Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Jeffreys Bay

For one person, living is cheaper in Jeffreys Bay: $1,027 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Jeffreys Bay
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Jeffreys Bay Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Jeffreys Bay

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,027

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Jeffreys Bay

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $1,027 in Jeffreys Bay.

Nosara $1,839
Jeffreys Bay $1,027

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,601 in Jeffreys Bay.

Nosara $2,828
Jeffreys Bay $1,601

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $2,175 in Jeffreys Bay.

Nosara $3,818
Jeffreys Bay $2,175

Living in Nosara is roughly 79% more expensive than in Jeffreys Bay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Jeffreys Bay is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$7.49 R 123

64.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$27.21 R 448

124.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$5.79 R 95.3

29.88%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$1.76 R 28.97

150.57%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.79 R 12.93

120.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.68 R 11.15

92.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$1.93 R 31.87

69.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$1.93 R 31.87

131.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.16 R 19.09

34.48%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$1.04 R 17.21

190.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.49 R 24.63

68.46%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$2.78 R 45.74

28.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$6.50 R 107

14.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$5.03 R 82.9

109.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$7.72 R 127

80.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$2.01 R 33.05

16.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.48 R 24.46

8.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$1.63 R 26.89

194.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.73 R 28.44

-6.94%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$1.65 R 27.14

130.30%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.22 R 20.14

202.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.23 R 20.32

-8.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.99 R 16.27

168.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$3.28 R 54.0

57.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$3.86 R 63.6

415.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.22 R 20.06

137.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$1.80 R 29.65

101.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$1.53 R 25.29

-26.80%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$0.63 R 10.33

239.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.47 R 7.71

234.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$8.62 R 142

-1.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.37 R 22.53

10.95%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$21.4K R 353.1K

0.83%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$17.3K R 285.1K

99.44%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$122 R 2,017

-21.36%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$34.24 R 564

4.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$44.08 R 726

21.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$32.15 R 530

122.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$5.90 R 97.2

491.69%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$2.98 R 49.07

164.77%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$137 R 2,255

261.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$6,025 R 99.3K

96.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$71.5 R 1,178

-24.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$38.23 R 630

44.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$113 R 1,856

-30.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$96.6 R 1,591

-17.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$383 R 6,317

105.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$335 R 5,520

137.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$732 R 12.1K

437.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$717 R 11.8K

97.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$861 R 14.2K

702.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$644 R 10.6K

90.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

11.94

-27.81%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Jeffreys Bay: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Jeffreys Bay

$335 32.6% 57.8% $459

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Jeffreys Bay

$183 17.8% 48.2% $170

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Jeffreys Bay

$118 11.5% 44.4% $94

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Jeffreys Bay

$201 19.6% 8.1% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Jeffreys Bay

$144 14% 19.5% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Jeffreys Bay

$38 3.7% 56.4% $49

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Jeffreys Bay

$9.1 * 0.9% 89.5% $78

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 $383 in Jeffreys Bay. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in Nosara vs $27.00 in Jeffreys Bay for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $183 per month, with Jeffreys Bay cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇿🇦 Jeffreys Bay

🕒 Local time

03:29 3:29 AM

11:29 11:29 AM

8 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

27,107

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, 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).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nosara Jeffreys Bay 12,520 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Jeffreys Bay

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 Jeffreys Bay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Jeffreys Bay is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 79% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,758 in Nosara and $1,540 in Jeffreys Bay to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $788 in Nosara versus $383 in Jeffreys Bay. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 93% 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 $1,027 in Jeffreys Bay – a 79% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,027 in Jeffreys Bay versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Jeffreys Bay but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Jeffreys Bay the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Jeffreys Bay 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 Jeffreys Bay 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 Jeffreys Bay gentler on the wallet – expenses run 79% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.