Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Middlesbrough and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,089 in Middlesbrough, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

102

Cost of Living Index in Middlesbrough
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Middlesbrough Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Middlesbrough

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,089

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,089 in Middlesbrough versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Middlesbrough $2,089
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,001 in Middlesbrough versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Middlesbrough $3,001
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,913 in Middlesbrough versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Middlesbrough $3,913
Nosara $3,818

Living in Middlesbrough is roughly 14% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Middlesbrough 55% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.80 £17.85

$12.35 ₡5,539

92.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.5 £54.4

$61.2 ₡27.4K

18.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 £8.05

$7.52 ₡3,373

42.69%

Cappuccino

$4.69 £3.52

$4.41 ₡1,978

6.35%

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

$2.41 £1.81

$1.74 ₡780

38.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.31 ₡587

36.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 £3.53

$3.28 ₡1,471

43.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.17 £5.38

$4.47 ₡2,004

60.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 £0.92

$1.56 ₡701

-21.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 £1.06

$3.02 ₡1,355

-53.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.45 £1.84

$2.51 ₡1,125

-2.39%

Eggs

$3.70 £2.77

$3.57 ₡1,603

3.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.68 £5.76

$7.43 ₡3,333

3.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.29 £5.47

$10.52 ₡4,717

-30.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.41 £10.81

$13.97 ₡6,265

3.15%

Apples (1kg)

$2.48 £1.86

$2.35 ₡1,052

5.53%

Banana (1kg)

$2.38 £1.79

$1.61 ₡720

47.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 £1.93

$4.80 ₡2,152

-46.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.60 £1.95

$1.61 ₡724

61.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 £1.34

$3.80 ₡1,703

-53.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 £1.15

$3.69 ₡1,657

-58.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 £0.87

$1.13 ₡507

2.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.03 £2.27

$2.66 ₡1,191

13.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.39 £16.79

$5.18 ₡2,321

332.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.42 £7.07

$19.88 ₡8,916

-52.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.43 £3.32

$2.90 ₡1,300

52.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 £2.76

$3.63 ₡1,626

1.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.53 £4.15

$1.12 ₡504

393.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$92.6 £69.5

$72.6 ₡32.6K

27.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.39 £3.29

$2.14 ₡958

105.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.94 £19.46

$8.52 ₡3,823

204.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.49

$1.52 ₡682

30.92%

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

$37.6K £28.2K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

74.19%

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

$39.8K £29.9K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

15.43%

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

$346 £260

$96.3 ₡43.2K

259.65%

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

$16.93 £12.70

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-52.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.87 £31.41

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-21.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.69 £37.28

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-30.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.46 £24.35

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-7.02%

Cinema Ticket

$14.43 £10.83

$7.89 ₡3,539

82.89%

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

$795 £596

$494 ₡221.6K

60.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$40.4K £30.3K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

240.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$106 £79.8

$53.9 ₡24.2K

97.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.8 £40.36

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-2.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 £82.7

$77.9 ₡34.9K

41.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 £78.2

$79.6 ₡35.7K

30.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$997 £748

$788 ₡353.4K

26.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$683 £513

$794 ₡356.2K

-13.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$961 £721

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-75.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$955 £716

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-32.73%

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)

$2,303 £1,728

$864 ₡387.3K

166.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.64

8.62

-34.57%

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

Last update for Middlesbrough: 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

Middlesbrough

$683 32.7%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 16.3% $111

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Middlesbrough

$405 19.4%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 54.1% $219

Eating Out

Middlesbrough

$334 16%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 36.5% $122

Groceries & Markets

Middlesbrough

$301 14.4%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 16.9% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Middlesbrough

$169 8.1%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 28.8% $48

Getting Around

Middlesbrough

$119 * 5.7%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 26.8% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Middlesbrough

$79 3.8%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 11.2% $8.8

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 $997 in Middlesbrough and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Middlesbrough pays 167% 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: $72.0 in Middlesbrough vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $301 vs $352, with Middlesbrough cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Middlesbrough

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

04:31 4:31 AM

21:31 9:31 PM

7 h behind Middlesbrough

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

139,000

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Middlesbrough Nosara 8,750 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Middlesbrough
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

Middlesbrough vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Middlesbrough and Nosara differ by about 14% in total monthly costs ($2,089 vs $1,839 including rent). Nosara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 167% higher in Middlesbrough, 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: $997 in Middlesbrough versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Middlesbrough pay roughly 17% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Nosara – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $72.0 in Middlesbrough. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,089 in Middlesbrough, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Middlesbrough. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Middlesbrough 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 14% less than in Middlesbrough. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.