Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Dukhan

For one person, living is cheaper in Dukhan: $1,683 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. The total is higher in Nosara despite lower rent and utilities.

89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Dukhan
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Dukhan Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Dukhan

🇶🇦 Qatar

$1,683

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Dukhan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $1,683 in Dukhan.

Nosara $1,839
Dukhan $1,683

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $2,331 in Dukhan.

Nosara $2,828
Dukhan $2,331

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $2,979 in Dukhan.

Nosara $3,818
Dukhan $2,979

Living in Nosara is roughly 9% more expensive than in Dukhan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Nosara 36% above, Dukhan 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$9.55 QAR 34.75

29.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$69.7 QAR 254

-12.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$8.09 QAR 29.43

-7.05%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.07 QAR 43.94

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.42 QAR 48.86

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$5.93 QAR 21.57

-25.63%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.92 QAR 3.34

89.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.40 QAR 1.47

227.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$2.16 QAR 7.87

-27.78%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$1.42 QAR 5.17

112.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.94 QAR 7.04

29.38%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$3.38 QAR 12.32

5.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$11.21 QAR 40.79

-33.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$7.96 QAR 28.96

32.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$11.35 QAR 41.30

23.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$2.26 QAR 8.23

3.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.87 QAR 6.80

-13.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$1.56 QAR 5.68

207.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.20 QAR 4.37

34.17%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$0.92 QAR 3.34

313.04%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$0.94 QAR 3.44

292.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.45 QAR 5.28

-22.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.52 QAR 1.89

411.54%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$9.45 QAR 34.40

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 QAR 6.99

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 QAR 8.08

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$6.51 QAR 23.68

-20.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$1.88 QAR 6.83

13.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$2.00 QAR 7.29

-21.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$13.63 QAR 49.63

-37.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$0.56 QAR 2.02

171.43%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$28.3K QAR 103.0K

-23.61%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$22.8K QAR 83.2K

51.08%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$87.0 QAR 317

10.67%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$34.31 QAR 125

4.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$85.3 QAR 310

-37.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$12.59 QAR 45.84

-37.33%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$658 QAR 2,395

-24.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$9,629 QAR 35.1K

23.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$61.1 QAR 222

-11.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$53.1 QAR 193

4.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$101 QAR 368

-23.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$85.6 QAR 311

-6.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$1,346 QAR 4,900

-41.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$911 QAR 3,317

-12.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$1,674 QAR 6,095

135.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$1,124 QAR 4,092

26.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

$4,094 QAR 14.9K

-78.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

5.92

45.61%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Dukhan: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Dukhan

$911 54.1% 14.7% $117

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Dukhan

$216 12.8% 38.7% $136

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Dukhan

$177 10.5% 16.4% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Dukhan

$207 12.3% 11.2% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Dukhan

$135 8.1% 12.8% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Dukhan

$25 * 1.5% 71.2% $62

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Dukhan

$12 * 0.7% 86.4% $75

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 $1,346 in Dukhan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dukhan pays 374% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $61.0 in Nosara vs $70.0 in Dukhan. Groceries flip the comparison at $352 vs $216, with Dukhan cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇶🇦 Dukhan

🕒 Local time

20:55 8:55 PM

05:55 5:55 AM

9 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

12,000

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Qatari Riyal QAR ر.ق

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 QAR = 0.275 USD

1 QAR = 0.244 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Qatari Riyal exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.64 QAR (1 QAR = 0.275 USD). 1 EUR = 4.09 QAR (1 QAR = 0.244 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nosara Dukhan 13,870 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Dukhan

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 Dukhan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Dukhan differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($1,839 vs $1,683 including rent). Dukhan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 374% lower in Dukhan. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $788 in Nosara versus $1,346 in Dukhan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 63% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,839 per month in Nosara versus $1,683 in Dukhan – a 9% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,683 in Dukhan versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Dukhan but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Dukhan 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 Dukhan 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 Dukhan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.