Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hamilton and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,837 a month against $2,237 in Hamilton, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in Hamilton
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Hamilton Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

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Hamilton

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,237

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,237 in Hamilton versus $1,837 in Nosara.

Hamilton $2,237
Nosara $1,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,267 in Hamilton versus $2,775 in Nosara.

Hamilton $3,267
Nosara $2,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,297 in Hamilton versus $3,712 in Nosara.

Hamilton $4,297
Nosara $3,712

Living in Hamilton is roughly 22% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Hamilton 67% above, Nosara 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.65 CA$25.16

$12.22 ₡5,509

44.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.7 CA$86.5

$60.2 ₡27.1K

0.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 CA$17.05

$7.54 ₡3,399

58.62%

Cappuccino

$3.48 CA$4.96

$4.31 ₡1,941

-19.26%

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

$2.15 CA$3.06

$1.72 ₡773

25.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 CA$2.34

$1.35 ₡608

21.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.87 CA$6.95

$3.24 ₡1,459

50.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.13 CA$8.74

$4.48 ₡2,018

36.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.17 CA$3.09

$1.57 ₡707

38.22%

White Bread (500g)

$2.23 CA$3.17

$3.17 ₡1,429

-29.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.54 CA$3.62

$2.42 ₡1,091

4.96%

Eggs

$3.20 CA$4.55

$3.57 ₡1,609

-10.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.91 CA$11.27

$7.43 ₡3,349

6.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.76 CA$15.34

$10.42 ₡4,697

3.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.64 CA$19.44

$13.66 ₡6,156

-0.15%

Apples (1kg)

$3.82 CA$5.45

$2.32 ₡1,044

64.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 CA$1.73

$1.61 ₡728

-24.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.04 CA$5.76

$4.74 ₡2,138

-14.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.80 CA$5.42

$1.66 ₡747

128.92%

Potato (1kg)

$2.33 CA$3.32

$3.72 ₡1,679

-37.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.58 CA$2.25

$3.57 ₡1,611

-55.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.17 CA$3.09

$1.10 ₡497

97.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 CA$1.85

$2.55 ₡1,149

-49.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.33 CA$17.58

$4.95 ₡2,232

149.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.26 CA$18.90

$20.01 ₡9,020

-33.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.45 CA$3.49

$2.79 ₡1,256

-12.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.37 CA$4.81

$3.53 ₡1,589

-4.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.49 CA$3.55

$1.19 ₡537

109.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$85.6 CA$122

$72.1 ₡32.5K

18.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.40 CA$4.85

$2.24 ₡1,011

51.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.23 CA$1.75

$1.55 ₡701

-20.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.37 CA$33.32

$8.86 ₡3,993

163.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.19 CA$1.70

$1.57 ₡708

-24.20%

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

$27.5K CA$39.2K

$21.8K ₡9.8M

26.26%

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

$19.9K CA$28.3K

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-42.59%

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

$149 CA$212

$93.5 ₡42.1K

59.50%

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

$41.14 CA$58.7

$35.11 ₡15.8K

17.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.32 CA$70.3

$51.5 ₡23.2K

-4.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.18 CA$53.0

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-47.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.33 CA$24.71

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-51.10%

Cinema Ticket

$10.19 CA$14.52

$7.84 ₡3,535

29.97%

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

$597 CA$852

$490 ₡220.7K

22.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.2K CA$23.1K

$11.9K ₡5.4M

36.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.29 CA$68.8

$53.5 ₡24.1K

-9.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.75 CA$43.83

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-44.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.2 CA$123

$79.3 ₡35.7K

8.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 CA$163

$78.9 ₡35.6K

45.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,263 CA$1,801

$786 ₡354.3K

60.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,135 CA$1,617

$780 ₡351.6K

45.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,006 CA$2,859

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-48.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,869 CA$2,664

$1,407 ₡634.4K

32.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,659 CA$3,790

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-61.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,694 CA$3,840

$1,201 ₡541.3K

124.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,896 CA$4,128

$876 ₡395.0K

230.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.6

8.62

-46.64%

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

Last update for Hamilton: October 6, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hamilton

$1.1K 50.2%

Nosara

$780 43% 31.3% $355

Groceries & Markets

Hamilton

$327 14.5%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 6.9% $23

Eating Out

Hamilton

$271 12%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 22.6% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hamilton

$240 10.6%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 24.8% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Hamilton

$126 5.6%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 4.4% $5.5

Getting Around

Hamilton

$105 4.7%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 17.4% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Hamilton

$58 2.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 51.3% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,263 in Hamilton and $786 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hamilton pays 230% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $61.0 in Hamilton vs $60.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $327 vs $350, with Hamilton cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Hamilton

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

01:45 1:45 AM

23:45 11:45 PM

2 h behind Hamilton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

519,949

4,912

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 CAD (1 CAD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.626 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hamilton Nosara 3,740 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Hamilton
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

Hamilton vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and transport. The 22% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 230% higher in Hamilton, 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: $1,263 in Hamilton versus $786 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $597 in Hamilton versus $490 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Hamilton pay roughly 7% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,837 in Nosara versus $2,237 in Hamilton, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Hamilton. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Nosara is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Hamilton, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Hamilton 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 22% less than in Hamilton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.