Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Mataram

For one person, living is cheaper in Mataram: $608 a month against $1,835 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $14,700 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
30

Cost of Living Index in Mataram
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Mataram Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Mataram

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Mataram

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,835 in Nosara versus $608 in Mataram.

Nosara $1,835
Mataram $608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,825 in Nosara versus $967 in Mataram.

Nosara $2,825
Mataram $967

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,814 in Nosara versus $1,327 in Mataram.

Nosara $3,814
Mataram $1,327

Living in Nosara is roughly 202% more expensive than in Mataram, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 35% above, Mataram is 55% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.34 ₡5,535

$0.93 Rp 16.8K

1226.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 ₡27.5K

$9.22 Rp 166.0K

565.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.76 ₡3,481

$3.21 Rp 57.8K

141.74%

Cappuccino

$4.44 ₡1,992

$1.47 Rp 26.4K

202.04%

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

$1.79 ₡803

$0.44 Rp 7,889

306.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 ₡580

$0.31 Rp 5,491

316.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,451

$2.71 Rp 48.8K

19.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.43 ₡1,985

$3.45 Rp 62.1K

28.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 ₡696

$1.38 Rp 24.9K

12.32%

White Bread (500g)

$3.08 ₡1,380

$1.47 Rp 26.4K

109.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.53 ₡1,133

$0.80 Rp 14.5K

216.25%

Eggs

$3.45 ₡1,546

$1.49 Rp 26.9K

131.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.32 ₡3,284

$7.12 Rp 128.2K

2.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.24 ₡4,594

$3.00 Rp 54.1K

241.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.10 ₡6,326

$7.39 Rp 133.0K

90.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 ₡1,027

$2.28 Rp 41.1K

0.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.64 ₡737

$1.25 Rp 22.4K

31.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.79 ₡2,149

$1.70 Rp 30.6K

181.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.64 ₡735

$1.29 Rp 23.1K

27.13%

Potato (1kg)

$3.85 ₡1,727

$1.24 Rp 22.3K

210.48%

Onion (1kg)

$3.75 ₡1,681

$1.94 Rp 34.9K

93.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 ₡488

$0.73 Rp 13.1K

49.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.59 ₡1,160

$0.40 Rp 7,214

547.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.12 ₡2,295

$2.63 Rp 47.3K

94.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.92 ₡8,931

$20.99 Rp 377.9K

-5.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.80 ₡1,255

$1.91 Rp 34.4K

46.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.52 ₡1,580

$3.04 Rp 54.7K

15.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 ₡549

$0.27 Rp 4,838

351.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.9 ₡33.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.17 ₡973

$0.50 Rp 8,960

334.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 ₡698

$0.35 Rp 6,222

345.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.67 ₡3,886

$2.72 Rp 48.9K

218.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 ₡697

$0.62 Rp 11.2K

150.00%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$23.8K Rp 428.7M

45.06%

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

$38.7K ₡17.4M

$30.6K Rp 551.3M

26.51%

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

$94.8 ₡42.5K

$66.0 Rp 1.2M

43.75%

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

$36.15 ₡16.2K

$3.96 Rp 71.3K

812.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.1 ₡23.8K

$19.47 Rp 350.5K

172.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.8 ₡33.1K

$19.35 Rp 348.4K

281.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.63 ₡16.0K

$8.15 Rp 146.8K

337.18%

Cinema Ticket

$7.91 ₡3,548

$2.85 Rp 51.2K

177.54%

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

$490 ₡219.9K

$94.8 Rp 1.7M

417.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$7,572 Rp 136.3M

56.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.8 ₡24.6K

$44.19 Rp 795.3K

23.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.9 ₡25.1K

$28.84 Rp 519.0K

93.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.4 ₡36.0K

$73.5 Rp 1.3M

9.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$71.4 Rp 1.3M

9.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$801 ₡359.1K

$225 Rp 4.0M

256.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$790 ₡354.1K

$133 Rp 2.4M

493.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,005 ₡1.8M

$530 Rp 9.5M

655.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,409 ₡632.0K

$356 Rp 6.4M

296.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,064 ₡3.2M

$1,184 Rp 21.3M

496.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,236 ₡554.3K

$796 Rp 14.3M

55.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

$222 Rp 4.0M

299.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

9.46

-8.88%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Last update for Mataram: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$790 43%

Mataram

$133 21.9% 83.1% $657

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$350 19.1%

Mataram

$201 33.1% 42.4% $148

Eating Out

Nosara

$213 11.6%

Mataram

$58 9.6% 72.7% $155

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$184 10%

Mataram

$89 14.7% 51.4% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$121 6.6%

Mataram

$98 16.1% 19% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$90 4.9%

Mataram

$25 4.1% 72% $65

Getting Around

Nosara

$89 4.8%

Mataram

$3.3 * 0.5% 96.3% $85

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 $801 in Nosara and $225 in Mataram. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 299% 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 $9.00 in Mataram for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $350 vs $201 per month, with Mataram cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇮🇩 Mataram

🕒 Local time

13:10 1:10 PM

03:10 3:10 AM

14 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

402,843

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, 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).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Mataram 17,620 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Mataram

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 Mataram: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara and Mataram differ by about 202% in total monthly costs ($1,835 vs $608 including rent). Mataram is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 299% 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: $801 in Nosara versus $225 in Mataram. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 74% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,835 per month in Nosara versus $608 in Mataram – a 202% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $608 in Mataram versus $1,835 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mataram but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Mataram 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 Mataram 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 Mataram gentler on the wallet – expenses run 202% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.