Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Gothenburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,837 a month against $2,042 in Gothenburg, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index
99

Cost of Living Index in Gothenburg
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Gothenburg Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Gothenburg

🇸🇪 Sweden

$2,042

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Gothenburg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,837 in Nosara versus $2,042 in Gothenburg.

Nosara $1,837
Gothenburg $2,042

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,775 in Nosara versus $3,064 in Gothenburg.

Nosara $2,775
Gothenburg $3,064

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,712 in Nosara versus $4,086 in Gothenburg.

Nosara $3,712
Gothenburg $4,086

Living in Nosara costs roughly 10% less than in Gothenburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Nosara 37% above, Gothenburg 52% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.22 ₡5,509

$12.84 SEK 128

-4.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.2 ₡27.1K

$83.5 SEK 834

-27.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.54 ₡3,399

$12.20 SEK 122

-38.20%

Cappuccino

$4.31 ₡1,941

$4.81 SEK 48.09

-10.40%

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

$1.72 ₡773

$2.81 SEK 28.09

-38.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 ₡608

$2.25 SEK 22.46

-40.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,459

$7.07 SEK 70.7

-54.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 ₡2,018

$7.29 SEK 72.8

-38.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡707

$1.65 SEK 16.48

-4.85%

White Bread (500g)

$3.17 ₡1,429

$2.81 SEK 28.12

12.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 ₡1,091

$3.23 SEK 32.25

-25.08%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,609

$3.75 SEK 37.44

-4.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,349

$11.21 SEK 112

-33.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.42 ₡4,697

$11.49 SEK 115

-9.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.66 ₡6,156

$16.27 SEK 163

-16.04%

Apples (1kg)

$2.32 ₡1,044

$2.99 SEK 29.85

-22.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡728

$2.50 SEK 24.98

-35.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.74 ₡2,138

$2.98 SEK 29.79

59.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 ₡747

$4.33 SEK 43.27

-61.66%

Potato (1kg)

$3.72 ₡1,679

$1.80 SEK 18.03

106.67%

Onion (1kg)

$3.57 ₡1,611

$1.69 SEK 16.86

111.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 ₡497

$1.97 SEK 19.66

-44.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.55 ₡1,149

$1.57 SEK 15.74

62.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.95 ₡2,232

$8.17 SEK 81.6

-39.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.01 ₡9,020

$14.70 SEK 147

36.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 ₡1,256

$1.99 SEK 19.88

40.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 ₡1,589

$2.24 SEK 22.41

57.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₡537

$3.59 SEK 35.89

-66.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.1 ₡32.5K

$86.4 SEK 863

-16.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.24 ₡1,011

$6.03 SEK 60.2

-62.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

$1.64 SEK 16.43

-5.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.86 ₡3,993

$58.9 SEK 588

-84.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡708

$1.72 SEK 17.24

-8.72%

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

$21.8K ₡9.8M

$32.4K SEK 323.7K

-32.69%

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

$33.4K SEK 333.7K

3.74%

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

$93.5 ₡42.1K

$101 SEK 1,012

-7.76%

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

$35.11 ₡15.8K

$19.36 SEK 193

81.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.5 ₡23.2K

$33.87 SEK 338

52.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.4 ₡32.2K

$34.60 SEK 346

106.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.44 ₡16.0K

$24.33 SEK 243

45.66%

Cinema Ticket

$7.84 ₡3,535

$18.36 SEK 183

-57.30%

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

$490 ₡220.7K

$223 SEK 2,229

119.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

$4,448 SEK 44.5K

167.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ₡24.1K

$87.0 SEK 869

-38.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 ₡25.1K

$33.02 SEK 330

68.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 ₡35.7K

$85.8 SEK 857

-7.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.9 ₡35.6K

$132 SEK 1,323

-40.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$786 ₡354.3K

$1,035 SEK 10.3K

-24.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 ₡351.6K

$928 SEK 9,273

-15.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,860 ₡1.7M

$1,768 SEK 17.7K

118.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 ₡634.4K

$1,386 SEK 13.8K

1.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,972 ₡3.1M

$6,117 SEK 61.1K

13.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,201 ₡541.3K

$3,377 SEK 33.8K

-64.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$876 ₡395.0K

$3,444 SEK 34.4K

-74.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

3.06

181.70%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Last update for Gothenburg: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$780 43%

Gothenburg

$928 45.4% 19% $148

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$350 19.3%

Gothenburg

$355 17.4% 1.6% $5.8

Eating Out

Nosara

$209 11.6%

Gothenburg

$267 13.1% 27.6% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$180 9.9%

Gothenburg

$155 7.6% 14.2% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.6%

Gothenburg

$152 7.4% 26.4% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Gothenburg

$71 3.5% 18.1% $16

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Gothenburg

$115 5.6% 32.4% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $786 in Nosara and $1,035 in Gothenburg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gothenburg pays 293% 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 $83.0 in Gothenburg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $350 vs $355 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇸🇪 Gothenburg

🕒 Local time

00:27 12:27 AM

08:27 8:27 AM

8 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

607,882

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 SEK = 10.01 USD

100 SEK = 8.92 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, 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).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 9.99 SEK (1 SEK = 0.1 USD). 1 EUR = 11.21 SEK (100 SEK = 8.92 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Gothenburg 9,520 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Gothenburg

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 Gothenburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara wins on cost – living expenses run 11% lower than in Gothenburg. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Nosara the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 293% lower in Gothenburg. 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: $786 in Nosara versus $1,035 in Gothenburg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $490 in Nosara versus $223 in Gothenburg. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 2% higher in Gothenburg. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,837 in Nosara versus $2,042 in Gothenburg, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Gothenburg. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Nosara delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,837 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Nosara hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Nosara and Gothenburg 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 Nosara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 11% less than in Gothenburg. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.