Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Kafue

For one person, living is cheaper in Kafue: $591 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $15,000 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
29

Cost of Living Index in Kafue
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Kafue Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Kafue

🇿🇲 Zambia

$591

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Kafue

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

A single person spends $1,839 per month in Nosara vs $591 in Kafue, rent included.

Nosara $1,839
Kafue $591

A couple spends around $2,828 per month in Nosara vs $939 in Kafue, rent included.

Nosara $2,828
Kafue $939

A family of three spends $3,818 per month in Nosara vs $1,288 in Kafue, rent included.

Nosara $3,818
Kafue $1,288

Nosara costs about 211% more than Kafue, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Nosara sits 36% above the global median, while Kafue is 56% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$5.61 ZMW 112

120.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$30.47 ZMW 606

100.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$5.20 ZMW 103

44.62%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.87 ZMW 57.0

53.66%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.78 ZMW 15.44

123.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.50 ZMW 10.01

162.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$1.24 ZMW 24.59

164.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$2.24 ZMW 44.46

99.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.77 ZMW 35.17

-11.86%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$1.24 ZMW 24.63

143.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$2.15 ZMW 42.77

16.74%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$1.89 ZMW 37.65

88.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$10.26 ZMW 204

-27.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$6.45 ZMW 128

63.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$6.61 ZMW 131

111.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$3.31 ZMW 65.9

-29.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$2.45 ZMW 48.76

-34.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$3.62 ZMW 72.1

32.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.51 ZMW 30.01

6.62%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$2.67 ZMW 53.0

42.32%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.89 ZMW 37.51

95.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.17 ZMW 23.28

-3.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.78 ZMW 15.55

241.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$2.99 ZMW 59.4

73.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$10.18 ZMW 203

95.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.47 ZMW 29.23

97.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.38 ZMW 47.35

52.52%

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

$2.48 ZMW 49.32

-13.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$1.56 ZMW 31.06

0.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$4.94 ZMW 98.3

72.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.51 ZMW 29.93

0.66%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$7,751 ZMW 154.2K

178.79%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$27.5K ZMW 546.0K

25.73%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$79.7 ZMW 1,586

20.79%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$10.66 ZMW 212

236.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$55.3 ZMW 1,100

-3.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$6.23 ZMW 124

26.65%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$140 ZMW 2,777

253.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$16.5K ZMW 328.6K

-28.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$23.38 ZMW 465

130.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$15.47 ZMW 308

258.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$46.03 ZMW 915

69.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$72.7 ZMW 1,445

9.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

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

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

-70.28%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Kafue: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Kafue

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Kafue

$241 40.8% 31.7% $112

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Kafue

$111 18.7% 47.8% $101

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Kafue

$146 24.7% 21.6% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Kafue

$71 12% 41% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Kafue

$12 * 2.1% 85.7% $75

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Kafue

$10 * 1.7% 88.2% $77

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Nosara versus $30.00 in Kafue. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $352 vs $241 – making Kafue the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇿🇲 Kafue

🕒 Local time

10:54 10:54 AM

18:54 6:54 PM

8 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

104,174

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 ZMW = 5.03 USD

100 ZMW = 4.47 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZMW, 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).

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 19.89 ZMW (100 ZMW = 5.03 USD). 1 EUR = 22.36 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.47 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Kafue 12,840 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Kafue

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 Kafue: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,839 in Nosara, $591 in Kafue – roughly 211% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,758 per month in Nosara and $886 in Kafue. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,839 in Nosara and $591 in Kafue. That's a gap of about 211%.

Kindergarten costs $494 per month in Nosara and $140 in Kafue. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Kafue, where all-in costs run around $591, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Kafue it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Nosara has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $591 in Kafue to $1,839 in Nosara. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Kafue. 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.