Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Khlong Luang

For one person, living is cheaper in Khlong Luang: $952 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $10,600 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Khlong Luang
Learn more

Khlong Luang Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Khlong Luang

🇹🇭 Thailand

$952

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Khlong Luang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $952 in Khlong Luang.

Nosara $1,839
Khlong Luang $952

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,575 in Khlong Luang.

Nosara $2,828
Khlong Luang $1,575

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $2,198 in Khlong Luang.

Nosara $3,818
Khlong Luang $2,198

Living in Nosara is roughly 93% more expensive than in Khlong Luang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Khlong Luang is 29% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$3.53 ฿118

249.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$36.21 ฿1,210

68.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$9.09 ฿304

-17.27%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.05 ฿68.7

115.12%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.69 ฿23.12

152.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.30 ฿10.02

336.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$2.35 ฿78.4

39.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$2.69 ฿89.8

66.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.71 ฿57.3

-8.77%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$1.46 ฿48.89

106.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.36 ฿45.41

84.56%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$2.21 ฿73.7

61.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$15.41 ฿515

-51.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$2.66 ฿88.9

295.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$9.93 ฿332

40.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$3.36 ฿112

-30.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.19 ฿39.90

35.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$1.93 ฿64.5

148.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.97 ฿66.0

-18.27%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$1.22 ฿40.92

211.48%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.04 ฿34.89

254.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.25 ฿41.81

-9.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.44 ฿14.73

504.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$4.27 ฿143

21.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$17.90 ฿598

11.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.69 ฿56.5

71.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.90 ฿97.0

25.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.91 ฿30.57

23.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$1.32 ฿44.13

62.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$1.13 ฿37.73

38.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$3.61 ฿121

136.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.49 ฿49.63

2.01%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$45.4K ฿1.5M

-52.42%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$26.9K ฿899.7K

28.21%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$91.4 ฿3,053

5.41%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$11.41 ฿381

214.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$19.33 ฿646

177.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$46.86 ฿1,566

52.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$13.96 ฿466

150.07%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$7.47 ฿250

5.62%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$615 ฿20.6K

-19.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$14.2K ฿473.3K

-16.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$51.2 ฿1,711

5.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$29.51 ฿986

87.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$93.8 ฿3,136

-16.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$75.8 ฿2,533

5.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$438 ฿14.7K

79.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$300 ฿10.0K

164.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$1,399 ฿46.8K

181.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$733 ฿24.5K

93.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$1,955 ฿65.3K

253.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$1,596 ฿53.3K

-23.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

5.96

44.63%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Khlong Luang: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Khlong Luang

$300 31.6% 62.2% $494

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Khlong Luang

$243 25.5% 31% $109

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Khlong Luang

$101 10.6% 52.2% $111

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Khlong Luang

$122 12.8% 34.3% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Khlong Luang

$113 11.8% 6.2% $7.4

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Khlong Luang

$62 6.5% 29.3% $26

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Khlong Luang

$11 * 1.1% 87.8% $76

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 $438 in Khlong Luang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in Nosara vs $36.00 in Khlong Luang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $243 per month, with Khlong Luang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇹🇭 Khlong Luang

🕒 Local time

13:04 1:04 PM

02:04 2:04 AM

13 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

118,551

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Khlong Luang 17,250 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Khlong Luang

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 Khlong Luang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Khlong Luang is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 93% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,758 in Nosara and $1,428 in Khlong Luang 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 $438 in Khlong Luang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 45% 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 $952 in Khlong Luang – a 93% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $952 in Khlong Luang versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Khlong Luang but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Khlong Luang the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Khlong Luang 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 Khlong Luang 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 Khlong Luang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 93% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.