Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kotor and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Kotor: $1,525 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Kotor
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Kotor Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Kotor

🇲🇪 Montenegro

$1,525

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,525 in Kotor versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Kotor $1,525
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,419 in Kotor versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Kotor $2,419
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,313 in Kotor versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Kotor $3,313
Nosara $3,818

Living in Kotor costs roughly 17% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Kotor 13% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.25 €10.00

$12.35 ₡5,539

-8.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.4 €52.8

$61.2 ₡27.4K

-2.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.05 €9.83

$7.52 ₡3,373

46.94%

Cappuccino

$3.09 €2.75

$4.41 ₡1,978

-29.93%

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

$2.52 €2.24

$1.74 ₡780

44.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 €1.34

$1.31 ₡587

15.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.00 €2.67

$3.28 ₡1,471

-8.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.28 €3.81

$4.47 ₡2,004

-4.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 €1.13

$1.56 ₡701

-18.59%

White Bread (500g)

$1.01 €0.90

$3.02 ₡1,355

-66.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 €1.72

$2.51 ₡1,125

-22.71%

Eggs

$3.43 €3.06

$3.57 ₡1,603

-3.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.51 €7.57

$7.43 ₡3,333

14.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.48 €7.54

$10.52 ₡4,717

-19.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.21 €10.86

$13.97 ₡6,265

-12.60%

Apples (1kg)

$1.27 €1.13

$2.35 ₡1,052

-45.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 €1.56

$1.61 ₡720

9.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.47 €1.31

$4.80 ₡2,152

-69.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.33 €2.07

$1.61 ₡724

44.72%

Potato (1kg)

$0.93 €0.83

$3.80 ₡1,703

-75.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 €0.90

$3.69 ₡1,657

-72.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.13 ₡507

28.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 €0.74

$2.66 ₡1,191

-68.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.28 €3.81

$5.18 ₡2,321

-17.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.04 €7.15

$19.88 ₡8,916

-59.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.98

$2.90 ₡1,300

-62.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.54

$3.63 ₡1,626

-52.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.12 ₡504

51.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.88 €39.92

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-38.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 €0.69

$2.14 ₡958

-64.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.14 €1.01

$1.57 ₡703

-27.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.95 €9.74

$8.52 ₡3,823

28.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.71 €1.52

$1.52 ₡682

12.50%

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

$29.1K €25.9K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

34.82%

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

$25.6K €22.7K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-25.92%

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

$126 €112

$96.3 ₡43.2K

31.24%

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

$16.93 €15.06

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-52.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.27 €27.81

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-41.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.95 €39.09

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-38.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.44 €18.18

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-41.45%

Cinema Ticket

$6.49 €5.78

$7.89 ₡3,539

-17.74%

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

$339 €302

$494 ₡221.6K

-31.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,152 €6,362

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-39.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.8 €79.0

$53.9 ₡24.2K

64.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.16 €39.28

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-20.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 €85.5

$77.9 ₡34.9K

23.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 €95.2

$79.6 ₡35.7K

34.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$658 €585

$788 ₡353.4K

-16.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €583

$794 ₡356.2K

-17.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,350 €1,201

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-65.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-8.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,850 €3,425

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-44.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,814 €2,503

$1,224 ₡549.0K

129.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$954 €849

$864 ₡387.3K

10.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.95

8.62

-30.97%

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

Last update for Kotor: October 12, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kotor

$655 43%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 21.2% $139

Groceries & Markets

Kotor

$229 15%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 53.9% $123

Eating Out

Kotor

$200 13.1%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 6% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kotor

$175 11.5%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 6.4% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Kotor

$151 9.9%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 20.6% $31

Getting Around

Kotor

$58 3.8%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 49.9% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Kotor

$57 3.7%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 53.5% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $658 in Kotor and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kotor pays 10% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $59.0 in Kotor vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $229 vs $352 per month, with Kotor cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇪 Kotor

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

07:53 7:53 AM

23:53 11:53 PM

8 h behind Kotor

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,000

4,912

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kotor Nosara 10,420 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Kotor
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

Kotor vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kotor is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. The 21% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 10% higher in Kotor, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $658 in Kotor versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $339 in Kotor versus $494 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 54% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,525 in Kotor versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Kotor but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Kotor the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Kotor is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Nosara, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Kotor 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 Kotor gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.