Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Brasilia

For one person, living is cheaper in Brasilia: $994 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $10,100 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Brasilia
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Brasilia Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$994

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Brasilia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,837 in Nosara versus $994 in Brasilia.

Nosara $1,837
Brasilia $994

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,775 in Nosara versus $1,593 in Brasilia.

Nosara $2,775
Brasilia $1,593

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,712 in Nosara versus $2,193 in Brasilia.

Nosara $3,712
Brasilia $2,193

Living in Nosara is roughly 85% more expensive than in Brasilia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 37% above, Brasilia is 26% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.22 ₡5,509

$9.18 R$46.05

33.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.2 ₡27.1K

$40.43 R$203

48.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.54 ₡3,399

$8.44 R$42.34

-10.66%

Cappuccino

$4.31 ₡1,941

$2.73 R$13.69

57.88%

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

$1.72 ₡773

$1.51 R$7.59

13.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 ₡608

$0.99 R$4.99

36.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,459

$2.37 R$11.89

36.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 ₡2,018

$3.95 R$19.83

13.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡707

$1.11 R$5.55

41.44%

White Bread (500g)

$3.17 ₡1,429

$2.06 R$10.33

53.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 ₡1,091

$1.34 R$6.72

80.60%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,609

$2.56 R$12.86

39.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,349

$11.60 R$58.2

-35.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.42 ₡4,697

$4.15 R$20.80

151.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.66 ₡6,156

$9.27 R$46.51

47.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.32 ₡1,044

$2.39 R$11.98

-2.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡728

$1.55 R$7.77

3.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.74 ₡2,138

$1.30 R$6.54

264.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 ₡747

$1.65 R$8.29

0.61%

Potato (1kg)

$3.72 ₡1,679

$1.19 R$5.99

212.61%

Onion (1kg)

$3.57 ₡1,611

$1.04 R$5.22

243.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 ₡497

$0.83 R$4.14

32.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.55 ₡1,149

$0.96 R$4.80

165.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.95 ₡2,232

$2.43 R$12.18

103.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.01 ₡9,020

$8.15 R$40.87

145.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 ₡1,256

$1.29 R$6.46

116.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 ₡1,589

$2.50 R$12.56

41.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₡537

$1.07 R$5.35

11.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.1 ₡32.5K

$35.76 R$179

101.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.24 ₡1,011

$1.10 R$5.52

103.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

$0.86 R$4.34

80.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.86 ₡3,993

$6.56 R$32.90

35.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡708

$1.29 R$6.47

21.71%

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

$21.8K ₡9.8M

$23.9K R$120.1K

-8.92%

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

$33.6K R$168.5K

3.17%

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

$93.5 ₡42.1K

$97.6 R$490

-4.26%

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

$35.11 ₡15.8K

$12.78 R$64.1

174.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.5 ₡23.2K

$22.79 R$114

125.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.4 ₡32.2K

$34.48 R$173

107.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.44 ₡16.0K

$28.17 R$141

25.81%

Cinema Ticket

$7.84 ₡3,535

$7.80 R$39.13

0.51%

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

$490 ₡220.7K

$844 R$4,233

-41.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

$16.8K R$84.1K

-29.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ₡24.1K

$56.7 R$285

-5.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 ₡25.1K

$43.89 R$220

27.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 ₡35.7K

$86.3 R$433

-8.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.9 ₡35.6K

$89.3 R$448

-11.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$786 ₡354.3K

$498 R$2,497

57.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 ₡351.6K

$282 R$1,413

176.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,860 ₡1.7M

$1,156 R$5,802

233.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 ₡634.4K

$574 R$2,878

145.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,972 ₡3.1M

$2,497 R$12.5K

179.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,201 ₡541.3K

$1,735 R$8,705

-30.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$876 ₡395.0K

$848 R$4,256

3.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

12.12

-28.88%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Last update for Brasilia: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$780 43%

Brasilia

$282 27.9% 63.9% $498

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$350 19.3%

Brasilia

$213 21.2% 38.9% $136

Eating Out

Nosara

$209 11.6%

Brasilia

$161 16% 23% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$180 9.9%

Brasilia

$133 13.2% 26% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.6%

Brasilia

$124 12.3% 3.3% $4

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Brasilia

$50 5% 42.5% $37

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Brasilia

$45 4.5% 47.7% $41

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $786 in Nosara and $498 in Brasilia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 3% 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 $40.00 in Brasilia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $350 vs $213 per month, with Brasilia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇧🇷 Brasilia

🕒 Local time

23:33 11:33 PM

02:33 2:33 AM

3 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

2,817,381 Capital

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 5.02 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.63 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Nosara Brasilia 5,050 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Brasilia

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 Brasilia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Brasilia differ by about 85% in total monthly costs ($1,837 vs $994 including rent). Brasilia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 3% 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 $498 in Brasilia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Brasilia – a meal for two runs $40.00 versus $60.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,837 per month in Nosara versus $994 in Brasilia – a 85% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $994 in Brasilia versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Brasilia but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Brasilia 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 Brasilia 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 Brasilia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 85% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.