Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,835 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $1,835 in Nosara.

Lisbon $2,202
Nosara $1,835

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $2,825 in Nosara.

Lisbon $3,274
Nosara $2,825

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $3,814 in Nosara.

Lisbon $4,346
Nosara $3,814

Living in Lisbon is roughly 20% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Nosara 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$12.34 ₡5,535

38.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$61.3 ₡27.5K

1.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$7.76 ₡3,481

42.01%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$4.44 ₡1,992

-29.73%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$1.79 ₡803

26.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$1.29 ₡580

34.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$3.24 ₡1,451

5.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$4.43 ₡1,985

-15.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.55 ₡696

-24.52%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$3.08 ₡1,380

-39.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$2.53 ₡1,133

-39.13%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$3.45 ₡1,546

17.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$7.32 ₡3,284

76.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$10.24 ₡4,594

-22.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$14.10 ₡6,326

25.11%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$2.29 ₡1,027

-1.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.64 ₡737

6.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$4.79 ₡2,149

-60.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$1.64 ₡735

56.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$3.85 ₡1,727

-51.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$3.75 ₡1,681

-47.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.09 ₡488

33.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$2.59 ₡1,160

-70.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

$5.12 ₡2,295

31.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$19.92 ₡8,931

-71.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$2.80 ₡1,255

-51.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$3.52 ₡1,580

-40.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$1.22 ₡549

90.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

$73.9 ₡33.1K

-39.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$2.17 ₡973

82.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$1.56 ₡698

-32.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

$8.67 ₡3,886

97.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.55 ₡697

41.29%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-2.22%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

-1.25%

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

$164 €146

$94.8 ₡42.5K

72.76%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-48.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-37.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-37.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

$35.63 ₡16.0K

-47.57%

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$7.91 ₡3,548

23.26%

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

$684 €608

$490 ₡219.9K

39.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

48.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$54.8 ₡24.6K

89.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$55.9 ₡25.1K

-17.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$80.4 ₡36.0K

24.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$77.9 ₡34.9K

60.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$801 ₡359.1K

98.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$790 ₡354.1K

48.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-28.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$1,409 ₡632.0K

41.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

$7,064 ₡3.2M

10.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

$1,236 ₡554.3K

257.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

$887 ₡397.6K

80.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

8.62

-55.34%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Nosara

$790 43% 32.5% $379

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 28.1% $77

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 14.1% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Nosara

$184 10% 14.5% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 28.2% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 37.1% $24

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 41% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,589 in Lisbon and $801 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 80% 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: $62.0 in Lisbon vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $273 vs $350, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

09:36 9:36 AM

02:36 2:36 AM

7 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

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 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 21, 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

Lisbon Nosara 8,150 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
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

Lisbon vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Nosara differ by about 20% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $1,835 including rent). Nosara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 80% higher in Lisbon, 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: $1,589 in Lisbon versus $801 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $684 in Lisbon versus $490 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 28% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,835 in Nosara versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. 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, Lisbon 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 Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.