Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Muscat and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Muscat: $1,565 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Nosara outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

75

Cost of Living Index in Muscat
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Muscat Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Muscat

🇴🇲 Oman

$1,565

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,565 in Muscat versus $1,837 in Nosara.

Muscat $1,565
Nosara $1,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,341 in Muscat versus $2,775 in Nosara.

Muscat $2,341
Nosara $2,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,116 in Muscat versus $3,712 in Nosara.

Muscat $3,116
Nosara $3,712

Living in Muscat costs roughly 15% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Muscat 17% above, Nosara 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.23 OMR 2.01

$12.22 ₡5,509

-57.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.68 OMR 15.28

$60.2 ₡27.1K

-34.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.64 OMR 2.94

$7.54 ₡3,399

1.33%

Cappuccino

$4.97 OMR 1.91

$4.31 ₡1,941

15.31%

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

$0.85 OMR 0.33

$1.72 ₡773

-50.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 OMR 0.10

$1.35 ₡608

-80.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.92 OMR 4.97

$3.24 ₡1,459

298.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.23 OMR 5.09

$4.48 ₡2,018

195.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.26 OMR 0.87

$1.57 ₡707

43.95%

White Bread (500g)

$1.18 OMR 0.45

$3.17 ₡1,429

-62.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.89 OMR 0.73

$2.42 ₡1,091

-21.90%

Eggs

$2.91 OMR 1.12

$3.57 ₡1,609

-18.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.23 OMR 2.78

$7.43 ₡3,349

-2.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.86 OMR 2.64

$10.42 ₡4,697

-34.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.63 OMR 4.09

$13.66 ₡6,156

-22.18%

Apples (1kg)

$3.66 OMR 1.41

$2.32 ₡1,044

57.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 OMR 0.75

$1.61 ₡728

21.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.40 OMR 0.92

$4.74 ₡2,138

-49.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 OMR 0.49

$1.66 ₡747

-24.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 OMR 0.47

$3.72 ₡1,679

-67.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 OMR 0.49

$3.57 ₡1,611

-64.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.86 OMR 0.72

$1.10 ₡497

69.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 OMR 0.27

$2.55 ₡1,149

-72.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.36 OMR 2.45

$4.95 ₡2,232

28.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.54 OMR 5.98

$20.01 ₡9,020

-22.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$6.00 OMR 2.31

$2.79 ₡1,256

115.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.34 OMR 3.98

$3.53 ₡1,589

192.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.29 OMR 0.50

$1.19 ₡537

8.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.2 OMR 29.71

$72.1 ₡32.5K

7.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 OMR 1.27

$2.24 ₡1,011

47.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.56 OMR 0.99

$1.55 ₡701

65.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.82 OMR 3.01

$8.86 ₡3,993

-11.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.63 OMR 0.24

$1.57 ₡708

-59.87%

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

$25.7K OMR 9,907

$21.8K ₡9.8M

18.02%

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

$23.0K OMR 8,864

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-33.53%

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

$177 OMR 68.2

$93.5 ₡42.1K

89.44%

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

$30.49 OMR 11.74

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-13.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$71.6 OMR 27.57

$51.5 ₡23.2K

39.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.1 OMR 23.53

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-14.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.78 OMR 11.46

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-15.97%

Cinema Ticket

$10.45 OMR 4.02

$7.84 ₡3,535

33.29%

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

$282 OMR 109

$490 ₡220.7K

-42.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.4K OMR 4,004

$11.9K ₡5.4M

-12.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 OMR 22.17

$53.5 ₡24.1K

7.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.41 OMR 16.71

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-22.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.2 OMR 35.12

$79.3 ₡35.7K

15.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.9 OMR 33.06

$78.9 ₡35.6K

8.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$690 OMR 265

$786 ₡354.3K

-12.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$453 OMR 174

$780 ₡351.6K

-41.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,292 OMR 498

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-66.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$819 OMR 315

$1,407 ₡634.4K

-41.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,815 OMR 1,084

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-59.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,609 OMR 619

$1,201 ₡541.3K

34.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 OMR 636

$876 ₡395.0K

88.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

8.62

-39.10%

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

Last update for Muscat: October 3, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Muscat

$453 29.3%

Nosara

$780 43% 72.1% $327

Groceries & Markets

Muscat

$291 18.8%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 20% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Muscat

$279 18%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 35.5% $99

Eating Out

Muscat

$220 14.2%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 4.8% $10

Clothing & Footwear

Muscat

$125 8.1%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 3.8% $4.8

Getting Around

Muscat

$98 6.4%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 11.7% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Muscat

$82 5.3%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 6.2% $5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $690 in Muscat and $786 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Muscat pays 88% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $40.00 in Muscat vs $60.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $291 vs $350 per month, with Muscat cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇴🇲 Muscat

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

05:17 5:17 AM

19:17 7:17 PM

10 h behind Muscat

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,090,797 Capital

4,912

💱 Currency

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.32 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to OMR – Omani Rial Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇴🇲 Omani Rial (ر.ع.)

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.432 OMR (1 OMR = 2.32 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 OMR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Muscat Nosara 14,610 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Muscat
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

Muscat vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Muscat and Nosara differ by about 17% in total monthly costs ($1,565 vs $1,837 including rent). Muscat is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 88% higher in Muscat, 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: $690 in Muscat versus $786 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Muscat – a meal for two runs $40.00 versus $60.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,565 per month in Muscat versus $1,837 in Nosara – a 17% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,565 in Muscat versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Muscat but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Muscat 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, Muscat 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 Muscat gentler on the wallet – expenses run 17% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.