Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gulbene and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Gulbene: $1,289 a month against $1,835 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Gulbene
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Gulbene Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Gulbene

🇱🇻 Latvia

$1,289

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,289 per month in Gulbene vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Gulbene $1,289
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $1,973 per month in Gulbene vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Gulbene $1,973
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $2,657 per month in Gulbene vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Gulbene $2,657
Nosara $3,814

Gulbene is about 30% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Gulbene sits 5% below the global median, while Nosara is 35% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.73 €14.88

$12.34 ₡5,535

35.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.5 €60.9

$61.3 ₡27.5K

11.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.45 €8.41

$7.76 ₡3,481

21.78%

Cappuccino

$3.82 €3.40

$4.44 ₡1,992

-13.96%

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

$1.59 €1.41

$1.79 ₡803

-11.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 €1.07

$1.29 ₡580

-6.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.57 €4.95

$3.24 ₡1,451

71.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.18 €4.61

$4.43 ₡1,985

16.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.06

$1.55 ₡696

-23.23%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 €1.33

$3.08 ₡1,380

-51.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$2.53 ₡1,133

0.40%

Eggs

$3.72 €3.30

$3.45 ₡1,546

7.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.70 €9.52

$7.32 ₡3,284

46.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.74 €7.77

$10.24 ₡4,594

-14.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.98 €12.43

$14.10 ₡6,326

-0.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$2.29 ₡1,027

-8.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$1.64 ₡737

7.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$4.79 ₡2,149

-46.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.25 €2.89

$1.64 ₡735

98.17%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 €0.79

$3.85 ₡1,727

-77.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.95 €0.84

$3.75 ₡1,681

-74.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.77 €1.57

$1.09 ₡488

62.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.87

$2.59 ₡1,160

-62.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.53 €5.81

$5.12 ₡2,295

27.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.02 €7.14

$19.92 ₡8,931

-59.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 €1.79

$2.80 ₡1,255

-28.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 €1.79

$3.52 ₡1,580

-42.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 ₡549

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.9 ₡33.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.41 €3.03

$2.17 ₡973

57.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 €0.88

$1.56 ₡698

-36.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.96 €15.97

$8.67 ₡3,886

107.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.55 ₡697

36.77%

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

$27.3K €24.3K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-20.95%

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

$29.7K €26.4K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

-23.30%

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

$368 €328

$94.8 ₡42.5K

288.58%

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

$19.94 €17.74

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-44.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.84 €17.65

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-62.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.8 ₡33.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.63 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.83

$7.91 ₡3,548

39.82%

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

$674 €599

$490 ₡219.9K

37.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.4K €16.4K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

55.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.2 €62.4

$54.8 ₡24.6K

28.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.0 €45.33

$55.9 ₡25.1K

-8.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.2 €76.7

$80.4 ₡36.0K

7.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$136 €121

$77.9 ₡34.9K

74.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$190 €169

$801 ₡359.1K

-76.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$168 €149

$790 ₡354.1K

-78.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$352 €313

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-91.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 €295

$1,409 ₡632.0K

-76.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$681 €605

$7,064 ₡3.2M

-90.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$568 €505

$1,236 ₡554.3K

-54.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

8.62

-44.66%

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

Last update for Gulbene: October 20, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gulbene

$408 31.7%

Nosara

$184 10% 54.9% $224

Groceries & Markets

Gulbene

$271 21%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 29.2% $79

Eating Out

Gulbene

$257 20%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 17.4% $45

Accommodation & Living

Gulbene

$168 13%

Nosara

$790 43% 370% $622

Clothing & Footwear

Gulbene

$155 12%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 21.7% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Gulbene

$22 * 1.7%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 305% $68

Getting Around

Gulbene

$8.3 * 0.7%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 964% $80

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $190 in Gulbene versus $801 in Nosara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $69.0 in Gulbene versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $271 in Gulbene vs $350 in Nosara – so Gulbene wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇱🇻 Gulbene

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

22:32 10:32 PM

13:32 1:32 PM

9 h behind Gulbene

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,500

4,912

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Gulbene Nosara 10,380 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Gulbene
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

Gulbene vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,289 in Gulbene, $1,835 in Nosara – roughly 42% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,934 per month in Gulbene and $2,753 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Gulbene, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,289 in Gulbene and $1,835 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 42%.

Kindergarten costs $674 per month in Gulbene and $490 in Nosara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Gulbene, where all-in costs run around $1,289, than in Nosara at $1,835. In Gulbene it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Nosara has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,289 in Gulbene to $1,835 in Nosara. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Gulbene. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Nosara makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.