Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Green Island and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Green Island: $1,003 a month against $1,835 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Green Island
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Green Island Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Green Island

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,003

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Green Island 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 Green Island and in Nosara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,003 in Green Island versus $1,835 in Nosara.

Green Island $1,003
Nosara $1,835

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,656 in Green Island versus $2,825 in Nosara.

Green Island $1,656
Nosara $2,825

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,308 in Green Island versus $3,814 in Nosara.

Green Island $2,308
Nosara $3,814

Living in Green Island costs roughly 45% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Green Island is 26% below, Nosara is 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.40 JMD 2,117

$12.34 ₡5,535

8.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.9 JMD 11.7K

$61.3 ₡27.5K

20.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.05 JMD 1,271

$7.76 ₡3,481

3.74%

Cappuccino

$5.34 JMD 843

$4.44 ₡1,992

20.27%

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

$1.14 JMD 180

$1.79 ₡803

-36.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 JMD 108

$1.29 ₡580

-47.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 JMD 346

$3.24 ₡1,451

-32.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.20 JMD 505

$4.43 ₡1,985

-27.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$4.10 JMD 647

$1.55 ₡696

164.52%

White Bread (500g)

$3.81 JMD 603

$3.08 ₡1,380

23.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 JMD 255

$2.53 ₡1,133

-36.36%

Eggs

$3.50 JMD 554

$3.45 ₡1,546

1.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.48 JMD 1,814

$7.32 ₡3,284

56.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.12 JMD 967

$10.24 ₡4,594

-40.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.14 JMD 1,603

$14.10 ₡6,326

-28.09%

Apples (1kg)

$5.96 JMD 942

$2.29 ₡1,027

160.26%

Banana (1kg)

$3.83 JMD 604

$1.64 ₡737

133.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.34 JMD 1,160

$4.79 ₡2,149

53.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.95 JMD 466

$1.64 ₡735

79.88%

Potato (1kg)

$3.26 JMD 515

$3.85 ₡1,727

-15.32%

Onion (1kg)

$2.66 JMD 421

$3.75 ₡1,681

-29.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.98 JMD 472

$1.09 ₡488

173.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 JMD 230

$2.59 ₡1,160

-43.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.17 JMD 1,449

$5.12 ₡2,295

79.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.48 JMD 1,813

$19.92 ₡8,931

-42.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 JMD 462

$2.80 ₡1,255

4.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.88 JMD 613

$3.52 ₡1,580

10.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 ₡549

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.9 ₡33.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.23 JMD 194

$2.17 ₡973

-43.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.08 JMD 486

$1.56 ₡698

97.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.24 JMD 985

$8.67 ₡3,886

-28.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 JMD 220

$1.55 ₡697

-10.32%

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

$44.6K JMD 7.1M

$34.5K ₡15.5M

29.24%

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

$32.5K JMD 5.1M

$38.7K ₡17.4M

-16.16%

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

$170 JMD 26.9K

$94.8 ₡42.5K

79.56%

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

$29.69 JMD 4,690

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-17.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.2 JMD 8,251

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-1.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.8 ₡33.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.63 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$13.42 JMD 2,121

$7.91 ₡3,548

69.66%

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

$360 JMD 56.8K

$490 ₡219.9K

-26.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,332 JMD 1.3M

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-29.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.80 JMD 3,761

$54.8 ₡24.6K

-56.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.64 JMD 5,000

$55.9 ₡25.1K

-43.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 JMD 12.3K

$80.4 ₡36.0K

-3.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 JMD 16.1K

$77.9 ₡34.9K

31.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$801 ₡359.1K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$790 ₡354.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,005 ₡1.8M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,409 ₡632.0K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,064 ₡3.2M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,236 ₡554.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.45

8.62

9.63%

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

Last update for Green Island: October 19, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Green Island

$382 38%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 8.4% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Green Island

$252 25.1%

Nosara

$184 10% 27% $68

Eating Out

Green Island

$220 21.9%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 3.3% $7.3

Clothing & Footwear

Green Island

$106 10.6%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 14.2% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Green Island

$27 * 2.7%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 234% $63

Getting Around

Green Island

$17 * 1.7%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 434% $72

Accommodation & Living

Green Island

- * 0%

Nosara

$790 43%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $74.0 in Green Island vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $382 vs $350 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇲 Green Island

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

13:33 1:33 PM

12:33 12:33 PM

1 h behind Green Island

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,546

4,912

💱 Currency

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to JMD – Jamaican Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇲 Jamaican Dollar ($)

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to JMD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Green Island Nosara 1,230 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Green Island
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

Green Island vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Green Island and Nosara differ by about 83% in total monthly costs ($1,003 vs $1,835 including rent). Green Island is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,505 in Green Island and $2,753 in Nosara to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Shoppers in Nosara pay roughly 9% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,003 per month in Green Island versus $1,835 in Nosara – a 83% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,003 in Green Island versus $1,835 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Green Island but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Green Island the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Green Island 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 Green Island gentler on the wallet – expenses run 83% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.