Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Merida

For one person, living is cheaper in Merida: $814 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $12,300 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Merida
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Merida Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Merida

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$814

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Merida

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

A single person spends $1,839 per month in Nosara vs $814 in Merida, rent included.

Nosara $1,839
Merida $814

A couple spends around $2,828 per month in Nosara vs $1,418 in Merida, rent included.

Nosara $2,828
Merida $1,418

A family of three spends $3,818 per month in Nosara vs $2,021 in Merida, rent included.

Nosara $3,818
Merida $2,021

Nosara costs about 126% more than Merida, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Nosara sits 36% above the global median, while Merida is 40% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$11.90 VES 10.4K

3.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$60.9 VES 53.4K

0.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$10.82 VES 9,500

-30.50%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.54 VES 2,226

73.62%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$2.13 VES 1,867

-18.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$1.36 VES 1,195

-3.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$1.97 VES 1,727

66.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$3.01 VES 2,644

48.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$2.04 VES 1,788

-23.53%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$3.32 VES 2,913

-9.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$2.00 VES 1,759

25.50%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$2.51 VES 2,201

42.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$6.79 VES 5,965

9.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$7.87 VES 6,912

33.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$7.31 VES 6,421

91.11%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$5.11 VES 4,488

-54.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.44 VES 1,267

11.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$2.76 VES 2,426

73.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$2.36 VES 2,070

-31.78%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$1.98 VES 1,735

91.92%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.36 VES 1,194

171.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.49 VES 1,307

-24.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$2.53 VES 2,217

5.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$3.71 VES 3,258

39.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$11.18 VES 9,812

77.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.40 VES 1,233

107.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.21 VES 1,944

64.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.29 VES 253

286.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$3.95 VES 3,469

-45.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$1.48 VES 1,300

6.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$5.86 VES 5,144

45.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$0.72 VES 629

111.11%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$45.7K VES 40.1M

-52.74%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$50.5K VES 44.3M

-31.64%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$12.37 VES 10.9K

678.42%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$10.13 VES 8,894

254.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$29.49 VES 25.9K

81.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$29.41 VES 25.8K

143.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$14.79 VES 13.0K

136.04%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$4.93 VES 4,325

60.04%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$88.5 VES 77.7K

458.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$2,399 VES 2.1M

394.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$72.6 VES 63.7K

-25.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$42.37 VES 37.2K

30.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$97.4 VES 85.5K

-19.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$98.3 VES 86.3K

-18.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$132 VES 116.2K

495.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$93.6 VES 82.1K

748.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$224 VES 196.9K

1656.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$193 VES 169.8K

633.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$1,184 VES 1.0M

483.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$1,211 VES 1.1M

1.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

$290 VES 254.9K

197.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

-65.52%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Merida: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Merida

$94 11.5% 88.2% $701

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Merida

$289 35.5% 17.9% $63

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Merida

$188 23.1% 11.3% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Merida

$52 6.4% 72% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Merida

$140 17.2% 16.4% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Merida

$39 4.8% 55.1% $48

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Merida

$13 * 1.5% 85.6% $75

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $788 in Nosara versus $132 in Merida. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 197% higher in Nosara, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Nosara versus $61.0 in Merida. Groceries tell a different story – $352 in Nosara vs $289 in Merida – so Merida wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇻🇪 Merida

🕒 Local time

19:27 7:27 PM

21:27 9:27 PM

2 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

250,303

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1,000 VES = 1.14 USD

1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 878 VES (1,000 VES = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 987 VES (1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Merida 1,600 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Merida

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 Merida: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara costs about 126% more than Merida, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,758 per month in Nosara and $1,221 in Merida. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Merida, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,839 in Nosara and $814 in Merida. That's a gap of about 126%.

Kindergarten costs $494 per month in Nosara and $88.5 in Merida. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Merida, where all-in costs run around $814, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Merida it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Merida costs $814 versus $1,839 in Nosara. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Merida. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Nosara makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.