Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Ninh Binh

For one person, living is cheaper in Ninh Binh: $730 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $13,300 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Ninh Binh
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Ninh Binh Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Ninh Binh

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$730

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Ninh Binh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,839 in Nosara versus $730 in Ninh Binh.

Nosara $1,839
Ninh Binh $730

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in Nosara versus $1,166 in Ninh Binh.

Nosara $2,828
Ninh Binh $1,166

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,818 in Nosara versus $1,602 in Ninh Binh.

Nosara $3,818
Ninh Binh $1,602

Living in Nosara is roughly 152% more expensive than in Ninh Binh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nosara is 36% above, Ninh Binh is 46% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$1.90 ₫49.2K

550.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$20.72 ₫536.4K

195.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$4.71 ₫122.1K

59.66%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$1.76 ₫45.4K

150.57%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.51 ₫13.3K

241.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.30 ₫7,789

336.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$1.01 ₫26.0K

224.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$1.51 ₫39.2K

196.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.42 ₫36.7K

9.86%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$0.96 ₫25.0K

214.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$0.94 ₫24.5K

167.02%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$1.41 ₫36.4K

153.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$11.66 ₫301.8K

-36.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$3.78 ₫97.9K

178.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$10.11 ₫261.6K

38.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$2.64 ₫68.3K

-10.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$1.01 ₫26.1K

59.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$1.33 ₫34.4K

260.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.13 ₫29.3K

42.48%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$1.06 ₫27.5K

258.49%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.01 ₫26.1K

265.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$0.70 ₫18.2K

61.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.52 ₫13.5K

411.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$1.32 ₫34.1K

292.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$11.22 ₫290.6K

77.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$0.73 ₫19.0K

297.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$1.57 ₫40.7K

131.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.31 ₫8,137

261.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

$6.35 ₫164.5K

1043.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$0.71 ₫18.3K

201.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.66 ₫17.1K

137.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$2.72 ₫70.5K

213.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$0.91 ₫23.6K

67.03%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$35.4K ₫916.8M

-38.98%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$31.7K ₫820.9M

8.86%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$75.1 ₫1.9M

28.30%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$5.87 ₫152.0K

511.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$8.69 ₫225.1K

516.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$22.18 ₫574.3K

222.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$7.86 ₫203.5K

344.15%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$3.00 ₫77.7K

163.00%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$263 ₫6.8M

87.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$11.9K ₫307.3M

-0.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$41.19 ₫1.1M

30.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$23.06 ₫596.9K

140.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$85.0 ₫2.2M

-8.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$75.3 ₫1.9M

5.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$365 ₫9.4M

115.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$247 ₫6.4M

221.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$725 ₫18.8M

443.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$531 ₫13.7M

167.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$2,060 ₫53.3M

235.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$1,268 ₫32.8M

-3.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

9.1

-5.27%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Ninh Binh: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Ninh Binh

$247 33.8% 68.9% $548

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Ninh Binh

$191 26.2% 45.7% $161

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Ninh Binh

$62 8.5% 70.9% $150

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Ninh Binh

$90 12.3% 51.8% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Ninh Binh

$101 13.8% 15.9% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Ninh Binh

$28 3.9% 67.7% $59

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Ninh Binh

$12 1.6% 86.7% $75

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $788 in Nosara and $365 in Ninh Binh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in Nosara vs $21.00 in Ninh Binh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $191 per month, with Ninh Binh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇻🇳 Ninh Binh

🕒 Local time

08:53 8:53 AM

21:53 9:53 PM

13 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

148,406

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 25,889 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,108 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Nosara Ninh Binh 16,420 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Ninh Binh

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 Ninh Binh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ninh Binh is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 152% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,758 in Nosara and $1,095 in Ninh Binh to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $788 in Nosara versus $365 in Ninh Binh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $494 in Nosara versus $263 in Ninh Binh. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 84% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $730 in Ninh Binh versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Ninh Binh but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Ninh Binh the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Ninh Binh is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Nosara, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Nosara and Ninh Binh 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 Ninh Binh gentler on the wallet – expenses run 152% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.