Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ilford and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,414 in Ilford, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Ilford
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Ilford Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Ilford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,414

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,414 per month in Ilford vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Ilford $2,414
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,764 per month in Ilford vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Ilford $3,764
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $5,115 per month in Ilford vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Ilford $5,115
Nosara $3,818

Ilford costs about 31% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ilford and Nosara sit above the global median – Ilford by 79%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.28 £15.97

$12.35 ₡5,539

72.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.9 £70.5

$61.2 ₡27.4K

53.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.51 £7.89

$7.52 ₡3,373

39.76%

Cappuccino

$4.60 £3.45

$4.41 ₡1,978

4.31%

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

$2.81 £2.11

$1.74 ₡780

61.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 £1.38

$1.31 ₡587

39.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.91 £5.93

$3.28 ₡1,471

141.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.43 £4.82

$4.47 ₡2,004

43.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.56 ₡701

5.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 £1.29

$3.02 ₡1,355

-43.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 £1.72

$2.51 ₡1,125

-8.37%

Eggs

$4.60 £3.45

$3.57 ₡1,603

28.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.46 £7.09

$7.43 ₡3,333

27.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 £7.21

$10.52 ₡4,717

-8.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.45 £11.59

$13.97 ₡6,265

10.59%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 £2.21

$2.35 ₡1,052

25.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.06

$1.61 ₡720

-12.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.96 £2.22

$4.80 ₡2,152

-38.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.28 £2.46

$1.61 ₡724

103.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.25

$3.80 ₡1,703

-56.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 £1.33

$3.69 ₡1,657

-52.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 £0.96

$1.13 ₡507

13.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 £1.33

$2.66 ₡1,191

-33.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.20 £16.65

$5.18 ₡2,321

328.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.88 £8.16

$19.88 ₡8,916

-45.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.04 £2.28

$2.90 ₡1,300

4.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.92 £2.94

$3.63 ₡1,626

7.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.43 £2.57

$1.12 ₡504

206.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$97.6 £73.2

$72.6 ₡32.6K

34.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 £4.05

$2.14 ₡958

151.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.61 £1.96

$1.57 ₡703

66.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.45 £19.09

$8.52 ₡3,823

198.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 £1.58

$1.52 ₡682

38.82%

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

$38.9K £29.2K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

80.21%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

18.57%

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

$334 £250

$96.3 ₡43.2K

246.37%

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

$18.31 £13.73

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-48.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.86 £30.65

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-23.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.93 £33.70

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-37.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$17.09 £12.82

$7.89 ₡3,539

116.60%

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

$2,535 £1,902

$494 ₡221.6K

413.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.1K £26.3K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

195.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.0 £66.0

$53.9 ₡24.2K

63.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.25 £34.69

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-16.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.0 £69.8

$77.9 ₡34.9K

19.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.2 £72.1

$79.6 ₡35.7K

20.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,350 £1,013

$788 ₡353.4K

71.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 £768

$794 ₡356.2K

28.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,960 £2,221

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-24.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,099 £1,575

$1,419 ₡636.5K

47.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,983 £3,738

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-27.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,831 £2,874

$1,224 ₡549.0K

212.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,485 £2,614

$864 ₡387.3K

303.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.04

8.62

-41.53%

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

Last update for Ilford: 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

Ilford

$1K 42.4%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 22.4% $229

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ilford

$393 16.3%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 52.7% $207

Eating Out

Ilford

$328 13.6%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 35.4% $116

Groceries & Markets

Ilford

$315 13.1%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 11.8% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Ilford

$146 6%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 17.5% $25

Getting Around

Ilford

$130 5.4%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 32.9% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Ilford

$79 3.3%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 10.4% $8.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,350 in Ilford 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.

Salaries run about 304% higher in Ilford, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $94.0 in Ilford versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $315 in Ilford vs $352 in Nosara – so Ilford wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Ilford

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

23:42 11:42 PM

16:42 4:42 PM

7 h behind Ilford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

168,168

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ilford Nosara 8,850 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Ilford
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

Ilford vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ilford costs about 31% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,620 per month in Ilford 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 Nosara, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 12% cheaper in Ilford – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $94.0 in Ilford and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,839, than in Ilford at $2,414. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ilford it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Nosara costs $1,839 versus $2,414 in Ilford. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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