Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Douliu

For one person, living is cheaper in Douliu: $1,138 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Douliu
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Douliu Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Douliu

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,138

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Douliu

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

A single person spends $1,839 per month in Nosara vs $1,138 in Douliu, rent included.

Nosara $1,839
Douliu $1,138

A couple spends around $2,828 per month in Nosara vs $1,894 in Douliu, rent included.

Nosara $2,828
Douliu $1,894

A family of three spends $3,818 per month in Nosara vs $2,650 in Douliu, rent included.

Nosara $3,818
Douliu $2,650

Nosara costs about 62% more than Douliu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Nosara sits 36% above the global median, while Douliu is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$3.85 NT$125

220.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$22.40 NT$726

173.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$5.81 NT$189

29.43%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$3.40 NT$110

29.71%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.94 NT$30.58

85.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.67 NT$21.86

95.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$2.79 NT$90.4

17.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$3.73 NT$121

19.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$3.09 NT$100

-49.51%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$2.01 NT$65.1

50.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$3.17 NT$103

-20.82%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$2.76 NT$89.4

29.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$19.44 NT$631

-61.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$9.97 NT$323

5.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$21.44 NT$695

-34.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$4.79 NT$155

-50.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$3.29 NT$107

-51.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$3.08 NT$99.9

55.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$4.34 NT$141

-62.90%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$2.82 NT$91.3

34.75%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$2.34 NT$75.9

57.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.71 NT$55.6

-33.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$1.10 NT$35.65

141.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$3.85 NT$125

34.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$14.46 NT$469

37.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.63 NT$52.9

77.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.31 NT$75.0

57.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.61 NT$19.89

83.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

$35.53 NT$1,152

104.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$2.66 NT$86.3

-19.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.77 NT$24.82

103.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$9.46 NT$307

-9.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.03 NT$33.56

47.57%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$34.0K NT$1.1M

-36.43%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$24.0K NT$777.6K

43.94%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$86.6 NT$2,807

11.25%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$17.15 NT$556

109.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$27.79 NT$901

92.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$36.37 NT$1,179

96.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$9.54 NT$309

-17.30%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$663 NT$21.5K

-25.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$17.0K NT$550.7K

-30.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$64.5 NT$2,091

-16.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$40.75 NT$1,321

35.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$85.0 NT$2,756

-8.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$105 NT$3,408

-24.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$404 NT$13.1K

94.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$257 NT$8,334

209.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$982 NT$31.8K

301.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$730 NT$23.7K

94.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$7,836 NT$254.1K

-11.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$4,924 NT$159.7K

-75.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

$2,544 NT$82.5K

-66.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

2.4

259.17%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Douliu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Douliu

$257 22.6% 67.6% $537

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Douliu

$400 35.1% 13.5% $47

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Douliu

$117 10.3% 44.8% $95

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Douliu

$132 11.6% 29.2% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Douliu

$133 11.7% 10.7% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Douliu

$55 4.9% 36.5% $32

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Douliu

$44 3.9% 48.9% $43

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $788 in Nosara versus $404 in Douliu. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 195% higher in Douliu, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Nosara versus $22.00 in Douliu. Groceries tell a different story – $352 in Nosara vs $400 in Douliu – so Nosara wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇹🇼 Douliu

🕒 Local time

19:23 7:23 PM

09:23 9:23 AM

14 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

108,401

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Douliu 15,310 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Douliu

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 Douliu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara costs about 62% more than Douliu, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,758 per month in Nosara and $1,707 in Douliu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Douliu, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Nosara and $22.00 in Douliu. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,839 in Nosara and $1,138 in Douliu. That's a gap of about 62%.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Douliu, where all-in costs run around $1,138, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Douliu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Douliu costs $1,138 versus $1,839 in Nosara. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Douliu. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Nosara makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.