Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kingston and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,837 a month against $2,224 in Kingston, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

108

Cost of Living Index in Kingston
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Kingston Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Kingston

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,224

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,224 per month in Kingston vs $1,837 in Nosara, rent included.

Kingston $2,224
Nosara $1,837

A couple spends around $3,051 per month in Kingston vs $2,775 in Nosara, rent included.

Kingston $3,051
Nosara $2,775

A family of three spends $3,879 per month in Kingston vs $3,712 in Nosara, rent included.

Kingston $3,879
Nosara $3,712

Kingston costs about 21% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Kingston and Nosara sit above the global median – Kingston by 66%, Nosara by 37%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.71 CA$20.97

$12.22 ₡5,509

20.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.7 CA$89.3

$60.2 ₡27.1K

4.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.17 CA$15.92

$7.54 ₡3,399

48.14%

Cappuccino

$3.51 CA$5.00

$4.31 ₡1,941

-18.56%

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

$2.01 CA$2.87

$1.72 ₡773

16.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 CA$1.86

$1.35 ₡608

-2.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.87 CA$8.37

$3.24 ₡1,459

81.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.27 CA$8.93

$4.48 ₡2,018

39.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.04 CA$2.90

$1.57 ₡707

29.94%

White Bread (500g)

$2.44 CA$3.48

$3.17 ₡1,429

-23.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.29 CA$4.69

$2.42 ₡1,091

35.95%

Eggs

$2.90 CA$4.14

$3.57 ₡1,609

-18.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.27 CA$14.64

$7.43 ₡3,349

38.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.31 CA$16.12

$10.42 ₡4,697

8.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.99 CA$14.24

$13.66 ₡6,156

-26.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.89 CA$4.12

$2.32 ₡1,044

24.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.14 CA$1.63

$1.61 ₡728

-29.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.51 CA$5.00

$4.74 ₡2,138

-25.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.55 CA$5.06

$1.66 ₡747

113.86%

Potato (1kg)

$3.30 CA$4.71

$3.72 ₡1,679

-11.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.24 CA$3.19

$3.57 ₡1,611

-37.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.61 CA$3.72

$1.10 ₡497

137.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 CA$2.26

$2.55 ₡1,149

-38.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.40 CA$19.10

$4.95 ₡2,232

170.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.16 CA$17.33

$20.01 ₡9,020

-39.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 CA$3.09

$2.79 ₡1,256

-22.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 CA$4.68

$3.53 ₡1,589

-7.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.48 CA$3.54

$1.19 ₡537

108.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.2 CA$80.0

$72.1 ₡32.5K

-22.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.07 CA$4.37

$2.24 ₡1,011

37.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 CA$2.14

$1.55 ₡701

-3.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.06 CA$44.27

$8.86 ₡3,993

250.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.14 CA$1.63

$1.57 ₡708

-27.39%

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

$27.6K CA$39.3K

$21.8K ₡9.8M

26.41%

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

$18.7K CA$26.7K

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-45.98%

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

$120 CA$171

$93.5 ₡42.1K

28.50%

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

$38.49 CA$54.9

$35.11 ₡15.8K

9.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$63.2 CA$90.1

$51.5 ₡23.2K

22.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.06 CA$40.00

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-60.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.84 CA$12.60

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-75.06%

Cinema Ticket

$10.41 CA$14.84

$7.84 ₡3,535

32.78%

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

$514 CA$733

$490 ₡220.7K

5.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 CA$73.7

$53.5 ₡24.1K

-3.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.55 CA$46.39

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-41.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 CA$114

$79.3 ₡35.7K

0.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.3 CA$122

$78.9 ₡35.6K

8.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,535 CA$2,188

$786 ₡354.3K

95.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,181 CA$1,684

$780 ₡351.6K

51.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,287 CA$3,260

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-40.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,544 CA$2,201

$1,407 ₡634.4K

9.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,384 CA$4,824

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-51.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,449 CA$3,491

$1,201 ₡541.3K

103.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,979 CA$4,246

$876 ₡395.0K

239.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.61

8.62

-46.52%

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

Last update for Kingston: October 5, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kingston

$1.2K 53.3%

Nosara

$780 43% 34% $401

Groceries & Markets

Kingston

$326 14.7%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 7.4% $24

Eating Out

Kingston

$248 11.2%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 15.7% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kingston

$222 10%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 18.8% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Kingston

$112 5.1%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 7.3% $8.2

Getting Around

Kingston

$77 3.5%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 13.3% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Kingston

$49 2.2%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 78.2% $38

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,535 in Kingston versus $786 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 240% higher in Kingston, 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 $63.0 in Kingston versus $60.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $326 in Kingston vs $350 in Nosara – so Kingston wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Kingston

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

04:48 4:48 AM

02:48 2:48 AM

2 h behind Kingston

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

123,363

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

Kingston Nosara 3,910 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Kingston
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

Kingston vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,224 in Kingston, $1,837 in Nosara – roughly 21% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,336 per month in Kingston and $2,756 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,224 in Kingston and $1,837 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 21%.

Public transport costs about 28% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,837, than in Kingston at $2,224. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Kingston 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 $1,837 in Nosara to $2,224 in Kingston. 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 Nosara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Kingston makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.