Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maia and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,835 a month against $2,182 in Maia, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Maia outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

106

Cost of Living Index in Maia
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Maia Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Maia

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,182

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,182 per month in Maia vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Maia $2,182
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $2,718 per month in Maia vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Maia $2,718
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $3,254 per month in Maia vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Maia $3,254
Nosara $3,814

Maia costs about 19% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Maia and Nosara sit above the global median – Maia by 61%, Nosara by 35%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.42 €10.16

$12.34 ₡5,535

-7.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.0 €44.49

$61.3 ₡27.5K

-18.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.88 €7.90

$7.76 ₡3,481

14.43%

Cappuccino

$2.00 €1.78

$4.44 ₡1,992

-54.95%

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

$1.93 €1.71

$1.79 ₡803

7.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.29 ₡580

12.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.23 €1.98

$3.24 ₡1,451

-31.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.01 €3.57

$4.43 ₡1,985

-9.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 €0.98

$1.55 ₡696

-29.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 €1.50

$3.08 ₡1,380

-45.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.37

$2.53 ₡1,133

-39.53%

Eggs

$2.89 €2.57

$3.45 ₡1,546

-16.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.29 €11.82

$7.32 ₡3,284

81.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.93 €7.05

$10.24 ₡4,594

-22.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.73 €13.10

$14.10 ₡6,326

4.47%

Apples (1kg)

$2.23 €1.98

$2.29 ₡1,027

-2.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.55

$1.64 ₡737

6.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.07 €1.84

$4.79 ₡2,149

-56.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.33 €2.07

$1.64 ₡735

42.07%

Potato (1kg)

$2.22 €1.97

$3.85 ₡1,727

-42.34%

Onion (1kg)

$2.19 €1.95

$3.75 ₡1,681

-41.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 €0.82

$1.09 ₡488

-14.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.98

$2.59 ₡1,160

-57.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.62 €5.89

$5.12 ₡2,295

29.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$19.92 ₡8,931

-76.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 €1.17

$2.80 ₡1,255

-53.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 €2.19

$3.52 ₡1,580

-30.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.47 €2.20

$1.22 ₡549

102.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.74 €39.80

$73.9 ₡33.1K

-39.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.55 €4.04

$2.17 ₡973

109.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.56 ₡698

-7.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.93 €15.06

$8.67 ₡3,886

95.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.55 ₡697

35.48%

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

$32.3K €28.7K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-6.63%

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

$38.5K €34.2K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

-0.71%

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

$106 €94.3

$94.8 ₡42.5K

11.84%

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

$20.07 €17.85

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-44.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.05 €33.84

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-28.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.89 €39.93

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-39.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.01 €30.25

$35.63 ₡16.0K

-4.55%

Cinema Ticket

$8.65 €7.70

$7.91 ₡3,548

9.36%

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

$439 €390

$490 ₡219.9K

-10.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,437 €5,726

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-45.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$111 €98.9

$54.8 ₡24.6K

102.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.04 €19.60

$55.9 ₡25.1K

-60.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.9 €67.5

$80.4 ₡36.0K

-5.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 €94.0

$77.9 ₡34.9K

35.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,072 €953

$801 ₡359.1K

33.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,313 €1,168

$790 ₡354.1K

66.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,706 €1,518

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-57.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,242 €1,105

$1,409 ₡632.0K

-11.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,036 €2,701

$7,064 ₡3.2M

-57.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,673 €1,488

$1,236 ₡554.3K

35.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,420 €1,263

$887 ₡397.6K

60.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.7

8.62

-57.08%

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

Last update for Maia: October 17, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Maia

$1.3K 60.2%

Nosara

$790 43% 39.9% $524

Groceries & Markets

Maia

$259 11.9%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 34.8% $90

Eating Out

Maia

$175 8%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 21.7% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maia

$164 7.5%

Nosara

$184 10% 12.1% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Maia

$142 6.5%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 14.6% $21

Getting Around

Maia

$66 3%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 33.7% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Maia

$62 2.9%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 44.1% $27

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,072 in Maia versus $801 in Nosara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 60% higher in Maia, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Maia versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $259 vs $350 – making Maia the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Maia

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

20:32 8:32 PM

13:32 1:32 PM

7 h behind Maia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

134,988

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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 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

Maia Nosara 8,200 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Maia
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

Maia vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Maia costs about 19% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,273 per month in Maia and $2,753 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Nosara, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Maia and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,182 in Maia and $1,835 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 19%.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,835, than in Maia at $2,182. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Maia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Nosara costs $1,835 versus $2,182 in Maia. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Nosara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Maia makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.