Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Gjilan

For one person, living is cheaper in Gjilan: $774 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $12,800 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Gjilan
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Gjilan Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Gjilan

🇽🇰 Kosovo

$774

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Gjilan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,837 in Nosara versus $774 in Gjilan.

Nosara $1,837
Gjilan $774

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,775 in Nosara versus $1,140 in Gjilan.

Nosara $2,775
Gjilan $1,140

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,712 in Nosara versus $1,507 in Gjilan.

Nosara $3,712
Gjilan $1,507

Living in Nosara is roughly 137% more expensive than in Gjilan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 37% above, Gjilan is 42% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.22 ₡5,509

$4.13 €3.69

195.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.2 ₡27.1K

$22.81 €20.35

163.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.54 ₡3,399

$5.77 €5.15

30.68%

Cappuccino

$4.31 ₡1,941

$1.36 €1.21

216.91%

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

$1.72 ₡773

$1.09 €0.97

57.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 ₡608

$0.88 €0.78

53.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,459

$1.66 €1.48

95.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 ₡2,018

$1.32 €1.18

239.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡707

$1.25 €1.11

25.60%

White Bread (500g)

$3.17 ₡1,429

$0.46 €0.41

589.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 ₡1,091

$1.29 €1.15

87.60%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,609

$1.86 €1.66

91.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,349

$7.81 €6.97

-4.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.42 ₡4,697

$6.67 €5.95

56.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.66 ₡6,156

$12.67 €11.31

7.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.32 ₡1,044

$1.57 €1.40

47.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡728

$1.58 €1.41

1.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.74 ₡2,138

$1.69 €1.51

180.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 ₡747

$1.65 €1.47

0.61%

Potato (1kg)

$3.72 ₡1,679

$0.96 €0.85

287.50%

Onion (1kg)

$3.57 ₡1,611

$0.86 €0.77

315.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 ₡497

$0.84 €0.75

30.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.55 ₡1,149

$0.49 €0.44

420.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.95 ₡2,232

$3.41 €3.04

45.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.01 ₡9,020

$5.69 €5.07

251.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 ₡1,256

$1.00 €0.89

179.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 ₡1,589

$1.26 €1.13

180.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₡537

$0.58 €0.52

105.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.1 ₡32.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.24 ₡1,011

$2.19 €1.96

2.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

$0.59 €0.52

162.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.86 ₡3,993

$3.30 €2.95

168.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡708

$1.43 €1.28

9.79%

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

$21.8K ₡9.8M

$22.2K €19.8K

-1.83%

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

$25.6K €22.9K

35.07%

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

$93.5 ₡42.1K

$107 €95.2

-12.35%

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

$35.11 ₡15.8K

$11.27 €10.06

211.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.5 ₡23.2K

$23.50 €20.97

119.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.4 ₡32.2K

$19.87 €17.73

259.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.44 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$7.84 ₡3,535

$4.57 €4.08

71.55%

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

$490 ₡220.7K

$166 €148

195.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

$1,466 €1,308

710.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ₡24.1K

$42.41 €37.85

26.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 ₡25.1K

$31.57 €28.17

76.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 ₡35.7K

$63.2 €56.4

25.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.9 ₡35.6K

$79.9 €71.3

-1.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$786 ₡354.3K

$278 €248

182.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 ₡351.6K

$228 €204

241.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,860 ₡1.7M

$479 €428

705.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 ₡634.4K

$360 €321

290.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,972 ₡3.1M

$911 €813

665.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,201 ₡541.3K

$700 €624

71.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$876 ₡395.0K

$441 €394

98.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

4.5

91.56%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Last update for Gjilan: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$780 43%

Gjilan

$228 29.3% 70.7% $552

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$350 19.3%

Gjilan

$190 24.3% 45.8% $160

Eating Out

Nosara

$209 11.6%

Gjilan

$85 11% 59.2% $124

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$180 9.9%

Gjilan

$141 18.2% 21.5% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.6%

Gjilan

$98 12.5% 18.8% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Gjilan

$29 3.7% 66.7% $58

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Gjilan

$7.5 * 1% 91.4% $79

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 $278 in Gjilan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 99% 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 Gjilan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $350 vs $190 per month, with Gjilan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇽🇰 Gjilan

🕒 Local time

01:30 1:30 AM

09:30 9:30 AM

8 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

54,239

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Nosara Gjilan 10,630 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Gjilan

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 Gjilan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Gjilan differ by about 137% in total monthly costs ($1,837 vs $774 including rent). Gjilan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 99% 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 $278 in Gjilan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 84% 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 $774 in Gjilan – a 137% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $774 in Gjilan versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Gjilan but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Gjilan 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 Gjilan 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 Gjilan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 137% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.