Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Loei

For one person, living is cheaper in Loei: $915 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $11,100 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Loei
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Loei Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Loei

🇹🇭 Thailand

$915

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Loei

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $915 in Loei.

Nosara $1,839
Loei $915

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,493 in Loei.

Nosara $2,828
Loei $1,493

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $2,070 in Loei.

Nosara $3,818
Loei $2,070

Living in Nosara is roughly 101% more expensive than in Loei, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Loei is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$2.93 ฿98.1

321.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$22.08 ฿738

177.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$6.78 ฿226

10.91%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.04 ฿68.2

116.18%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.74 ฿24.68

135.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.37 ฿12.28

254.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$2.03 ฿67.7

61.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$2.88 ฿96.3

55.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.75 ฿58.4

-10.86%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$1.44 ฿48.15

109.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.30 ฿43.32

93.08%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$2.18 ฿72.8

63.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$16.22 ฿542

-54.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$2.67 ฿89.1

294.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$10.18 ฿340

37.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$2.98 ฿99.6

-21.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.03 ฿34.56

56.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$2.22 ฿74.3

116.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.83 ฿61.2

-12.02%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$1.48 ฿49.51

156.76%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.11 ฿37.09

232.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.11 ฿37.26

1.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.48 ฿16.06

454.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$4.41 ฿147

17.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$17.36 ฿580

14.52%

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

$2.77 ฿92.5

31.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.86 ฿28.88

30.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$1.30 ฿43.52

64.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$1.08 ฿36.20

45.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$4.73 ฿158

80.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.35 ฿45.08

12.59%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$26.6K ฿888.2K

-18.69%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$26.4K ฿882.3K

30.75%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$83.8 ฿2,802

14.85%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$11.44 ฿382

213.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$19.35 ฿647

176.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$47.47 ฿1,587

50.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$13.92 ฿465

150.79%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$6.36 ฿212

24.06%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$574 ฿19.2K

-13.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$10.8K ฿362.4K

9.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$51.2 ฿1,712

5.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$29.41 ฿983

88.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$78.7 ฿2,630

-0.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$75.2 ฿2,515

5.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$438 ฿14.6K

79.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$293 ฿9,801

170.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$1,405 ฿47.0K

180.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$725 ฿24.2K

95.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$1,942 ฿64.9K

255.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$1,596 ฿53.3K

-23.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

5.57

54.76%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Loei: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Loei

$293 32% 63.1% $501

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Loei

$243 26.6% 31% $109

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Loei

$89 9.7% 58.2% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Loei

$115 12.5% 38.3% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Loei

$106 11.5% 12.1% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Loei

$60 6.6% 31.1% $27

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Loei

$10 * 1.1% 88.3% $77

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 Loei. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in Nosara vs $22.00 in Loei for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $243 per month, with Loei cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇹🇭 Loei

🕒 Local time

09:34 9:34 AM

22:34 10:34 PM

13 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

22,677

💱 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 Loei 16,850 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Loei

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 Loei: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Loei differ by about 101% in total monthly costs ($1,839 vs $915 including rent). Loei is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,758 in Nosara and $1,373 in Loei 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 Loei. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $494 in Nosara versus $574 in Loei. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Loei – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $61.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $915 in Loei versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Loei but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Loei 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 Loei 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 Loei gentler on the wallet – expenses run 101% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.