Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Mandi

For one person, living is cheaper in Mandi: $371 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $17,600 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
18

Cost of Living Index in Mandi
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Mandi Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Mandi

🇮🇳 India

$371

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Mandi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $371 in Mandi.

Nosara $1,839
Mandi $371

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $570 in Mandi.

Nosara $2,828
Mandi $570

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $769 in Mandi.

Nosara $3,818
Mandi $769

Living in Nosara is roughly 395% more expensive than in Mandi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Mandi is 72% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$1.02 ₹97.2

1110.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$10.46 ₹994

484.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$3.65 ₹346

106.03%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$0.86 ₹81.9

412.79%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.36 ₹33.97

383.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.09 ₹8.54

1355.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$1.90 ₹181

72.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$2.89 ₹275

54.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$0.62 ₹58.4

151.61%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$0.53 ₹50.8

469.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$0.63 ₹59.9

298.41%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$0.87 ₹83.0

310.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$2.58 ₹245

187.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$2.14 ₹203

391.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$1.07 ₹102

119.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$0.71 ₹67.8

126.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$0.51 ₹48.40

841.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$0.30 ₹28.41

436.67%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$0.28 ₹26.55

1257.14%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$0.34 ₹32.16

985.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$0.32 ₹30.60

253.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.20 ₹18.99

1230.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$5.15 ₹489

0.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$8.61 ₹817

130.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.48 ₹140

95.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.00 ₹189

81.50%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$4.95 ₹470

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.25 ₹23.61

348.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

$7.39 ₹701

882.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$1.04 ₹98.4

105.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.30 ₹28.36

423.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$1.38 ₹131

517.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.01 ₹95.9

50.50%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$13.0K ₹1.2M

65.79%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$18.1K ₹1.7M

90.97%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$65.0 ₹6,175

48.07%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$3.62 ₹344

891.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$7.08 ₹673

656.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$14.24 ₹1,352

402.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$6.47 ₹614

439.57%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$3.64 ₹346

116.76%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$49.57 ₹4,707

896.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$1,418 ₹134.7K

736.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$24.98 ₹2,372

115.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$28.30 ₹2,687

95.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$39.12 ₹3,715

99.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$38.42 ₹3,649

107.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$129 ₹12.3K

508.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$74.8 ₹7,106

961.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$266 ₹25.3K

1381.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$174 ₹16.5K

714.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$837 ₹79.5K

725.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$558 ₹53.0K

119.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

$424 ₹40.3K

103.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

8.88

-2.93%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mandi: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Mandi

$75 20.2% 90.6% $719

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Mandi

$83 22.3% 76.5% $269

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Mandi

$47 12.5% 78% $165

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Mandi

$76 20.4% 59.2% $110

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Mandi

$59 15.9% 51% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Mandi

$22 5.8% 75.4% $66

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Mandi

$11 2.9% 87.5% $76

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $788 in Nosara and $129 in Mandi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 104% 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 $10.00 in Mandi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $83.0 per month, with Mandi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇮🇳 Mandi

🕒 Local time

12:28 12:28 PM

23:58 11:58 PM

11 h 30 min ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

100,000

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, 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).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 94.96 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nosara Mandi 15,020 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Mandi

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 Mandi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Mandi differ by about 395% in total monthly costs ($1,839 vs $371 including rent). Mandi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 104% 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 $129 in Mandi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 325% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Mandi – a meal for two runs $10.00 versus $61.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $371 in Mandi versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mandi but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Mandi 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 Mandi 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 Mandi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 395% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.