Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hanoi and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Hanoi: $805 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $12,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Hanoi
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Hanoi Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

Jump to prices

Hanoi

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$805

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $805 in Hanoi versus $1,837 in Nosara.

Hanoi $805
Nosara $1,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,254 in Hanoi versus $2,775 in Nosara.

Hanoi $1,254
Nosara $2,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,704 in Hanoi versus $3,712 in Nosara.

Hanoi $1,704
Nosara $3,712

Living in Hanoi costs roughly 56% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Hanoi is 40% below, Nosara is 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.09 ₫54.0K

$12.22 ₡5,509

-82.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.19 ₫600.3K

$60.2 ₡27.1K

-61.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.49 ₫116.2K

$7.54 ₡3,399

-40.45%

Cappuccino

$1.87 ₫48.3K

$4.31 ₡1,941

-56.61%

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

$0.47 ₫12.3K

$1.72 ₡773

-72.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ₫7,655

$1.35 ₡608

-77.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.10 ₫28.4K

$3.24 ₡1,459

-66.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 ₫50.3K

$4.48 ₡2,018

-56.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 ₫38.3K

$1.57 ₡707

-5.73%

White Bread (500g)

$1.10 ₫28.4K

$3.17 ₡1,429

-65.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 ₫19.4K

$2.42 ₡1,091

-69.01%

Eggs

$1.50 ₫38.8K

$3.57 ₡1,609

-57.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.36 ₫268.0K

$7.43 ₡3,349

39.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.79 ₫98.1K

$10.42 ₡4,697

-63.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.91 ₫256.3K

$13.66 ₡6,156

-27.45%

Apples (1kg)

$3.37 ₫87.2K

$2.32 ₡1,044

45.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 ₫26.8K

$1.61 ₡728

-36.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.31 ₫33.9K

$4.74 ₡2,138

-72.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 ₫29.4K

$1.66 ₡747

-31.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 ₫25.5K

$3.72 ₡1,679

-73.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.08 ₫28.1K

$3.57 ₡1,611

-69.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.57 ₫14.8K

$1.10 ₡497

-48.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ₫14.1K

$2.55 ₡1,149

-78.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.44 ₫37.2K

$4.95 ₡2,232

-70.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.74 ₫329.7K

$20.01 ₡9,020

-36.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 ₫23.0K

$2.79 ₡1,256

-68.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.6K

$3.53 ₡1,589

-51.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 ₫10.2K

$1.19 ₡537

-67.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.43 ₫244.1K

$72.1 ₡32.5K

-86.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₫19.2K

$2.24 ₡1,011

-66.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 ₫15.7K

$1.55 ₡701

-60.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.29 ₫59.3K

$8.86 ₡3,993

-74.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 ₫23.3K

$1.57 ₡708

-42.68%

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

$31.2K ₫807.9M

$21.8K ₡9.8M

43.18%

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

$29.9K ₫772.6M

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-13.81%

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

$86.3 ₫2.2M

$93.5 ₡42.1K

-7.66%

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

$5.30 ₫137.3K

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-84.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.95 ₫231.6K

$51.5 ₡23.2K

-82.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.82 ₫642.4K

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-65.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.62 ₫249.0K

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-72.86%

Cinema Ticket

$4.28 ₫110.7K

$7.84 ₡3,535

-45.41%

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

$755 ₫19.6M

$490 ₡220.7K

54.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.7K ₫716.1M

$11.9K ₡5.4M

132.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.39 ₫1.3M

$53.5 ₡24.1K

-9.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.60 ₫688.3K

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-52.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.3 ₫2.2M

$79.3 ₡35.7K

6.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.3 ₫2.0M

$78.9 ₡35.6K

-2.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$414 ₫10.7M

$786 ₡354.3K

-47.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$278 ₫7.2M

$780 ₡351.6K

-64.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$873 ₫22.6M

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-77.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$536 ₫13.9M

$1,407 ₡634.4K

-61.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,285 ₫136.8M

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-24.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,798 ₫72.4M

$1,201 ₡541.3K

133.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$518 ₫13.4M

$876 ₡395.0K

-40.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.28

8.62

-3.94%

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

Last update for Hanoi: 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

Hanoi

$278 35%

Nosara

$780 43% 181% $502

Groceries & Markets

Hanoi

$196 24.7%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 78.4% $154

Clothing & Footwear

Hanoi

$106 13.4%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 13.1% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hanoi

$101 12.7%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 79.1% $80

Eating Out

Hanoi

$65 8.2%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 222% $144

Sport & Entertainment

Hanoi

$33 4.2%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 161% $54

Getting Around

Hanoi

$15 1.9%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 488% $72

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $414 in Hanoi and $786 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 69% 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: $23.00 in Hanoi vs $60.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $196 vs $350 per month, with Hanoi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Hanoi

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

07:31 7:31 AM

18:31 6:31 PM

13 h behind Hanoi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,587,100 Capital

4,912

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.45 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to VND – Vietnamese Dong Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇳 Vietnamese Dong (₫)

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 25,879 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,025 VND (100,000 VND = 3.45 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 VND in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hanoi Nosara 16,350 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Hanoi
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

Hanoi vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hanoi and Nosara differ by about 128% in total monthly costs ($805 vs $1,837 including rent). Hanoi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 69% lower in Nosara. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $414 in Hanoi versus $786 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Hanoi runs roughly 664% less than in Nosara. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $755 in Hanoi versus $490 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $805 in Hanoi versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Hanoi but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Hanoi 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, Hanoi 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 Hanoi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 128% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.