Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Kedah

For one person, living is cheaper in Kedah: $877 a month against $1,846 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Kedah
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Kedah Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,846

/mo nomad

Kedah

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$877

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Kedah

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,846 in Nosara versus $877 in Kedah.

Nosara $1,846
Kedah $877

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,833 in Nosara versus $1,399 in Kedah.

Nosara $2,833
Kedah $1,399

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,820 in Nosara versus $1,920 in Kedah.

Nosara $3,820
Kedah $1,920

Living in Nosara is roughly 110% more expensive than in Kedah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.36 ₡5,575

$3.72 MYR 15.19

232.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.8 ₡27.4K

$12.32 MYR 50.4

393.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.88 ₡3,557

$4.56 MYR 18.65

72.81%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₡1,986

$2.91 MYR 11.90

51.20%

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

$1.72 ₡776

$0.77 MYR 3.15

123.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 ₡603

$0.39 MYR 1.60

243.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.34 ₡1,505

$4.24 MYR 17.31

-21.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.54 ₡2,048

$4.36 MYR 17.80

4.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 ₡739

$1.88 MYR 7.68

-12.77%

White Bread (500g)

$3.16 ₡1,426

$1.06 MYR 4.33

198.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 ₡1,080

$1.72 MYR 7.01

38.95%

Eggs

$3.47 ₡1,564

$2.19 MYR 8.94

58.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.13 ₡3,217

$13.55 MYR 55.4

-47.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.32 ₡4,655

$4.34 MYR 17.75

137.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,302

$8.84 MYR 36.13

58.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 ₡1,031

$2.94 MYR 12.02

-22.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 ₡731

$1.63 MYR 6.67

-0.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.81 ₡2,169

$2.75 MYR 11.24

74.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.68 ₡758

$1.45 MYR 5.94

15.86%

Potato (1kg)

$3.91 ₡1,765

$1.10 MYR 4.50

255.45%

Onion (1kg)

$3.63 ₡1,640

$1.09 MYR 4.45

233.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡509

$1.13 MYR 4.63

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.63 ₡1,188

$0.57 MYR 2.34

361.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.02 ₡2,267

$4.62 MYR 18.89

8.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.71 ₡8,893

$18.76 MYR 76.7

5.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.91 ₡1,314

$2.98 MYR 12.19

-2.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 ₡1,597

$5.33 MYR 21.79

-33.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 ₡545

$0.76 MYR 3.11

59.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.8 ₡33.3K

$12.85 MYR 52.5

474.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.15 ₡969

$1.66 MYR 6.78

29.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 ₡738

$0.38 MYR 1.54

328.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.77 ₡3,958

$7.29 MYR 29.79

20.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 ₡700

$0.60 MYR 2.47

158.33%

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

$33.9K ₡15.3M

$45.6K MYR 186.5K

-25.75%

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

$38.5K ₡17.4M

$35.8K MYR 146.5K

7.34%

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

$95.2 ₡43.0K

$36.47 MYR 149

161.06%

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

$36.29 ₡16.4K

$9.66 MYR 39.47

275.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.0 ₡23.5K

$29.48 MYR 120

76.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.6 ₡30.5K

$34.63 MYR 142

95.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.55 ₡16.0K

$6.85 MYR 28.01

418.98%

Cinema Ticket

$7.54 ₡3,404

$4.79 MYR 19.59

57.41%

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

$496 ₡224.0K

$388 MYR 1,584

28.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.8K ₡5.3M

$10.7K MYR 43.6K

10.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.1 ₡24.9K

$58.9 MYR 241

-6.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 ₡25.3K

$34.76 MYR 142

61.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.8 ₡35.1K

$81.6 MYR 334

-4.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.1 ₡35.7K

$70.7 MYR 289

11.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$817 ₡368.9K

$358 MYR 1,462

128.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$806 ₡363.6K

$258 MYR 1,054

212.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,988 ₡1.8M

$712 MYR 2,911

459.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 ₡644.9K

$607 MYR 2,479

135.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,068 ₡3.2M

$1,930 MYR 7,889

266.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,197 ₡540.1K

$1,258 MYR 5,140

-4.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$888 ₡400.7K

$1,339 MYR 5,473

-33.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

4.04

113.37%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 24, 2026

Last update for Kedah: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$806 43.7%

Kedah

$258 29.4% 68% $548

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$351 19%

Kedah

$257 29.3% 26.9% $95

Eating Out

Nosara

$213 11.6%

Kedah

$113 12.9% 47.1% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$184 9.9%

Kedah

$76 8.6% 58.8% $108

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$121 6.5%

Kedah

$111 12.6% 8.3% $10

Getting Around

Nosara

$89 4.8%

Kedah

$19 2.2% 78.1% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$83 4.5%

Kedah

$44 5% 46.5% $38

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $817 in Nosara and $358 in Kedah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kedah pays 51% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $61 in Nosara vs $12 in Kedah for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $351 vs $257 per month, with Kedah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇲🇾 Kedah

🕒 Local time

11:33 11:33 AM

01:33 1:33 AM

14 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

417,800

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.09 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.55 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Kedah 18,110 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Kedah

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 Kedah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Kedah differ by about 110% in total monthly costs ($1,846 vs $877 including rent). Kedah is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 34% lower in Nosara. 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: $817 in Nosara versus $358 in Kedah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $496 in Nosara versus $388 in Kedah. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 37% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $877 in Kedah versus $1,846 in Nosara, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Kedah but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Kedah 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 Kedah 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 Kedah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 52% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.