Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maracaibo and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Maracaibo: $781 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $12,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Maracaibo
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Maracaibo Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Maracaibo

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$781

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $781 in Maracaibo versus $1,837 in Nosara.

Maracaibo $781
Nosara $1,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,316 in Maracaibo versus $2,775 in Nosara.

Maracaibo $1,316
Nosara $2,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,851 in Maracaibo versus $3,712 in Nosara.

Maracaibo $1,851
Nosara $3,712

Living in Maracaibo costs roughly 57% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Maracaibo is 42% below, Nosara is 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.69 VES 9,348

$12.22 ₡5,509

-12.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.44 VES 35.4K

$60.2 ₡27.1K

-32.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.05 VES 7,917

$7.54 ₡3,399

20.03%

Cappuccino

$2.68 VES 2,340

$4.31 ₡1,941

-37.82%

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

$1.15 VES 1,009

$1.72 ₡773

-33.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.36 VES 1,188

$1.35 ₡608

0.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.30 VES 2,012

$3.24 ₡1,459

-29.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.96 VES 2,592

$4.48 ₡2,018

-33.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 VES 1,704

$1.57 ₡707

24.20%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 VES 1,927

$3.17 ₡1,429

-30.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.09 VES 950

$2.42 ₡1,091

-54.96%

Eggs

$3.60 VES 3,148

$3.57 ₡1,609

0.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.59 VES 5,765

$7.43 ₡3,349

-11.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.21 VES 5,434

$10.42 ₡4,697

-40.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.30 VES 6,387

$13.66 ₡6,156

-46.56%

Apples (1kg)

$4.64 VES 4,060

$2.32 ₡1,044

100.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 VES 1,223

$1.61 ₡728

-13.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 VES 1,413

$4.74 ₡2,138

-65.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.41 VES 1,237

$1.66 ₡747

-15.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 VES 1,036

$3.72 ₡1,679

-68.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.78 VES 1,555

$3.57 ₡1,611

-50.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 VES 891

$1.10 ₡497

-7.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 VES 1,762

$2.55 ₡1,149

-21.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.94 VES 2,574

$4.95 ₡2,232

-40.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.87 VES 7,759

$20.01 ₡9,020

-55.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 VES 946

$2.79 ₡1,256

-61.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 VES 2,379

$3.53 ₡1,589

-22.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.46 VES 403

$1.19 ₡537

-61.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.91 VES 36.7K

$72.1 ₡32.5K

-41.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 VES 3,452

$2.24 ₡1,011

76.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.04 VES 1,787

$1.55 ₡701

31.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.18 VES 15.0K

$8.86 ₡3,993

93.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.74 VES 650

$1.57 ₡708

-52.87%

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

$14.7K VES 12.9M

$21.8K ₡9.8M

-32.53%

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

$27.9K VES 24.4M

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-19.52%

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

$63.5 VES 55.5K

$93.5 ₡42.1K

-32.06%

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

$7.43 VES 6,497

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-78.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.55 VES 21.5K

$51.5 ₡23.2K

-52.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.32 VES 29.1K

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-53.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.43 VES 24.9K

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-19.78%

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 VES 4,461

$7.84 ₡3,535

-34.95%

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

$153 VES 133.7K

$490 ₡220.7K

-68.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,068 VES 6.2M

$11.9K ₡5.4M

-40.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.67 VES 24.2K

$53.5 ₡24.1K

-48.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.70 VES 28.6K

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-41.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.6 VES 53.9K

$79.3 ₡35.7K

-22.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.1 VES 50.8K

$78.9 ₡35.6K

-26.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$161 VES 140.5K

$786 ₡354.3K

-79.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$91.8 VES 80.3K

$780 ₡351.6K

-88.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$305 VES 266.7K

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-92.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$198 VES 173.3K

$1,407 ₡634.4K

-85.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$751 VES 656.9K

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-89.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$508 VES 444.1K

$1,201 ₡541.3K

-57.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$214 VES 187.2K

$876 ₡395.0K

-75.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

132.02%

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

Last update for Maracaibo: October 6, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Maracaibo

$242 30.9%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 44.4% $107

Eating Out

Maracaibo

$172 22%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 21.6% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maracaibo

$95 12.2%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 88.6% $85

Accommodation & Living

Maracaibo

$92 11.7%

Nosara

$780 43% 750% $688

Clothing & Footwear

Maracaibo

$81 10.3%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 48.5% $39

Getting Around

Maracaibo

$58 7.4%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 49.9% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Maracaibo

$44 5.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 100% $44

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $161 in Maracaibo and $786 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 309% 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: $40.00 in Maracaibo vs $60.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $242 vs $350 per month, with Maracaibo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇪 Maracaibo

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

21:55 9:55 PM

19:55 7:55 PM

2 h behind Maracaibo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,000,000

4,912

💱 Currency

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 VES = 1.14 USD

1,000 VES = 1.02 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to VES – Venezuelan Bolívar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇪 Venezuelan Bolívar (Bs.S)

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 875 VES (1,000 VES = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 981 VES (1,000 VES = 1.02 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 VES in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Maracaibo Nosara 1,530 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Maracaibo
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

Maracaibo vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Maracaibo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 135% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 309% lower in Nosara. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $161 in Maracaibo versus $786 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $153 in Maracaibo versus $490 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 44% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $781 in Maracaibo versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Maracaibo but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Maracaibo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Maracaibo is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Nosara, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Maracaibo 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 Maracaibo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 135% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.