Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lincoln and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,210 in Lincoln, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lincoln
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Lincoln Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Lincoln

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,210

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lincoln versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Lincoln $2,210
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,279 in Lincoln versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Lincoln $3,279
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,349 in Lincoln versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Lincoln $4,349
Nosara $3,818

Living in Lincoln is roughly 20% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lincoln 64% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.56 £19.93

$12.35 ₡5,539

115.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$86.5 £64.9

$61.2 ₡27.4K

41.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.97 £5.98

$7.52 ₡3,373

5.98%

Cappuccino

$4.85 £3.64

$4.41 ₡1,978

9.98%

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

$2.58 £1.94

$1.74 ₡780

48.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 £1.48

$1.31 ₡587

50.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.46 £4.85

$3.28 ₡1,471

96.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.63 £4.97

$4.47 ₡2,004

48.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 £1.03

$1.56 ₡701

-11.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 £1.10

$3.02 ₡1,355

-51.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 £1.01

$2.51 ₡1,125

-46.22%

Eggs

$3.20 £2.40

$3.57 ₡1,603

-10.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.35 £6.26

$7.43 ₡3,333

12.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.39 £6.30

$10.52 ₡4,717

-20.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.31 £8.49

$13.97 ₡6,265

-19.04%

Apples (1kg)

$3.62 £2.72

$2.35 ₡1,052

54.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.25 £0.93

$1.61 ₡720

-22.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.94 £2.20

$4.80 ₡2,152

-38.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.56 £2.67

$1.61 ₡724

121.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.54 £1.16

$3.80 ₡1,703

-59.47%

Onion (1kg)

$1.21 £0.90

$3.69 ₡1,657

-67.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.04 £0.78

$1.13 ₡507

-7.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 £1.01

$2.66 ₡1,191

-49.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.20 £17.41

$5.18 ₡2,321

347.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.69 £8.02

$19.88 ₡8,916

-46.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.30 £2.47

$2.90 ₡1,300

13.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 £2.66

$3.63 ₡1,626

-2.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.26 £3.20

$1.12 ₡504

280.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$107 £80.1

$72.6 ₡32.6K

47.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.84 £2.88

$2.14 ₡958

79.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 £0.58

$1.57 ₡703

-50.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.63 £14.73

$8.52 ₡3,823

130.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 £1.47

$1.52 ₡682

28.95%

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

$38.5K £28.9K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

78.17%

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

$39.7K £29.8K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

15.16%

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

$308 £231

$96.3 ₡43.2K

219.87%

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

$16.78 £12.59

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-53.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.98 £29.24

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-27.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.20 £19.65

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-63.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.26 £15.95

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-39.10%

Cinema Ticket

$15.16 £11.38

$7.89 ₡3,539

92.14%

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

$1,809 £1,358

$494 ₡221.6K

266.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.6K £15.4K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

73.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$113 £85.1

$53.9 ₡24.2K

110.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 £43.49

$55.4 ₡24.8K

4.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.0 £65.3

$77.9 ₡34.9K

11.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.4 £73.8

$79.6 ₡35.7K

23.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,096 £822

$788 ₡353.4K

39.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$864 £648

$794 ₡356.2K

8.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,952 £1,464

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-50.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,408 £1,056

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-0.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,548 £1,911

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-63.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,205 £904

$1,224 ₡549.0K

-1.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,188 £2,391

$864 ₡387.3K

269.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.88

8.62

-43.39%

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

Last update for Lincoln: 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

Lincoln

$864 39.1%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 8% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lincoln

$364 16.5%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 48.9% $178

Eating Out

Lincoln

$358 16.2%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 40.9% $147

Groceries & Markets

Lincoln

$275 12.4%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 28.1% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Lincoln

$161 7.3%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 25.2% $40

Getting Around

Lincoln

$132 6%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 33.8% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Lincoln

$57 2.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 54.6% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,096 in Lincoln and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lincoln pays 269% 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: $86.0 in Lincoln vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $275 vs $352, with Lincoln cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Lincoln

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

13:27 1:27 PM

06:27 6:27 AM

7 h behind Lincoln

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

97,541

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

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 GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lincoln Nosara 8,800 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lincoln
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

Lincoln vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lincoln and Nosara differ by about 20% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $1,839 including rent). Nosara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 269% higher in Lincoln, 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: $1,096 in Lincoln versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Nosara – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $86.0 in Lincoln. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,210 per month in Lincoln versus $1,839 in Nosara – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,210 in Lincoln, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Lincoln. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara 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, Lincoln 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 20% less than in Lincoln. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.