Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lacey, WA and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,713 in Lacey, WA, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

132

Cost of Living Index in Lacey, WA
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Lacey, WA Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Lacey, WA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,713

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,713 in Lacey, WA versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Lacey, WA $2,713
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,810 in Lacey, WA versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Lacey, WA $3,810
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,907 in Lacey, WA versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Lacey, WA $4,907
Nosara $3,818

Living in Lacey, WA is roughly 48% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lacey, WA 101% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.13 $25.13

$12.35 ₡5,539

103.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.8 $70.8

$61.2 ₡27.4K

15.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.98 $14.98

$7.52 ₡3,373

99.20%

Cappuccino

$6.75 $6.75

$4.41 ₡1,978

53.06%

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

$3.27 $3.27

$1.74 ₡780

87.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 $2.94

$1.31 ₡587

124.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.14 $8.14

$3.28 ₡1,471

148.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.14 $8.14

$4.47 ₡2,004

82.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 $1.11

$1.56 ₡701

-28.85%

White Bread (500g)

$4.61 $4.61

$3.02 ₡1,355

52.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.17 $3.17

$2.51 ₡1,125

26.29%

Eggs

$5.06 $5.06

$3.57 ₡1,603

41.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.05 $18.05

$7.43 ₡3,333

142.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.77 $10.77

$10.52 ₡4,717

2.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.60 $16.60

$13.97 ₡6,265

18.83%

Apples (1kg)

$5.07 $5.07

$2.35 ₡1,052

115.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 $1.66

$1.61 ₡720

3.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.07 $4.07

$4.80 ₡2,152

-15.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.66 $4.66

$1.61 ₡724

189.44%

Potato (1kg)

$2.69 $2.69

$3.80 ₡1,703

-29.21%

Onion (1kg)

$2.43 $2.43

$3.69 ₡1,657

-34.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.87 $2.87

$1.13 ₡507

153.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.46 $2.46

$2.66 ₡1,191

-7.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.53 $12.53

$5.18 ₡2,321

141.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.10 $15.10

$19.88 ₡8,916

-24.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.39 $2.39

$2.90 ₡1,300

-17.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 $2.32

$3.63 ₡1,626

-36.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.23 $2.23

$1.12 ₡504

99.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.64 $2.64

$2.14 ₡958

23.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.71 $1.71

$1.57 ₡703

8.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.77 $29.77

$8.52 ₡3,823

249.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 $1.36

$1.52 ₡682

-10.53%

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

$36.5K $36.5K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

68.74%

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

$26.0K $26.0K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-24.61%

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

$217 $217

$96.3 ₡43.2K

125.44%

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

$69.5 $69.5

$35.89 ₡16.1K

93.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$93.5 $93.5

$53.6 ₡24.0K

74.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.35 $42.35

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-40.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$12.71 $12.71

$7.89 ₡3,539

61.09%

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

$1,456 $1,456

$494 ₡221.6K

194.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$31.2K $31.2K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

162.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.47 $44.47

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-17.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.9 $53.9

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-2.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.5 $88.5

$77.9 ₡34.9K

13.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 $100

$79.6 ₡35.7K

26.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,674 $1,674

$788 ₡353.4K

112.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,283 $1,283

$794 ₡356.2K

61.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,816 $2,816

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-28.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,842 $1,842

$1,419 ₡636.5K

29.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,007 $3,007

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-56.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,138 $2,138

$1,224 ₡549.0K

74.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,295 $4,295

$864 ₡387.3K

397.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.81

8.62

-21.00%

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

Last update for Lacey, WA: 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

Lacey, WA

$1.3K 47.3%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 38.1% $489

Groceries & Markets

Lacey, WA

$424 15.6%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 16.8% $71

Eating Out

Lacey, WA

$409 15.1%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 48.2% $197

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lacey, WA

$380 14%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 51.1% $194

Clothing & Footwear

Lacey, WA

$129 4.8%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 7.1% $9.2

Sport & Entertainment

Lacey, WA

$68 2.5%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 28.9% $20

Getting Around

Lacey, WA

$20 * 0.7%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 333% $67

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,674 in Lacey, WA and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lacey, WA pays 397% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $71.0 in Lacey, WA vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $424 vs $352 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Lacey, WA

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

10:36 10:36 AM

11:36 11:36 AM

1 h ahead of Lacey, WA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

53,526

4,912

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.889 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.889 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).

CRC to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Lacey, WA Nosara 5,400 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Lacey, WA
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

Lacey, WA vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 48% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 397% higher in Lacey, WA, 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: $1,674 in Lacey, WA versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,456 in Lacey, WA versus $494 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Nosara – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $71.0 in Lacey, WA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,713 in Lacey, WA, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Lacey, WA. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Lacey, WA 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 Nosara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 48% less than in Lacey, WA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.