Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Newquay and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,423 in Newquay, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in Newquay
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Newquay Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Newquay

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,423

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,423 per month in Newquay vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Newquay $2,423
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,587 per month in Newquay vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Newquay $3,587
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $4,752 per month in Newquay vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Newquay $4,752
Nosara $3,818

Newquay costs about 32% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Newquay and Nosara sit above the global median – Newquay by 79%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.03 £15.03

$12.35 ₡5,539

62.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.9 £58.4

$61.2 ₡27.4K

27.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.74 £7.31

$7.52 ₡3,373

29.52%

Cappuccino

$4.65 £3.49

$4.41 ₡1,978

5.44%

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

$2.31 £1.73

$1.74 ₡780

32.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 £1.21

$1.31 ₡587

23.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.09 £4.57

$3.28 ₡1,471

85.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 £4.82

$4.47 ₡2,004

43.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 £1.23

$1.56 ₡701

4.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 £1.12

$3.02 ₡1,355

-50.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 £1.72

$2.51 ₡1,125

-8.37%

Eggs

$4.19 £3.14

$3.57 ₡1,603

17.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.45 £4.84

$7.43 ₡3,333

-13.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.89 £8.92

$10.52 ₡4,717

13.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.70 £9.53

$13.97 ₡6,265

-9.09%

Apples (1kg)

$2.21 £1.66

$2.35 ₡1,052

-5.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.79 £1.34

$1.61 ₡720

11.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 £1.45

$4.80 ₡2,152

-59.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 £1.61

$1.61 ₡724

32.92%

Potato (1kg)

$2.17 £1.63

$3.80 ₡1,703

-42.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 £0.94

$3.69 ₡1,657

-65.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.92 £1.44

$1.13 ₡507

69.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.86 £1.39

$2.66 ₡1,191

-30.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.73 £17.80

$5.18 ₡2,321

358.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.83 £7.37

$19.88 ₡8,916

-50.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.70 £2.02

$2.90 ₡1,300

-6.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 £1.80

$3.63 ₡1,626

-34.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.22 £2.42

$2.14 ₡958

50.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.31 £1.74

$1.57 ₡703

47.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.88 £23.92

$8.52 ₡3,823

274.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.91 £1.43

$1.52 ₡682

25.66%

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

$38.2K £28.7K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

76.76%

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

$39.7K £29.8K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

14.94%

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

$362 £272

$96.3 ₡43.2K

276.00%

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

$15.96 £11.97

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-55.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.39 £31.80

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-20.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.5 £40.15

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-25.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$20.45 £15.35

$7.89 ₡3,539

159.19%

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

$2,208 £1,657

$494 ₡221.6K

346.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$33.7K £25.3K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

184.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.1 £65.4

$53.9 ₡24.2K

61.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.72 £36.55

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-12.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$154 £116

$77.9 ₡34.9K

97.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$143 £107

$79.6 ₡35.7K

79.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,338 £1,004

$788 ₡353.4K

69.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,103 £828

$794 ₡356.2K

38.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,403 £1,803

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-39.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 £1,493

$1,419 ₡636.5K

40.23%

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)

$2,132 £1,599

$864 ₡387.3K

146.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.96

8.62

-42.46%

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

Last update for Newquay: 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

Newquay

$1.1K 45.5%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 28% $309

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Newquay

$420 17.4%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 55.8% $235

Eating Out

Newquay

$304 12.6%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 30.4% $92

Groceries & Markets

Newquay

$291 12%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 20.9% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Newquay

$195 8%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 38.4% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Newquay

$94 3.9%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 7.5% $7

Getting Around

Newquay

$15 * 0.6%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 489% $72

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,338 in Newquay versus $788 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 147% higher in Newquay, 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 $78.0 in Newquay versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $291 in Newquay vs $352 in Nosara – so Newquay wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Newquay

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

21:21 9:21 PM

14:21 2:21 PM

7 h behind Newquay

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,189

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 19, 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 19, 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Newquay Nosara 8,490 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Newquay
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

Newquay vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,423 in Newquay, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 32% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,635 per month in Newquay and $2,758 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,423 in Newquay and $1,839 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 32%.

Kindergarten costs $2,208 per month in Newquay and $494 in Nosara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,839, than in Newquay at $2,423. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Newquay it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Nosara has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,839 in Nosara to $2,423 in Newquay. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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, Newquay makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.