Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Masallatah and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Masallatah: $369 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $17,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

16

Cost of Living Index in Masallatah
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Masallatah Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

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Masallatah

🇱🇾 Libya

$369

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $369 per month in Masallatah vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Masallatah $369
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $571 per month in Masallatah vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Masallatah $571
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $773 per month in Masallatah vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Masallatah $773
Nosara $3,818

Masallatah is about 80% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Masallatah sits 73% below the global median, while Nosara is 36% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.83 LYD 24.54

$12.35 ₡5,539

-68.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.66 LYD 100

$61.2 ₡27.4K

-74.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.56 LYD 16.42

$7.52 ₡3,373

-65.96%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.65 LYD 4.15

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 LYD 4.60

Cappuccino

$0.48 LYD 3.08

$4.41 ₡1,978

-89.12%

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

$0.46 LYD 2.94

$1.74 ₡780

-73.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.10 LYD 0.63

$1.31 ₡587

-92.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 LYD 5.91

$1.56 ₡701

-41.03%

White Bread (500g)

$0.20 LYD 1.28

$3.02 ₡1,355

-93.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 LYD 7.51

$2.51 ₡1,125

-53.39%

Eggs

$1.42 LYD 9.12

$3.57 ₡1,603

-60.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.35 LYD 34.29

$7.43 ₡3,333

-27.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.49 LYD 22.35

$10.52 ₡4,717

-66.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.36 LYD 60.0

$13.97 ₡6,265

-33.00%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 LYD 14.48

$2.35 ₡1,052

-3.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 LYD 9.52

$1.61 ₡720

-7.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.68 LYD 4.37

$4.80 ₡2,152

-85.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 LYD 3.56

$1.61 ₡724

-65.22%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 LYD 4.52

$3.80 ₡1,703

-81.32%

Onion (1kg)

$0.47 LYD 3.00

$3.69 ₡1,657

-87.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.39 LYD 2.52

$1.13 ₡507

-65.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.16 LYD 1.04

$2.66 ₡1,191

-93.98%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.75 LYD 11.23

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 LYD 6.23

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 LYD 5.25

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.96 LYD 12.59

$5.18 ₡2,321

-62.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.75 LYD 4.82

$2.14 ₡958

-64.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.45 LYD 2.87

$1.57 ₡703

-71.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.02 LYD 0.13

$1.52 ₡682

-98.68%

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

$23.2K LYD 148.4K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

7.20%

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

$21.1K LYD 135.2K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-38.88%

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

$93.4 LYD 598

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-3.03%

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

$6.20 LYD 39.71

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-82.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.43 LYD 176

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-48.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

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

$52.9 LYD 339

$494 ₡221.6K

-89.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,528 LYD 9,792

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-87.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.85 LYD 146

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-57.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.53 LYD 112

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-68.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.2 LYD 418

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-16.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.1 LYD 417

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-18.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

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

Last update for Masallatah: October 12, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Masallatah

$127 34.5%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 46.3% $59

Groceries & Markets

Masallatah

$115 31.3%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 205% $237

Clothing & Footwear

Masallatah

$77 20.8%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 56.4% $43

Eating Out

Masallatah

$46 12.6%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 357% $166

Getting Around

Masallatah

$3 * 0.8%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 2813% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Masallatah

- * 0%

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Accommodation & Living

Masallatah

- * 0%

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $16.00 in Masallatah versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $115 vs $352 – making Masallatah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇾 Masallatah

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

19:40 7:40 PM

11:40 11:40 AM

8 h behind Masallatah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

💱 Currency

Libyan Dinar LYD ل.د

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 LYD = 0.156 USD

1 LYD = 0.139 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to LYD – Libyan Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇾 Libyan Dinar (ل.د)

Libyan Dinar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.41 LYD (1 LYD = 0.156 USD). 1 EUR = 7.2 LYD (1 LYD = 0.139 EUR).

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 LYD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Masallatah Nosara 10,300 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Masallatah
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

Masallatah vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Nosara is pricier by about 399%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $553 per month in Masallatah and $2,758 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $369 in Masallatah and $1,839 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 399%.

Kindergarten costs $52.9 per month in Masallatah and $494 in Nosara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Masallatah, where all-in costs run around $369, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Masallatah it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Masallatah – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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