡3,404

84.35%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,958 A$2,785

$496 ₡224.0K

294.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.4K A$28.9K

$11.8K ₡5.3M

72.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.3 A$100

$55.1 ₡24.9K

27.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$62.5 A$88.8

$56.1 ₡25.3K

11.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.6 A$140

$77.8 ₡35.1K

26.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 A$174

$79.1 ₡35.7K

55.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,381 A$1,964

$817 ₡368.9K

69.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,223 A$1,739

$806 ₡363.6K

51.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,370 A$1,948

$3,988 ₡1.8M

-65.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,465 A$2,083

$1,429 ₡644.9K

2.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,583 A$7,939

$7,068 ₡3.2M

-21.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,980 A$7,081

$1,197 ₡540.1K

316.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,599 A$7,962

$888 ₡400.7K

530.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

8.62

-39.10%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Gladstone: October 25, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Gladstone

$1.2K 48.3%

Nosara

$806 43.7% 34.1% $417

Groceries & Markets

Gladstone

$367 14.5%

Nosara

$351 19% 4.3% $16

Eating Out

Gladstone

$306 12.1%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 30.3% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gladstone

$287 11.3%

Nosara

$184 9.9% 36% $103

Clothing & Footwear

Gladstone

$159 6.3%

Nosara

$121 6.5% 24.3% $39

Getting Around

Gladstone

$107 4.2%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 17% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Gladstone

$84 3.3%

Nosara

$83 4.5% 1.5% $1.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,381 in Gladstone and $817 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gladstone pays about 6.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $81 in Gladstone vs $61 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $367 vs $351 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Gladstone

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

20:13 8:13 PM

04:13 4:13 AM

16 h behind Gladstone

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

34,703

4,912

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.703 USD

1 AUD = 0.632 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Gladstone Nosara 13,810 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Gladstone
Nosara

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Gladstone vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara wins on cost – living expenses run 27% lower than in Gladstone. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Nosara the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Gladstone is about 6.3 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,381 in Gladstone versus $817 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $2,533 per month in Gladstone versus $1,846 in Nosara – a 37% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Nosara runs roughly 13% less than in Gladstone. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Nosara gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Gladstone and Nosara are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Nosara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 27% less than in Gladstone. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.