Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Madison Heights, MI and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,539 in Madison Heights, MI, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Madison Heights, MI
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Madison Heights, MI Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Madison Heights, MI

🇺🇸 United States

$2,539

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,539 in Madison Heights, MI versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Madison Heights, MI $2,539
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,711 in Madison Heights, MI versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Madison Heights, MI $3,711
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,883 in Madison Heights, MI versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Madison Heights, MI $4,883
Nosara $3,818

Living in Madison Heights, MI is roughly 38% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Madison Heights, MI 88% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.80 $17.80

$12.35 ₡5,539

44.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.4 $62.4

$61.2 ₡27.4K

2.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.90 $10.90

$7.52 ₡3,373

44.95%

Cappuccino

$5.62 $5.62

$4.41 ₡1,978

27.44%

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

$2.55 $2.55

$1.74 ₡780

46.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 $1.97

$1.31 ₡587

50.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.90 $5.90

$3.28 ₡1,471

79.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 $7.84

$4.47 ₡2,004

75.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 $0.85

$1.56 ₡701

-45.51%

White Bread (500g)

$3.24 $3.24

$3.02 ₡1,355

7.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.41 $4.41

$2.51 ₡1,125

75.70%

Eggs

$3.97 $3.97

$3.57 ₡1,603

11.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.51 $13.51

$7.43 ₡3,333

81.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.39 $11.39

$10.52 ₡4,717

8.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.22 $16.22

$13.97 ₡6,265

16.11%

Apples (1kg)

$5.11 $5.11

$2.35 ₡1,052

117.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 $1.59

$1.61 ₡720

-1.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.12 $4.12

$4.80 ₡2,152

-14.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.91 $3.91

$1.61 ₡724

142.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.59 $2.59

$3.80 ₡1,703

-31.84%

Onion (1kg)

$3.04 $3.04

$3.69 ₡1,657

-17.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.27 $2.27

$1.13 ₡507

100.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.19 $2.19

$2.66 ₡1,191

-17.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.95 $9.95

$5.18 ₡2,321

92.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.12 $15.12

$19.88 ₡8,916

-23.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.43 $2.43

$2.90 ₡1,300

-16.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.55 $3.55

$3.63 ₡1,626

-2.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.06 $2.06

$1.12 ₡504

83.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.73 $2.73

$2.14 ₡958

27.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.59 $1.59

$1.57 ₡703

1.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.42 $24.42

$8.52 ₡3,823

186.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 $1.07

$1.52 ₡682

-29.61%

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

$36.1K $36.1K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

66.96%

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

$25.5K $25.5K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-26.07%

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

$211 $211

$96.3 ₡43.2K

119.22%

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

$58.9 $58.9

$35.89 ₡16.1K

64.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.5 $69.5

$53.6 ₡24.0K

29.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.86 $40.86

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-42.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$12.13 $12.13

$7.89 ₡3,539

53.74%

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

$1,101 $1,101

$494 ₡221.6K

122.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.0K $19.0K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

59.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.8 $58.8

$53.9 ₡24.2K

9.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.47 $39.47

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-28.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.3 $95.3

$77.9 ₡34.9K

22.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 $116

$79.6 ₡35.7K

46.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,593 $1,593

$788 ₡353.4K

102.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,280 $1,280

$794 ₡356.2K

61.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,498 $2,498

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-36.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,185 $2,185

$1,419 ₡636.5K

53.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,745 $2,745

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-60.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,449 $2,449

$1,224 ₡549.0K

100.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.49

8.62

-24.71%

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

Last update for Madison Heights, MI: October 11, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Madison Heights, MI

$1.3K 50.4%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 37.9% $485

Groceries & Markets

Madison Heights, MI

$390 15.4%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 9.7% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Madison Heights, MI

$340 13.4%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 45.3% $154

Eating Out

Madison Heights, MI

$306 12%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 30.7% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Madison Heights, MI

$139 5.5%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 13.9% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Madison Heights, MI

$65 2.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 34.2% $22

Getting Around

Madison Heights, MI

$19 * 0.8%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 360% $68

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 $1,593 in Madison Heights, MI and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62.0 in Madison Heights, MI vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $390 vs $352 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Madison Heights, MI

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

01:00 1:00 AM

23:00 11:00 PM

2 h behind Madison Heights, MI

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

30,042

4,912

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Madison Heights, MI Nosara 3,620 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Madison Heights, MI
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

Madison Heights, MI vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara wins on cost – living expenses run 38% lower than in Madison Heights, MI. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Nosara the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $3,808 in Madison Heights, MI and $2,758 in Nosara to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,593 in Madison Heights, MI versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,101 in Madison Heights, MI 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 Nosara – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $62.0 in Madison Heights, MI. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,539 in Madison Heights, MI, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Madison Heights, MI. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Nosara delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,839 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Nosara hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Madison Heights, MI 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 38% less than in Madison Heights, MI. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.