Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Middelburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Middelburg: $1,089 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 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
53

Cost of Living Index in Middelburg
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Middelburg Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Middelburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,089

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Middelburg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $1,089 in Middelburg.

Nosara $1,839
Middelburg $1,089

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,696 in Middelburg.

Nosara $2,828
Middelburg $1,696

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $2,303 in Middelburg.

Nosara $3,818
Middelburg $2,303

Living in Nosara is roughly 69% more expensive than in Middelburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Middelburg is 19% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$9.75 R 161

26.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$35.51 R 585

72.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$5.72 R 94.3

31.47%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$1.35 R 22.19

226.67%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.85 R 14.06

104.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.60 R 9.95

118.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$1.17 R 19.31

180.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$1.54 R 25.41

190.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.14 R 18.78

36.84%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$1.08 R 17.83

179.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.51 R 24.91

66.23%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$1.70 R 28.01

110.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$5.93 R 97.7

25.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$5.13 R 84.6

105.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$6.54 R 108

113.61%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$1.64 R 26.95

43.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.08 R 17.83

49.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$1.15 R 19.00

317.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.23 R 20.30

30.89%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$1.68 R 27.62

126.19%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.19 R 19.64

210.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.19 R 19.59

-5.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.95 R 15.71

180.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$2.41 R 39.66

114.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$4.95 R 81.5

301.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.85 R 30.47

56.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.04 R 33.65

77.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$1.44 R 23.77

-22.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

$42.42 R 699

71.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$0.59 R 9.66

262.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.87 R 14.38

80.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$11.56 R 190

-26.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.32 R 21.81

15.15%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$35.1K R 577.9K

-38.39%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$32.1K R 528.4K

7.63%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$145 R 2,382

-33.39%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$34.32 R 565

4.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$37.05 R 610

44.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$31.85 R 525

124.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$10.78 R 178

223.84%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$7.19 R 118

9.74%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$243 R 4,005

103.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$5,359 R 88.3K

121.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$53.1 R 874

1.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$32.83 R 541

68.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$98.5 R 1,623

-20.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$88.3 R 1,455

-9.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$387 R 6,369

103.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$354 R 5,836

124.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$736 R 12.1K

435.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$742 R 12.2K

91.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$878 R 14.5K

687.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$665 R 10.9K

84.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

$1,193 R 19.6K

-27.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

10.94

-21.21%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Middelburg: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Middelburg

$354 32.5% 55.4% $440

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Middelburg

$170 15.7% 51.6% $182

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Middelburg

$126 11.6% 40.5% $86

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Middelburg

$216 19.8% 16.2% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Middelburg

$123 11.3% 2.2% $2.6

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Middelburg

$46 4.3% 47.1% $41

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Middelburg

$53 4.9% 39% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $788 in Nosara and $387 in Middelburg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Middelburg pays 38% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $61.0 in Nosara vs $36.00 in Middelburg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $170 per month, with Middelburg cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇿🇦 Middelburg

🕒 Local time

06:24 6:24 AM

14:24 2:24 PM

8 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

87,348

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, 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).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nosara Middelburg 12,990 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Middelburg

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 Middelburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Middelburg wins on cost – living expenses run 69% lower than in Nosara. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Middelburg the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 38% lower in Middelburg. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $788 in Nosara versus $387 in Middelburg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Middelburg runs roughly 71% less than in Nosara. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $494 in Nosara versus $243 in Middelburg. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,089 in Middelburg versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Middelburg but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Middelburg the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Middelburg delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,089 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Middelburg hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Nosara and Middelburg 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 Middelburg gentler on the wallet – expenses run 69% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.