Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Acarigua

For one person, living is cheaper in Acarigua: $807 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $12,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Acarigua
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Acarigua Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Acarigua

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$807

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Acarigua

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Nosara and in Acarigua actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $807 in Acarigua.

Nosara $1,839
Acarigua $807

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,422 in Acarigua.

Nosara $2,828
Acarigua $1,422

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $2,038 in Acarigua.

Nosara $3,818
Acarigua $2,038

Living in Nosara is roughly 128% more expensive than in Acarigua, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Acarigua is 40% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$10.84 VES 9,518

13.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$66.9 VES 58.7K

-8.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$11.22 VES 9,849

-32.98%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$3.57 VES 3,137

23.53%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$1.57 VES 1,380

10.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$1.30 VES 1,140

0.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$2.03 VES 1,785

61.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$2.94 VES 2,585

52.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$2.66 VES 2,335

-41.35%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$2.20 VES 1,934

37.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.91 VES 1,674

31.41%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$4.64 VES 4,071

-23.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$10.29 VES 9,030

-27.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$9.20 VES 8,079

14.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$11.27 VES 9,895

23.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$7.31 VES 6,418

-67.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.99 VES 1,751

-19.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$2.22 VES 1,945

116.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$2.35 VES 2,060

-31.49%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$2.22 VES 1,945

71.17%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$2.23 VES 1,956

65.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.57 VES 1,378

-28.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$2.39 VES 2,103

11.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$4.48 VES 3,930

15.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$12.17 VES 10.7K

63.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.41 VES 1,238

105.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.13 VES 1,870

70.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$5.08 VES 4,462

-57.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$2.71 VES 2,382

-42.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$14.93 VES 13.1K

-42.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$0.88 VES 774

72.73%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$25.5K VES 22.4M

-15.14%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$38.4K VES 33.8M

-10.22%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$22.06 VES 19.4K

336.49%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$11.85 VES 10.4K

202.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$37.24 VES 32.7K

43.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$6.42 VES 5,640

22.90%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$159 VES 139.9K

210.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$6,058 VES 5.3M

95.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$77.2 VES 67.8K

-30.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$50.7 VES 44.5K

9.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$131 VES 115.3K

-40.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$134 VES 117.3K

-40.44%

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

$632 VES 554.4K

93.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

-60.82%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Acarigua: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Acarigua

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Acarigua

$336 41.7% 4.5% $16

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Acarigua

$191 23.7% 9.9% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Acarigua

$71 8.8% 61.7% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Acarigua

$177 21.9% 47.2% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Acarigua

$13 * 1.6% 85.3% $75

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Acarigua

$19 * 2.3% 78.6% $68

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $61.0 in Nosara vs $67.0 in Acarigua. Groceries flip the comparison at $352 vs $336, with Acarigua cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇻🇪 Acarigua

🕒 Local time

12:50 12:50 PM

14:50 2:50 PM

2 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

205,933

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1,000 VES = 1.14 USD

1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VES, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 878 VES (1,000 VES = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 987 VES (1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nosara Acarigua 1,800 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Acarigua

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

Nosara vs Acarigua: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Acarigua is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 128% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,758 in Nosara and $1,210 in Acarigua to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,839 per month in Nosara versus $807 in Acarigua – a 128% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $807 in Acarigua versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Acarigua but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Acarigua the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Acarigua 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, Nosara and Acarigua 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 Acarigua gentler on the wallet – expenses run 128% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.