Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 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
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Cebu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,837 in Nosara versus $934 in Cebu.

Nosara $1,837
Cebu $934

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,775 in Nosara versus $1,415 in Cebu.

Nosara $2,775
Cebu $1,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,712 in Nosara versus $1,896 in Cebu.

Nosara $3,712
Cebu $1,896

Living in Nosara is roughly 97% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 37% above, Cebu is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.22 ₡5,509

$3.03 ₱191

303.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.2 ₡27.1K

$23.48 ₱1,476

156.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.54 ₡3,399

$4.09 ₱257

84.35%

Cappuccino

$4.31 ₡1,941

$2.52 ₱158

71.03%

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

$1.72 ₡773

$1.54 ₱97.2

11.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 ₡608

$0.49 ₱31.06

175.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,459

$1.79 ₱113

81.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 ₡2,018

$2.26 ₱142

98.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡707

$1.95 ₱122

-19.49%

White Bread (500g)

$3.17 ₡1,429

$1.43 ₱89.9

121.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 ₡1,091

$1.02 ₱64.0

137.25%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,609

$2.06 ₱129

73.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,349

$9.81 ₱617

-24.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.42 ₡4,697

$4.61 ₱290

126.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.66 ₡6,156

$7.70 ₱484

77.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.32 ₡1,044

$3.31 ₱208

-29.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡728

$1.45 ₱91.2

11.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.74 ₡2,138

$2.36 ₱148

100.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 ₡747

$1.54 ₱96.6

7.79%

Potato (1kg)

$3.72 ₡1,679

$2.36 ₱148

57.63%

Onion (1kg)

$3.57 ₡1,611

$1.99 ₱125

79.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 ₡497

$1.15 ₱72.3

-4.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.55 ₡1,149

$0.67 ₱42.26

280.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.95 ₡2,232

$3.00 ₱189

65.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.01 ₡9,020

$6.35 ₱399

215.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 ₡1,256

$1.31 ₱82.1

112.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 ₡1,589

$1.73 ₱109

104.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₡537

$0.25 ₱15.82

376.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.1 ₡32.5K

$12.65 ₱796

469.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.24 ₡1,011

$0.74 ₱46.44

202.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

$0.21 ₱13.15

638.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.86 ₡3,993

$4.33 ₱272

104.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡708

$1.33 ₱83.7

18.05%

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

$21.8K ₡9.8M

$21.8K ₱1.4M

0.18%

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

$19.4K ₱1.2M

78.56%

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

$93.5 ₡42.1K

$121 ₱7,583

-22.50%

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

$35.11 ₡15.8K

$14.45 ₱909

142.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.5 ₡23.2K

$28.29 ₱1,779

82.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.4 ₡32.2K

$32.68 ₱2,055

118.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.44 ₡16.0K

$6.39 ₱402

454.62%

Cinema Ticket

$7.84 ₡3,535

$5.46 ₱343

43.59%

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

$490 ₡220.7K

$273 ₱17.2K

79.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

$8,156 ₱512.9K

45.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ₡24.1K

$49.57 ₱3,117

8.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 ₡25.1K

$24.87 ₱1,564

124.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 ₡35.7K

$76.6 ₱4,817

3.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.9 ₡35.6K

$59.3 ₱3,727

33.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$786 ₡354.3K

$506 ₱31.8K

55.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 ₡351.6K

$309 ₱19.5K

152.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,860 ₡1.7M

$1,052 ₱66.1K

267.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 ₡634.4K

$619 ₱38.9K

127.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,972 ₡3.1M

$2,915 ₱183.4K

139.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,201 ₡541.3K

$1,867 ₱117.4K

-35.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$876 ₡395.0K

$341 ₱21.5K

156.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

7.2

19.72%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$780 43%

Cebu

$309 33.5% 60.3% $470

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$350 19.3%

Cebu

$210 22.7% 39.8% $139

Eating Out

Nosara

$209 11.6%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 57.8% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$180 9.9%

Cebu

$163 17.7% 9.3% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.6%

Cebu

$95 10.2% 21.4% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Cebu

$44 4.7% 49.9% $43

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 82.2% $71

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $786 in Nosara and $506 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 157% 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 $23.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $350 vs $210 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

19:38 7:38 PM

09:38 9:38 AM

14 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

964,169

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, 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).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.54 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Cebu 16,040 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Cebu

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 Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 97% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 157% 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 $506 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,837 per month in Nosara versus $934 in Cebu – a 97% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 470% less than in Nosara. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $934 in Cebu versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Cebu 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 Cebu 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 Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 97% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.