Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Aracaju

For one person, living is cheaper in Aracaju: $746 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Aracaju
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Aracaju Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Aracaju

🇧🇷 Brazil

$746

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Aracaju

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 Aracaju actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $746 in Aracaju.

Nosara $1,839
Aracaju $746

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,168 in Aracaju.

Nosara $2,828
Aracaju $1,168

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $1,590 in Aracaju.

Nosara $3,818
Aracaju $1,590

Living in Nosara is roughly 146% more expensive than in Aracaju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Aracaju is 45% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,547

$4.94 R$24.85

150.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.5K

$24.53 R$123

149.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,377

$6.17 R$31.02

21.88%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,981

$1.74 R$8.73

153.45%

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

$1.74 ₡781

$1.18 R$5.91

47.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡588

$0.67 R$3.36

95.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,473

$1.95 R$9.79

68.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,007

$2.82 R$14.20

58.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡702

$1.05 R$5.28

48.57%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,357

$1.53 R$7.70

97.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,127

$1.21 R$6.10

107.44%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,605

$1.68 R$8.46

112.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,338

$7.70 R$38.72

-3.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,724

$3.79 R$19.04

177.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,274

$7.42 R$37.30

88.27%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,054

$2.15 R$10.79

9.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡721

$1.31 R$6.60

22.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,155

$0.73 R$3.66

557.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡725

$1.02 R$5.14

57.84%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,706

$0.97 R$4.90

291.75%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,659

$0.91 R$4.59

305.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$0.51 R$2.57

121.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,193

$0.76 R$3.81

250.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,324

$2.34 R$11.77

121.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,929

$6.12 R$30.76

224.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,302

$1.28 R$6.46

126.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,628

$2.03 R$10.22

78.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡505

$0.94 R$4.71

19.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

$42.85 R$215

69.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡959

$1.68 R$8.46

27.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡704

$1.22 R$6.11

28.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,828

$6.92 R$34.76

23.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡683

$1.27 R$6.37

19.69%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$23.4K R$117.7K

-7.70%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$34.2K R$171.7K

1.06%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$96.5 R$485

-0.25%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$9.68 R$48.63

270.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.1K

$17.43 R$87.6

207.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$22.93 R$115

212.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$27.44 R$138

27.22%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,544

$6.45 R$32.41

22.33%

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

$494 ₡221.9K

$188 R$944

163.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$5,306 R$26.7K

123.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$58.9 R$296

-8.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.9K

$35.28 R$177

57.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡35.0K

$87.6 R$440

-11.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.8K

$82.6 R$415

-3.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.9K

$313 R$1,573

151.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.7K

$145 R$727

448.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$639 R$3,210

516.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡637.4K

$277 R$1,392

412.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$1,301 R$6,537

431.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.8K

$903 R$4,539

35.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.8K

$453 R$2,279

90.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

-13.80%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Aracaju: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Aracaju

$145 19.4% 81.8% $650

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Aracaju

$167 22.4% 52.6% $185

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Aracaju

$102 13.6% 52% $110

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Aracaju

$124 16.6% 33.4% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Aracaju

$119 15.9% 0.9% $1.1

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Aracaju

$36 4.8% 59% $52

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Aracaju

$54 7.3% 37.6% $33

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $788 in Nosara and $313 in Aracaju. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 90% 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: $61.0 in Nosara vs $25.00 in Aracaju for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $167 per month, with Aracaju cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇧🇷 Aracaju

🕒 Local time

02:51 2:51 AM

05:51 5:51 AM

3 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

602,757

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

1 BRL = 0.199 USD

1 BRL = 0.178 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 449 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 5.03 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.63 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Aracaju 5,850 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Aracaju

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 Aracaju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Aracaju differ by about 146% in total monthly costs ($1,839 vs $746 including rent). Aracaju is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 90% higher in Nosara, 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: $788 in Nosara versus $313 in Aracaju. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $494 in Nosara versus $188 in Aracaju. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 111% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $746 in Aracaju versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Aracaju but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Aracaju 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, Nosara and Aracaju 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 Aracaju gentler on the wallet – expenses run 146% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.