Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Lowestoft

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,576 in Lowestoft, rent and utilities included – about $8,800 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
125

Cost of Living Index in Lowestoft
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Lowestoft Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Lowestoft

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,576

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Lowestoft

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,576 in Lowestoft.

Nosara $1,839
Lowestoft $2,576

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $3,791 in Lowestoft.

Nosara $2,828
Lowestoft $3,791

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $5,006 in Lowestoft.

Nosara $3,818
Lowestoft $5,006

Living in Nosara costs roughly 29% less than in Lowestoft, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Nosara 36% above, Lowestoft 91% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$26.55 £19.92

-53.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$104 £78.2

-41.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$10.74 £8.06

-29.98%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$5.59 £4.19

-21.11%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$2.93 £2.20

-40.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$2.08 £1.56

-37.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$6.44 £4.83

-49.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$7.97 £5.98

-43.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.85 £1.39

-15.68%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$2.02 £1.52

49.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$2.32 £1.74

8.19%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$5.10 £3.82

-30.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$12.51 £9.39

-40.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$10.46 £7.84

0.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$17.32 £13.00

-19.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$3.00 £2.25

-21.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.42 £1.06

13.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$3.08 £2.31

55.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$3.37 £2.53

-52.23%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$1.64 £1.23

131.71%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.74 £1.31

112.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.41 £1.06

-19.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$1.86 £1.39

43.01%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$23.53 £17.66

-77.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$13.17 £9.88

50.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$3.04 £2.28

-4.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$4.29 £3.22

-15.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$3.43 £2.57

-67.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

$96.7 £72.5

-24.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$5.69 £4.27

-62.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$3.37 £2.53

-53.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$25.61 £19.21

-66.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$2.06 £1.55

-26.21%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$37.7K £28.3K

-42.70%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$40.5K £30.4K

-14.86%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$376 £282

-74.36%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$17.91 £13.44

100.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$40.63 £30.48

31.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$44.94 £33.71

59.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$17.73 £13.30

-55.50%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$2,804 £2,103

-82.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$36.3K £27.2K

-67.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$114 £85.9

-52.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$54.5 £40.89

1.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$125 £93.6

-37.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$95.1 £71.4

-16.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$1,203 £902

-34.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$1,025 £769

-22.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$2,122 £1,592

85.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$1,629 £1,222

-12.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$4,941 £3,707

39.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$3,847 £2,886

-68.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

4.65

85.38%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Lowestoft: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Lowestoft

$1K 39.8% 29% $230

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Lowestoft

$349 13.6% 0.8% $2.9

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Lowestoft

$380 14.8% 79.3% $168

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Lowestoft

$434 16.9% 134% $248

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Lowestoft

$175 6.8% 45.7% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Lowestoft

$80 3.1% 8% $7

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Lowestoft

$133 5.2% 52.6% $46

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $788 in Nosara and $1,203 in Lowestoft. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in Nosara vs $104 in Lowestoft. Groceries flip the comparison at $352 vs $349, with Lowestoft cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇬🇧 Lowestoft

🕒 Local time

03:00 3:00 AM

10:00 10:00 AM

7 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

64,358

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nosara Lowestoft 8,950 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Lowestoft

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 Lowestoft: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and transport. The 40% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,758 in Nosara and $3,864 in Lowestoft 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 $1,203 in Lowestoft. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $494 in Nosara versus $2,804 in Lowestoft. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lowestoft pay roughly 1% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,576 in Lowestoft, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Lowestoft. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Nosara is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Lowestoft, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Nosara and Lowestoft 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 Nosara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 40% less than in Lowestoft. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.