Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lapu-Lapu and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Lapu-Lapu: $845 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

41

Cost of Living Index in Lapu-Lapu
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Lapu-Lapu Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Lapu-Lapu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$845

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $845 in Lapu-Lapu versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Lapu-Lapu $845
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,195 in Lapu-Lapu versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Lapu-Lapu $1,195
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,545 in Lapu-Lapu versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Lapu-Lapu $1,545
Nosara $3,818

Living in Lapu-Lapu costs roughly 54% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lapu-Lapu is 37% below, Nosara is 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.95 ₱186

$12.35 ₡5,539

-76.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.86 ₱998

$61.2 ₡27.4K

-74.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.90 ₱246

$7.52 ₡3,373

-48.14%

Cappuccino

$2.54 ₱160

$4.41 ₡1,978

-42.40%

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

$0.58 ₱36.53

$1.74 ₡780

-66.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.38 ₱23.93

$1.31 ₡587

-70.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.29 ₱80.9

$3.28 ₡1,471

-60.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 ₱142

$4.47 ₡2,004

-49.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 ₱111

$1.56 ₡701

12.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.42 ₱89.2

$3.02 ₡1,355

-52.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.94 ₱59.5

$2.51 ₡1,125

-62.55%

Eggs

$2.04 ₱129

$3.57 ₡1,603

-42.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.68 ₱358

$7.43 ₡3,333

-23.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.45 ₱280

$10.52 ₡4,717

-57.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.71 ₱486

$13.97 ₡6,265

-44.81%

Apples (1kg)

$3.36 ₱211

$2.35 ₡1,052

42.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ₱91.5

$1.61 ₡720

-9.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 ₱149

$4.80 ₡2,152

-50.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 ₱97.1

$1.61 ₡724

-4.35%

Potato (1kg)

$2.39 ₱151

$3.80 ₡1,703

-37.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.98 ₱125

$3.69 ₡1,657

-46.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱75.2

$1.13 ₡507

5.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 ₱42.80

$2.66 ₡1,191

-74.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.62 ₱102

$5.18 ₡2,321

-68.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.07 ₱256

$19.88 ₡8,916

-79.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 ₱65.9

$2.90 ₡1,300

-63.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 ₱95.2

$3.63 ₡1,626

-58.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.81

$1.12 ₡504

-77.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₱46.77

$2.14 ₡958

-65.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.51

$1.57 ₡703

-85.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.90 ₱246

$8.52 ₡3,823

-54.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ₱83.4

$1.52 ₡682

-12.50%

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

$21.5K ₱1.4M

$21.6K ₡9.7M

-0.36%

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

$19.6K ₱1.2M

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-43.36%

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

$120 ₱7,559

$96.3 ₡43.2K

24.70%

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

$13.99 ₱881

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-61.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.04 ₱1,765

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-47.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$12.62 ₱795

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-82.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$5.60 ₱353

$7.89 ₡3,539

-29.02%

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

$103 ₱6,509

$494 ₡221.6K

-79.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,848 ₱494.1K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-33.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.78 ₱3,008

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-11.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.45 ₱1,603

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-54.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$23.86 ₱1,502

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-69.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.5 ₱3,683

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-26.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$437 ₱27.5K

$788 ₡353.4K

-44.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$317 ₱19.9K

$794 ₡356.2K

-60.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,214 ₱76.4K

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-69.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$473 ₱29.8K

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-66.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$229 ₱14.4K

$864 ₡387.3K

-73.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

8.62

-16.47%

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

Last update for Lapu-Lapu: 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

Lapu-Lapu

$317 37.5%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 151% $478

Groceries & Markets

Lapu-Lapu

$189 22.4%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 86% $163

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lapu-Lapu

$162 19.2%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 14.6% $24

Eating Out

Lapu-Lapu

$81 9.5%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 163% $131

Clothing & Footwear

Lapu-Lapu

$70 8.3%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 71.5% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Lapu-Lapu

$24 2.8%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 267% $64

Getting Around

Lapu-Lapu

$2.9 * 0.3%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 2904% $84

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 $437 in Lapu-Lapu and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 277% 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: $16.00 in Lapu-Lapu vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $189 vs $352 per month, with Lapu-Lapu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Lapu-Lapu

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

03:51 3:51 AM

13:51 1:51 PM

14 h behind Lapu-Lapu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

497,604

4,912

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.79 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 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).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lapu-Lapu Nosara 16,040 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Lapu-Lapu
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

Lapu-Lapu vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lapu-Lapu and Nosara differ by about 118% in total monthly costs ($845 vs $1,839 including rent). Lapu-Lapu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 277% lower in Nosara. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $437 in Lapu-Lapu versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $103 in Lapu-Lapu 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 Lapu-Lapu – a meal for two runs $16.00 versus $61.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $845 in Lapu-Lapu versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lapu-Lapu but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Lapu-Lapu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Lapu-Lapu 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 Lapu-Lapu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 118% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.