Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kuressaare and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Kuressaare: $1,493 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Kuressaare
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Kuressaare Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

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Kuressaare

🇪🇪 Estonia

$1,493

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,493 per month in Kuressaare vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Kuressaare $1,493
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $2,215 per month in Kuressaare vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Kuressaare $2,215
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $2,937 per month in Kuressaare vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Kuressaare $2,937
Nosara $3,818

Kuressaare is about 19% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Kuressaare and Nosara sit above the global median – Kuressaare by 11%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.17 €11.71

$12.35 ₡5,539

6.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.6

$61.2 ₡27.4K

11.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.15 €8.14

$7.52 ₡3,373

21.68%

Cappuccino

$4.02 €3.58

$4.41 ₡1,978

-8.84%

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

$3.42 €3.04

$1.74 ₡780

96.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 €2.54

$1.31 ₡587

117.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.45 €5.74

$3.28 ₡1,471

96.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.71 €5.08

$4.47 ₡2,004

27.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.05

$1.56 ₡701

-25.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.70

$3.02 ₡1,355

-36.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.37 €2.11

$2.51 ₡1,125

-5.58%

Eggs

$2.94 €2.61

$3.57 ₡1,603

-17.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.46 €11.08

$7.43 ₡3,333

67.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.75 €7.78

$10.52 ₡4,717

-16.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 €13.06

$13.97 ₡6,265

5.15%

Apples (1kg)

$1.76 €1.57

$2.35 ₡1,052

-25.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.61 ₡720

-6.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.40 €2.13

$4.80 ₡2,152

-50.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.95 €2.62

$1.61 ₡724

83.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 €0.93

$3.80 ₡1,703

-72.63%

Onion (1kg)

$0.90 €0.80

$3.69 ₡1,657

-75.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.87 €1.67

$1.13 ₡507

65.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 €1.05

$2.66 ₡1,191

-55.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.82 €6.07

$5.18 ₡2,321

31.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.33 €9.19

$19.88 ₡8,916

-48.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 €1.67

$2.90 ₡1,300

-35.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 €2.01

$3.63 ₡1,626

-37.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.12 ₡504

94.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.78 €24.71

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-61.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.49 €3.10

$2.14 ₡958

63.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 €0.88

$1.57 ₡703

-36.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.97 €23.99

$8.52 ₡3,823

216.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.00 €1.78

$1.52 ₡682

31.58%

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

$27.4K €24.4K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

26.80%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-12.92%

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

$309 €275

$96.3 ₡43.2K

221.28%

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

$11.30 €10.05

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-68.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.12 €31.24

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-34.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.03 €30.27

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-52.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$11.74 €10.45

$7.89 ₡3,539

48.80%

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

$438 €389

$494 ₡221.6K

-11.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K €10.4K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-1.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$111 €98.9

$53.9 ₡24.2K

106.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.47 €43.12

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-12.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.4

$77.9 ₡34.9K

33.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €107

$79.6 ₡35.7K

51.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$505 €450

$788 ₡353.4K

-35.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 €295

$794 ₡356.2K

-58.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$668 €594

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-83.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$501 €446

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-64.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,122 €3,666

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-40.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,475 €2,202

$1,224 ₡549.0K

102.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,293 €1,150

$864 ₡387.3K

49.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.93

8.62

-54.41%

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

Last update for Kuressaare: October 11, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kuressaare

$356 23.8%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 47.8% $170

Accommodation & Living

Kuressaare

$332 22.2%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 139% $463

Groceries & Markets

Kuressaare

$281 18.8%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 25.5% $72

Eating Out

Kuressaare

$250 16.7%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 15.2% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Kuressaare

$173 11.6%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 30.6% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Kuressaare

$58 3.9%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 51.9% $30

Getting Around

Kuressaare

$45 3%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 93.8% $42

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $505 in Kuressaare 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 50% higher in Kuressaare, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68.0 in Kuressaare versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $281 in Kuressaare vs $352 in Nosara – so Kuressaare wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇪🇪 Kuressaare

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

05:34 5:34 AM

20:34 8:34 PM

9 h behind Kuressaare

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,170

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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Highest

Between locations

Kuressaare Nosara 10,100 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Kuressaare
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

Kuressaare vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Nosara is pricier by about 23%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,240 per month in Kuressaare 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 Kuressaare, 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 $1,493 in Kuressaare and $1,839 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 23%.

Public transport costs about 161% less in Kuressaare. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Kuressaare, where all-in costs run around $1,493, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Kuressaare it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kuressaare – 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 Kuressaare. 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.