Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,837 a month against $2,312 in London, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

112

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

Jump to prices

London

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,312

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,312 in London versus $1,837 in Nosara.

London $2,312
Nosara $1,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,278 in London versus $2,775 in Nosara.

London $3,278
Nosara $2,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,243 in London versus $3,712 in Nosara.

London $4,243
Nosara $3,712

Living in London is roughly 26% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 73% above, Nosara 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.22 CA$30.24

$12.22 ₡5,509

73.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.6 CA$89.3

$60.2 ₡27.1K

4.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.36 CA$17.61

$7.54 ₡3,399

63.93%

Cappuccino

$3.65 CA$5.20

$4.31 ₡1,941

-15.31%

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

$2.18 CA$3.10

$1.72 ₡773

26.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 CA$2.94

$1.35 ₡608

52.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.47 CA$9.22

$3.24 ₡1,459

99.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.47 CA$9.23

$4.48 ₡2,018

44.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 CA$2.78

$1.57 ₡707

24.20%

White Bread (500g)

$2.61 CA$3.72

$3.17 ₡1,429

-17.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.94 CA$5.62

$2.42 ₡1,091

62.81%

Eggs

$3.74 CA$5.34

$3.57 ₡1,609

4.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.83 CA$14.02

$7.43 ₡3,349

32.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.28 CA$16.08

$10.42 ₡4,697

8.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.02 CA$21.40

$13.66 ₡6,156

9.96%

Apples (1kg)

$4.24 CA$6.04

$2.32 ₡1,044

82.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.29 CA$1.84

$1.61 ₡728

-19.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.85 CA$5.49

$4.74 ₡2,138

-18.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.06 CA$5.79

$1.66 ₡747

144.58%

Potato (1kg)

$3.17 CA$4.53

$3.72 ₡1,679

-14.78%

Onion (1kg)

$3.02 CA$4.31

$3.57 ₡1,611

-15.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.58 CA$3.68

$1.10 ₡497

134.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.46 CA$2.09

$2.55 ₡1,149

-42.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.98 CA$17.08

$4.95 ₡2,232

142.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.50 CA$17.82

$20.01 ₡9,020

-37.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 CA$3.43

$2.79 ₡1,256

-13.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 CA$4.09

$3.53 ₡1,589

-18.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 CA$3.22

$1.19 ₡537

89.92%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 CA$110

$72.1 ₡32.5K

7.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.51 CA$3.58

$2.24 ₡1,011

12.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.60 CA$2.29

$1.55 ₡701

3.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.83 CA$31.11

$8.86 ₡3,993

146.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 CA$1.67

$1.57 ₡708

-25.48%

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

$27.8K CA$39.6K

$21.8K ₡9.8M

27.37%

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

$22.7K CA$32.4K

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-34.32%

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

$135 CA$193

$93.5 ₡42.1K

44.53%

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

$39.06 CA$55.7

$35.11 ₡15.8K

11.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.4 CA$80.3

$51.5 ₡23.2K

9.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.00 CA$52.7

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-48.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.27 CA$40.29

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-20.23%

Cinema Ticket

$10.41 CA$14.84

$7.84 ₡3,535

32.78%

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

$407 CA$579

$490 ₡220.7K

-16.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.2K CA$28.8K

$11.9K ₡5.4M

70.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.0 CA$74.1

$53.5 ₡24.1K

-2.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.12 CA$54.3

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-31.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 CA$118

$79.3 ₡35.7K

4.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.7 CA$129

$78.9 ₡35.6K

14.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,270 CA$1,810

$786 ₡354.3K

61.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 CA$1,636

$780 ₡351.6K

47.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 CA$2,870

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-47.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,703 CA$2,428

$1,407 ₡634.4K

21.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,440 CA$4,904

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-50.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,519 CA$5,015

$1,201 ₡541.3K

193.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,882 CA$4,108

$876 ₡395.0K

228.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.72

8.62

-45.24%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$1.1K 49.4%

Nosara

$780 43% 32% $368

Groceries & Markets

London

$358 15.4%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 2.4% $8.6

Eating Out

London

$313 13.5%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 33% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$230 9.9%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 21.9% $50

Clothing & Footwear

London

$119 5.1%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 1.5% $1.8

Getting Around

London

$97 4.2%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 10.4% $10

Sport & Entertainment

London

$58 2.5%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 50.6% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,270 in London and $786 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 229% 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: $63.0 in London vs $60.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $358 vs $350 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 London

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

22:42 10:42 PM

20:42 8:42 PM

2 h behind London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

383,822

4,912

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.702 USD

1 CAD = 0.626 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 CAD (1 CAD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.626 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

London Nosara 3,690 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

London
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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

London vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. The 26% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 229% higher in London, 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: $1,270 in London versus $786 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,312 per month in London versus $1,837 in Nosara – a 26% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Nosara runs roughly 7% less than in London. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,837 in Nosara versus $2,312 in London, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in London. 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 London, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, London 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 26% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.