Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Newcastle

For one person, living is cheaper in Newcastle: $1,056 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Newcastle
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Newcastle Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Newcastle

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,056

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Newcastle

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

A single person spends $1,839 per month in Nosara vs $1,056 in Newcastle, rent included.

Nosara $1,839
Newcastle $1,056

A couple spends around $2,828 per month in Nosara vs $1,623 in Newcastle, rent included.

Nosara $2,828
Newcastle $1,623

A family of three spends $3,818 per month in Nosara vs $2,191 in Newcastle, rent included.

Nosara $3,818
Newcastle $2,191

Nosara costs about 74% more than Newcastle, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Nosara sits 36% above the global median, while Newcastle is 22% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$9.04 R 149

36.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$36.41 R 600

68.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$5.27 R 86.8

42.69%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.19 R 36.11

101.37%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$1.07 R 17.68

62.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.87 R 14.31

50.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$2.61 R 43.00

25.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$3.18 R 52.4

40.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.19 R 19.68

31.09%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$1.11 R 18.31

172.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$1.31 R 21.61

91.60%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$1.88 R 30.94

89.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$6.54 R 108

13.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$4.97 R 81.8

111.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$7.09 R 117

97.04%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$0.90 R 14.78

161.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.03 R 17.02

56.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$1.00 R 16.56

380.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.32 R 21.71

21.97%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$0.96 R 15.81

295.83%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.21 R 20.01

204.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$0.78 R 12.90

44.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.57 R 9.44

366.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$3.15 R 51.9

64.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$2.97 R 48.95

569.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.38 R 22.80

110.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$0.91 R 15.03

298.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$1.46 R 24.13

-23.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$0.31 R 5.15

590.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.81 R 13.41

93.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$14.28 R 235

-40.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.54 R 25.31

-1.30%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$35.0K R 576.4K

-38.23%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$34.1K R 561.5K

1.27%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$151 R 2,481

-36.05%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$36.61 R 603

-1.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$37.49 R 618

42.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$31.66 R 522

126.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$10.84 R 179

222.05%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$7.04 R 116

12.07%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$259 R 4,272

90.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$5,413 R 89.2K

119.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$53.5 R 881

0.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$32.63 R 538

69.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$91.6 R 1,509

-14.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$82.8 R 1,363

-3.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$392 R 6,460

100.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$364 R 5,989

118.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$719 R 11.9K

447.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$718 R 11.8K

97.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$878 R 14.5K

687.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$645 R 10.6K

89.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

11.34

-23.99%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Newcastle: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Newcastle

$364 34.4% 54.2% $431

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Newcastle

$153 14.5% 56.6% $199

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Newcastle

$142 13.4% 33.2% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Newcastle

$225 21.3% 21% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Newcastle

$117 11.1% 2.4% $2.9

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Newcastle

$46 4.3% 47.6% $42

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Newcastle

$10 * 1% 88.2% $77

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 $392 in Newcastle. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Nosara versus $36.00 in Newcastle. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $352 vs $153 – making Newcastle the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇿🇦 Newcastle

🕒 Local time

03:29 3:29 AM

11:29 11:29 AM

8 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

363,236

💱 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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Between locations

Nosara Newcastle 13,030 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Newcastle

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 Newcastle: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,839 in Nosara, $1,056 in Newcastle – roughly 74% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,758 per month in Nosara and $1,584 in Newcastle. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Newcastle, 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 $1,056 in Newcastle. That's a gap of about 74%.

Kindergarten costs $494 per month in Nosara and $259 in Newcastle. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Newcastle, where all-in costs run around $1,056, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Newcastle it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Nosara has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,056 in Newcastle to $1,839 in Nosara. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Newcastle. 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.