Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Batam

For one person, living is cheaper in Batam: $596 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $14,900 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
29

Cost of Living Index in Batam
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Batam Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Batam

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$596

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Batam

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,837 in Nosara versus $596 in Batam.

Nosara $1,837
Batam $596

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,775 in Nosara versus $1,010 in Batam.

Nosara $2,775
Batam $1,010

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,712 in Nosara versus $1,424 in Batam.

Nosara $3,712
Batam $1,424

Living in Nosara is roughly 208% more expensive than in Batam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 37% above, Batam is 56% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.22 ₡5,509

$1.97 Rp 35.3K

520.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.2 ₡27.1K

$8.33 Rp 149.0K

622.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.54 ₡3,399

$4.01 Rp 71.7K

88.03%

Cappuccino

$4.31 ₡1,941

$2.12 Rp 37.9K

103.30%

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

$1.72 ₡773

$0.65 Rp 11.6K

164.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 ₡608

$0.31 Rp 5,617

335.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,459

$2.53 Rp 45.3K

28.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 ₡2,018

$3.66 Rp 65.5K

22.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡707

$1.15 Rp 20.6K

36.52%

White Bread (500g)

$3.17 ₡1,429

$1.11 Rp 19.8K

185.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 ₡1,091

$0.81 Rp 14.5K

198.77%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,609

$1.24 Rp 22.1K

187.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,349

$7.40 Rp 132.4K

0.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.42 ₡4,697

$2.40 Rp 43.0K

334.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.66 ₡6,156

$4.35 Rp 77.7K

214.02%

Apples (1kg)

$2.32 ₡1,044

$2.25 Rp 40.3K

3.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡728

$1.97 Rp 35.3K

-18.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.74 ₡2,138

$2.02 Rp 36.2K

134.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 ₡747

$1.00 Rp 18.0K

66.00%

Potato (1kg)

$3.72 ₡1,679

$0.97 Rp 17.4K

283.51%

Onion (1kg)

$3.57 ₡1,611

$1.93 Rp 34.5K

84.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 ₡497

$1.32 Rp 23.6K

-16.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.55 ₡1,149

$0.44 Rp 7,951

479.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.95 ₡2,232

$2.74 Rp 49.0K

80.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.01 ₡9,020

$13.91 Rp 248.9K

43.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 ₡1,256

$1.70 Rp 30.4K

64.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 ₡1,589

$2.44 Rp 43.7K

44.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₡537

$0.37 Rp 6,667

221.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.1 ₡32.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.24 ₡1,011

$1.15 Rp 20.5K

94.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

$0.63 Rp 11.3K

146.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.86 ₡3,993

$3.55 Rp 63.4K

149.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡708

$0.82 Rp 14.7K

91.46%

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

$21.8K ₡9.8M

$28.3K Rp 506.8M

-23.04%

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

$24.4K Rp 436.2M

42.06%

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

$93.5 ₡42.1K

$68.6 Rp 1.2M

36.18%

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

$35.11 ₡15.8K

$4.08 Rp 72.9K

760.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.5 ₡23.2K

$23.00 Rp 411.5K

123.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.4 ₡32.2K

$26.70 Rp 477.7K

167.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.44 ₡16.0K

$5.69 Rp 101.8K

522.85%

Cinema Ticket

$7.84 ₡3,535

$2.62 Rp 46.9K

199.24%

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

$490 ₡220.7K

$82.4 Rp 1.5M

494.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

$3,273 Rp 58.6M

262.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ₡24.1K

$31.39 Rp 561.6K

70.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 ₡25.1K

$18.43 Rp 329.8K

202.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 ₡35.7K

$65.2 Rp 1.2M

21.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.9 ₡35.6K

$24.41 Rp 436.7K

223.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$786 ₡354.3K

$270 Rp 4.8M

190.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 ₡351.6K

$148 Rp 2.7M

425.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,860 ₡1.7M

$818 Rp 14.6M

372.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 ₡634.4K

$496 Rp 8.9M

183.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,972 ₡3.1M

$559 Rp 10.0M

1147.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,201 ₡541.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$876 ₡395.0K

$343 Rp 6.1M

155.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

13.17

-34.55%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Last update for Batam: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$780 43%

Batam

$148 25% 81% $631

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$350 19.3%

Batam

$173 29.1% 50.6% $177

Eating Out

Nosara

$209 11.6%

Batam

$77 13% 63.2% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$180 9.9%

Batam

$96 16.1% 46.8% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.6%

Batam

$63 10.6% 47.9% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Batam

$32 5.4% 63.3% $55

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Batam

$5.8 * 1% 93.3% $81

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 $786 in Nosara and $270 in Batam. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 155% 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: $60.0 in Nosara vs $8.00 in Batam for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $350 vs $173 per month, with Batam cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇮🇩 Batam

🕒 Local time

21:31 9:31 PM

10:31 10:31 AM

13 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

1,196,396

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

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).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,890 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,065 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Batam 18,380 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Batam

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 Batam: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Batam is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 208% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 155% 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: $786 in Nosara versus $270 in Batam. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 102% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,837 per month in Nosara versus $596 in Batam – a 208% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $596 in Batam versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Batam but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Batam the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Batam 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 Batam 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 Batam gentler on the wallet – expenses run 208% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.