Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Lehliu Gara

For one person, living is cheaper in Lehliu Gara: $1,002 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Lehliu Gara
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Lehliu Gara Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Lehliu Gara

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,002

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Lehliu Gara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $1,002 in Lehliu Gara.

Nosara $1,839
Lehliu Gara $1,002

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,527 in Lehliu Gara.

Nosara $2,828
Lehliu Gara $1,527

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $2,053 in Lehliu Gara.

Nosara $3,818
Lehliu Gara $2,053

Living in Nosara is roughly 83% more expensive than in Lehliu Gara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Lehliu Gara is 26% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$10.63 RON 50.3

16.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$42.81 RON 203

42.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$7.15 RON 33.81

5.17%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.54 RON 12.02

73.62%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$2.13 RON 10.07

-18.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$1.81 RON 8.55

-27.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$2.16 RON 10.22

51.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$3.09 RON 14.61

44.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.22 RON 5.79

27.87%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$0.66 RON 3.11

357.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.79 RON 8.46

40.22%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$3.38 RON 15.97

5.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$7.60 RON 35.97

-2.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$5.76 RON 27.25

82.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$8.25 RON 39.04

69.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$1.29 RON 6.12

82.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.60 RON 7.56

0.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$1.57 RON 7.42

205.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.83 RON 8.64

-12.02%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$0.96 RON 4.56

295.83%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.05 RON 4.97

251.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$0.88 RON 4.16

28.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.73 RON 3.44

264.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$5.81 RON 27.51

-10.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$5.30 RON 25.08

275.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$0.96 RON 4.52

202.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$1.18 RON 5.61

207.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.71 RON 3.35

57.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

$21.13 RON 100.0

243.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$0.62 RON 2.93

245.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.69 RON 3.25

127.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$6.98 RON 33.03

22.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.80 RON 8.51

-15.56%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$28.2K RON 133.3K

-23.30%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$24.9K RON 117.7K

38.80%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$151 RON 713

-36.12%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$7.69 RON 36.36

366.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$7.83 RON 37.03

584.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$37.18 RON 176

92.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$20.19 RON 95.6

72.91%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$6.43 RON 30.42

22.71%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$596 RON 2,821

-17.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$4,986 RON 23.6K

137.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$96.3 RON 456

-44.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$31.33 RON 148

76.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$61.7 RON 292

26.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$83.7 RON 396

-4.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$382 RON 1,806

106.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$283 RON 1,339

180.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$590 RON 2,792

567.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$444 RON 2,099

219.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$1,849 RON 8,746

273.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$1,340 RON 6,339

-8.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

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 Lehliu Gara: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Lehliu Gara

$283 28.2% 64.4% $511

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Lehliu Gara

$182 18.2% 48.3% $170

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Lehliu Gara

$170 16.9% 19.9% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Lehliu Gara

$166 16.6% 10.5% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Lehliu Gara

$123 12.3% 2.3% $2.8

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Lehliu Gara

$50 5% 42.7% $37

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Lehliu Gara

$28 2.8% 67.8% $59

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $788 in Nosara and $382 in Lehliu Gara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in Nosara vs $43.00 in Lehliu Gara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $182 per month, with Lehliu Gara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇷🇴 Lehliu Gara

🕒 Local time

20:04 8:04 PM

05:04 5:04 AM

9 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

6,000

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, 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).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nosara Lehliu Gara 10,950 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Lehliu Gara

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 Lehliu Gara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lehliu Gara is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 83% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,758 in Nosara and $1,503 in Lehliu Gara 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 $382 in Lehliu Gara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $494 in Nosara versus $596 in Lehliu Gara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 93% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,002 in Lehliu Gara versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Lehliu Gara but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Lehliu Gara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Lehliu Gara 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 Lehliu Gara 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 Lehliu Gara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 83% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.