Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hillcrest and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Hillcrest: $1,084 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Hillcrest
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Hillcrest Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Hillcrest

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,084

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,084 per month in Hillcrest vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Hillcrest $1,084
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $1,681 per month in Hillcrest vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Hillcrest $1,681
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $2,279 per month in Hillcrest vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Hillcrest $2,279
Nosara $3,818

Hillcrest is about 41% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Hillcrest sits 20% below the global median, while Nosara is 36% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.59 R 125

$12.35 ₡5,539

-38.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.42 R 633

$61.2 ₡27.4K

-37.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.87 R 96.8

$7.52 ₡3,373

-21.94%

Cappuccino

$2.74 R 45.17

$4.41 ₡1,978

-37.87%

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

$1.08 R 17.77

$1.74 ₡780

-37.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 R 13.64

$1.31 ₡587

-36.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.38 R 39.22

$3.28 ₡1,471

-27.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 R 41.26

$4.47 ₡2,004

-44.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 R 20.34

$1.56 ₡701

-21.15%

White Bread (500g)

$0.91 R 15.06

$3.02 ₡1,355

-69.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.36

$2.51 ₡1,125

-41.04%

Eggs

$2.42 R 39.88

$3.57 ₡1,603

-32.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.19 R 135

$7.43 ₡3,333

10.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.14 R 84.8

$10.52 ₡4,717

-51.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.05 R 116

$13.97 ₡6,265

-49.53%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 R 21.23

$2.35 ₡1,052

-45.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 R 30.55

$1.61 ₡720

14.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.34

$4.80 ₡2,152

-60.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.46

$1.61 ₡724

3.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.43

$3.80 ₡1,703

-61.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.44 R 23.79

$3.69 ₡1,657

-60.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 R 19.73

$1.13 ₡507

6.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 R 19.01

$2.66 ₡1,191

-56.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.54 R 58.4

$5.18 ₡2,321

-31.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.92 R 81.1

$19.88 ₡8,916

-75.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.83

$2.90 ₡1,300

-52.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 R 30.21

$3.63 ₡1,626

-49.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 R 24.09

$1.12 ₡504

30.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 R 6.66

$2.14 ₡958

-81.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 R 11.69

$1.57 ₡703

-54.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.55 R 124

$8.52 ₡3,823

-11.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 R 25.06

$1.52 ₡682

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

$35.3K R 580.9K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

63.18%

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

$30.8K R 506.8K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-10.87%

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

$143 R 2,362

$96.3 ₡43.2K

48.89%

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

$35.68 R 588

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-0.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.15 R 645

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-26.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.67 R 522

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-55.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.82 R 178

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-69.01%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 R 116

$7.89 ₡3,539

-10.65%

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

$308 R 5,078

$494 ₡221.6K

-37.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,586 R 125.0K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-36.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 R 888

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-0.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.76 R 490

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-46.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.3 R 1,620

$77.9 ₡34.9K

26.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.9 R 1,382

$79.6 ₡35.7K

5.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$397 R 6,544

$788 ₡353.4K

-49.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 R 6,029

$794 ₡356.2K

-53.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$730 R 12.0K

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-81.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$734 R 12.1K

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-48.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$882 R 14.5K

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-87.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$659 R 10.9K

$1,224 ₡549.0K

-46.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.78

8.62

36.66%

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

Last update for Hillcrest: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hillcrest

$366 33.8%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 117% $428

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hillcrest

$218 20.1%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 14.9% $32

Groceries & Markets

Hillcrest

$188 17.4%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 87% $164

Eating Out

Hillcrest

$136 12.5%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 56% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Hillcrest

$120 11%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 0.4% $0.5

Sport & Entertainment

Hillcrest

$46 4.2%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 90.8% $42

Getting Around

Hillcrest

$9.8 * 0.9%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 789% $77

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $397 in Hillcrest versus $788 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 $38.00 in Hillcrest versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $188 vs $352 – making Hillcrest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Hillcrest

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

10:16 10:16 AM

02:16 2:16 AM

8 h behind Hillcrest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hillcrest Nosara 13,100 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Hillcrest
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

Hillcrest vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,084 in Hillcrest, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 70% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,625 per month in Hillcrest and $2,758 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38.00 in Hillcrest and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 87% more in Nosara, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Hillcrest, where all-in costs run around $1,084, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Hillcrest 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 $1,084 in Hillcrest to $1,839 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 Hillcrest. 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.