Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kampong Thom and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Kampong Thom: $599 a month against $1,835 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $14,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Kampong Thom
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Kampong Thom Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Kampong Thom

🇰🇭 Cambodia

$599

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $599 per month in Kampong Thom vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Kampong Thom $599
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $979 per month in Kampong Thom vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Kampong Thom $979
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $1,359 per month in Kampong Thom vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Kampong Thom $1,359
Nosara $3,814

Kampong Thom is about 67% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Kampong Thom sits 56% below the global median, while Nosara is 35% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.90 ៛15.8K

$12.34 ₡5,535

-68.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.16 ៛159.1K

$61.3 ₡27.5K

-36.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.19 ៛29.2K

$7.76 ₡3,481

-7.35%

Cappuccino

$2.87 ៛11.7K

$4.44 ₡1,992

-35.36%

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

$1.78 ៛7,244

$1.79 ₡803

-0.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.61 ៛2,478

$1.29 ₡580

-52.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.02 ៛4,140

$3.24 ₡1,451

-68.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 ៛12.1K

$4.43 ₡1,985

-32.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.19 ៛8,891

$1.55 ₡696

41.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 ៛6,398

$3.08 ₡1,380

-48.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.11 ៛4,508

$2.53 ₡1,133

-56.13%

Eggs

$1.76 ៛7,158

$3.45 ₡1,546

-48.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.96 ៛60.8K

$7.32 ₡3,284

104.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.07 ៛16.5K

$10.24 ₡4,594

-60.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.97 ៛36.4K

$14.10 ₡6,326

-36.38%

Apples (1kg)

$3.83 ៛15.5K

$2.29 ₡1,027

67.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ៛6,893

$1.64 ₡737

3.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.23 ៛17.2K

$4.79 ₡2,149

-11.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 ៛8,518

$1.64 ₡735

28.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.64 ៛6,648

$3.85 ₡1,727

-57.40%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 ៛5,143

$3.75 ₡1,681

-66.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ៛4,665

$1.09 ₡488

5.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 ៛3,156

$2.59 ₡1,160

-69.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.92 ៛7,809

$5.12 ₡2,295

-62.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.83 ៛44.0K

$19.92 ₡8,931

-45.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ៛3,891

$2.80 ₡1,255

-65.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.82 ៛7,381

$3.52 ₡1,580

-48.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 ₡549

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.9 ₡33.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.12 ៛4,550

$2.17 ₡973

-48.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 ៛3,960

$1.56 ₡698

-37.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.04 ៛20.5K

$8.67 ₡3,886

-41.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 ៛5,583

$1.55 ₡697

-11.61%

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

$35.0K ៛142.3M

$34.5K ₡15.5M

1.40%

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

$44.2K ៛179.6M

$38.7K ₡17.4M

14.10%

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

$104 ៛424.4K

$94.8 ₡42.5K

10.20%

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

$7.37 ៛29.9K

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-79.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.42 ៛99.2K

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-53.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.8 ₡33.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.63 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$5.02 ៛20.4K

$7.91 ₡3,548

-36.54%

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

$659 ៛2.7M

$490 ₡219.9K

34.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K ៛44.6M

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-7.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.64 ៛112.3K

$54.8 ₡24.6K

-49.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.04 ៛97.6K

$55.9 ₡25.1K

-56.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.7 ៛364.4K

$80.4 ₡36.0K

11.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.0 ៛235.8K

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-25.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$801 ₡359.1K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$790 ₡354.1K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,005 ₡1.8M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,409 ₡632.0K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,064 ₡3.2M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,236 ₡554.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.07

8.62

-6.38%

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

Last update for Kampong Thom: October 19, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Kampong Thom

$249 41.6%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 40.2% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kampong Thom

$136 22.7%

Nosara

$184 10% 35% $48

Eating Out

Kampong Thom

$108 18%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 97.2% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Kampong Thom

$90 15%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 34.8% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Kampong Thom

$10 * 1.7%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 792% $80

Getting Around

Kampong Thom

$6 * 1%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 1379% $83

Accommodation & Living

Kampong Thom

- * 0%

Nosara

$790 43%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $39.00 in Kampong Thom versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $249 vs $350 – making Kampong Thom the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇭 Kampong Thom

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

03:12 3:12 AM

14:12 2:12 PM

13 h behind Kampong Thom

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,951

4,912

💱 Currency

Cambodian Riel KHR ៛

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KHR = 2.46 USD

10,000 KHR = 2.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to KHR – Cambodian Riel Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇭 Cambodian Riel (៛)

Cambodian Riel exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4,062 KHR (10,000 KHR = 2.46 USD). 1 EUR = 4,567 KHR (10,000 KHR = 2.19 EUR).

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 KHR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kampong Thom Nosara 17,240 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Kampong Thom
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

Kampong Thom vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Nosara is pricier by about 206%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $899 per month in Kampong Thom and $2,753 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $599 in Kampong Thom and $1,835 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 206%.

Kindergarten costs $659 per month in Kampong Thom and $490 in Nosara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Kampong Thom, where all-in costs run around $599, than in Nosara at $1,835. In Kampong Thom it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kampong Thom – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Kampong Thom. 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.