Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Luqa and Nosara

For one person, living costs are similar in Luqa and in Nosara: $1,773 and $1,839 a month, rent and utilities included.

86

Cost of Living Index in Luqa
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Luqa Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Luqa

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,773

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,773 in Luqa versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Luqa $1,773
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,738 in Luqa versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Luqa $2,738
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,703 in Luqa versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Luqa $3,703
Nosara $3,818

Living in Luqa costs roughly 4% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Luqa 31% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.40 €17.26

$12.35 ₡5,539

57.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.5 €76.1

$61.2 ₡27.4K

39.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.99 €9.77

$7.52 ₡3,373

46.14%

Cappuccino

$2.74 €2.44

$4.41 ₡1,978

-37.87%

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

$3.09 €2.75

$1.74 ₡780

77.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.31 ₡587

71.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.43 €3.94

$3.28 ₡1,471

35.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.29 €3.82

$4.47 ₡2,004

-4.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.06

$1.56 ₡701

-23.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.15 €1.02

$3.02 ₡1,355

-61.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.54 €3.15

$2.51 ₡1,125

41.04%

Eggs

$3.97 €3.53

$3.57 ₡1,603

11.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.42 €7.49

$7.43 ₡3,333

13.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.15 €9.03

$10.52 ₡4,717

-3.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.66 €13.93

$13.97 ₡6,265

12.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.82 €2.51

$2.35 ₡1,052

20.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.61 ₡720

26.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.04 €2.70

$4.80 ₡2,152

-36.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.41 €3.03

$1.61 ₡724

111.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 €1.58

$3.80 ₡1,703

-53.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$3.69 ₡1,657

-46.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 €2.04

$1.13 ₡507

103.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.78

$2.66 ₡1,191

-66.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.91 €6.15

$5.18 ₡2,321

33.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.88 €7.01

$19.88 ₡8,916

-60.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.53 €1.36

$2.90 ₡1,300

-47.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 €1.97

$3.63 ₡1,626

-39.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 €1.97

$1.12 ₡504

98.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$14.31 €12.73

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-80.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.44 €4.84

$2.14 ₡958

154.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.17 €1.93

$1.57 ₡703

38.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.71 €23.76

$8.52 ₡3,823

213.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 €1.32

$1.52 ₡682

-1.97%

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

$24.7K €22.0K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

14.32%

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

$39.2K €34.9K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

13.60%

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

$101 €89.8

$96.3 ₡43.2K

4.85%

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

$25.06 €22.29

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-30.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.93 €30.18

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-36.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-23.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$56.0 €49.76

$34.91 ₡15.7K

60.27%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$7.89 ₡3,539

24.71%

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

$371 €330

$494 ₡221.6K

-24.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K €9,912

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-6.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$53.9 ₡24.2K

59.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.53 €36.05

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-26.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.1 €73.0

$77.9 ₡34.9K

5.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.7 €70.0

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-1.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$801 €712

$788 ₡353.4K

1.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$808 €719

$794 ₡356.2K

1.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,313 €1,168

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-66.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,284 €1,142

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-9.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,858 €2,542

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-58.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,139 €2,792

$1,224 ₡549.0K

156.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,418 €1,261

$864 ₡387.3K

64.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.9

8.62

-66.36%

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

Last update for Luqa: 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

Luqa

$808 45.6%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 1.7% $14

Groceries & Markets

Luqa

$289 16.3%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 22% $64

Eating Out

Luqa

$273 15.4%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 22.5% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Luqa

$160 9%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 16.1% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Luqa

$129 7.3%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 7.1% $9.2

Sport & Entertainment

Luqa

$74 4.2%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 17.8% $13

Getting Around

Luqa

$40 2.2%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 121% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $801 in Luqa and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Luqa pays 64% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $85.0 in Luqa vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $289 vs $352, with Luqa cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Luqa

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

15:05 3:05 PM

07:05 7:05 AM

8 h behind Luqa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,900

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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Luqa Nosara 10,260 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Luqa
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

Luqa vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Luqa wins on cost – living expenses run 4% lower than in Nosara. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Luqa the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 64% higher in Luqa, 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: $801 in Luqa versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,773 per month in Luqa versus $1,839 in Nosara – a 4% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Luqa runs roughly 408% less than in Nosara. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,773 in Luqa versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Luqa but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Luqa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Luqa delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,773 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Luqa hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Luqa 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 Luqa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 4% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.