Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Lapu-Lapu

For one person, living is cheaper in Lapu-Lapu: $845 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 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
41

Cost of Living Index in Lapu-Lapu
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Lapu-Lapu Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Lapu-Lapu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$845

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Lapu-Lapu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $845 in Lapu-Lapu.

Nosara $1,839
Lapu-Lapu $845

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,195 in Lapu-Lapu.

Nosara $2,828
Lapu-Lapu $1,195

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $1,545 in Lapu-Lapu.

Nosara $3,818
Lapu-Lapu $1,545

Living in Nosara is roughly 118% more expensive than in Lapu-Lapu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Lapu-Lapu is 37% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$2.95 ₱186

318.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$15.86 ₱998

285.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$3.90 ₱246

92.82%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.54 ₱160

73.62%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.58 ₱36.53

200.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.38 ₱23.93

244.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$1.29 ₱80.9

154.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$2.25 ₱142

98.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.76 ₱111

-11.36%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$1.42 ₱89.2

112.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$0.94 ₱59.5

167.02%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$2.04 ₱129

75.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$5.68 ₱358

30.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$4.45 ₱280

136.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$7.71 ₱486

81.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$3.36 ₱211

-30.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.45 ₱91.5

11.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$2.37 ₱149

102.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.54 ₱97.1

4.55%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$2.39 ₱151

59.00%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.98 ₱125

86.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.19 ₱75.2

-5.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.68 ₱42.80

291.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$1.62 ₱102

219.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$4.07 ₱256

388.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.05 ₱65.9

176.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$1.51 ₱95.2

140.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.25 ₱15.81

348.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$0.74 ₱46.77

189.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.23 ₱14.51

582.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$3.90 ₱246

118.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.33 ₱83.4

14.29%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$21.5K ₱1.4M

0.36%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$19.6K ₱1.2M

76.55%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$120 ₱7,559

-19.81%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$13.99 ₱881

156.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$28.04 ₱1,765

91.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$12.62 ₱795

467.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$5.60 ₱353

40.89%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$103 ₱6,509

377.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$7,848 ₱494.1K

51.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$47.78 ₱3,008

12.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$25.45 ₱1,603

117.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$23.86 ₱1,502

226.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$58.5 ₱3,683

36.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$437 ₱27.5K

80.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$317 ₱19.9K

150.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$1,214 ₱76.4K

224.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$473 ₱29.8K

200.14%

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

$229 ₱14.4K

277.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

7.2

19.72%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Lapu-Lapu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Lapu-Lapu

$317 37.5% 60.1% $478

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Lapu-Lapu

$189 22.4% 46.2% $163

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Lapu-Lapu

$81 9.5% 62% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Lapu-Lapu

$162 19.2% 12.7% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Lapu-Lapu

$70 8.3% 41.7% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Lapu-Lapu

$24 2.8% 72.7% $64

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Lapu-Lapu

$2.9 * 0.3% 96.7% $84

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 $437 in Lapu-Lapu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 277% 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: $61.0 in Nosara vs $16.00 in Lapu-Lapu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $189 per month, with Lapu-Lapu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇵🇭 Lapu-Lapu

🕒 Local time

17:39 5:39 PM

07:39 7:39 AM

14 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

497,604

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, 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).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Lapu-Lapu 16,040 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Lapu-Lapu

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 Lapu-Lapu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Lapu-Lapu differ by about 118% in total monthly costs ($1,839 vs $845 including rent). Lapu-Lapu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 277% higher in Nosara, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $788 in Nosara versus $437 in Lapu-Lapu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $494 in Nosara versus $103 in Lapu-Lapu. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Lapu-Lapu – a meal for two runs $16.00 versus $61.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $845 in Lapu-Lapu versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lapu-Lapu but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Lapu-Lapu 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 Lapu-Lapu 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 Lapu-Lapu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 118% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.