Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Atibaia

For one person, living is cheaper in Atibaia: $827 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Atibaia
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Atibaia Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Atibaia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$827

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Atibaia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $827 in Atibaia.

Nosara $1,839
Atibaia $827

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,465 in Atibaia.

Nosara $2,828
Atibaia $1,465

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $2,104 in Atibaia.

Nosara $3,818
Atibaia $2,104

Living in Nosara is roughly 122% more expensive than in Atibaia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Atibaia is 39% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,547

$8.09 R$40.67

52.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.5K

$32.64 R$164

87.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,377

$7.09 R$35.63

6.06%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,981

$2.35 R$11.80

87.66%

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

$1.74 ₡781

$1.37 R$6.91

27.01%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡588

$0.91 R$4.58

43.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,473

$2.01 R$10.12

63.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,007

$2.99 R$15.01

49.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡702

$1.13 R$5.70

38.05%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,357

$1.83 R$9.22

65.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,127

$1.38 R$6.95

81.88%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,605

$2.45 R$12.30

45.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,338

$10.70 R$53.8

-30.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,724

$4.83 R$24.29

117.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,274

$9.93 R$49.91

40.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,054

$2.21 R$11.09

6.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡721

$1.29 R$6.49

24.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,155

$1.18 R$5.92

306.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡725

$1.63 R$8.18

-1.23%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,706

$1.17 R$5.89

224.79%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,659

$1.32 R$6.66

179.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$0.98 R$4.91

15.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,193

$0.77 R$3.87

245.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,324

$2.44 R$12.28

112.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,929

$7.84 R$39.40

153.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,302

$1.36 R$6.81

113.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,628

$1.90 R$9.53

91.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡505

$1.02 R$5.14

9.80%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡959

$1.52 R$7.65

40.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡704

$1.63 R$8.18

-3.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,828

$17.68 R$88.9

-51.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡683

$1.30 R$6.53

16.92%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$21.2K R$106.6K

1.93%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$31.8K R$160.1K

8.40%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$81.2 R$408

18.64%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$12.24 R$61.5

193.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.1K

$22.80 R$115

135.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$23.72 R$119

201.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$20.10 R$101

73.68%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,544

$8.89 R$44.71

-11.25%

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

$494 ₡221.9K

$279 R$1,405

76.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$10.3K R$51.6K

15.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$55.3 R$278

-2.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.9K

$38.29 R$192

44.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡35.0K

$75.7 R$381

2.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.8K

$60.1 R$302

32.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.9K

$297 R$1,492

165.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.7K

$204 R$1,027

288.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$992 R$4,987

297.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡637.4K

$689 R$3,465

105.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$1,997 R$10.0K

246.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.8K

$1,732 R$8,707

-29.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.8K

$495 R$2,490

74.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

12.79

-32.60%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Atibaia: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Atibaia

$204 24.7% 74.3% $590

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Atibaia

$208 25.2% 40.9% $144

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Atibaia

$139 16.9% 34.2% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Atibaia

$116 14.1% 37.4% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Atibaia

$103 12.5% 14% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Atibaia

$42 5% 52.5% $46

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Atibaia

$14 * 1.7% 84.2% $73

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 $788 in Nosara and $297 in Atibaia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 74% 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 $33.00 in Atibaia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $208 per month, with Atibaia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇧🇷 Atibaia

🕒 Local time

06:02 6:02 AM

09:02 9:02 AM

3 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

158,647

💱 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 Atibaia 5,630 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Atibaia

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 Atibaia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Atibaia differ by about 122% in total monthly costs ($1,839 vs $827 including rent). Atibaia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 74% 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 $297 in Atibaia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $494 in Nosara versus $279 in Atibaia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Atibaia – a meal for two runs $33.00 versus $61.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $827 in Atibaia versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Atibaia but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Atibaia 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 Atibaia 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 Atibaia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 122% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.