Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Petropolis

For one person, living is cheaper in Petropolis: $1,011 a month against $1,835 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Petropolis
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Petropolis Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Petropolis

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,011

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Petropolis

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

A single person spends $1,835 per month in Nosara vs $1,011 in Petropolis, rent included.

Nosara $1,835
Petropolis $1,011

A couple spends around $2,825 per month in Nosara vs $1,516 in Petropolis, rent included.

Nosara $2,825
Petropolis $1,516

A family of three spends $3,814 per month in Nosara vs $2,021 in Petropolis, rent included.

Nosara $3,814
Petropolis $2,021

Nosara costs about 81% more than Petropolis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Nosara sits 35% above the global median, while Petropolis is 25% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.34 ₡5,535

$6.07 R$30.78

103.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 ₡27.5K

$28.83 R$146

112.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.76 ₡3,481

$6.91 R$35.02

12.30%

Cappuccino

$4.44 ₡1,992

$1.70 R$8.64

161.18%

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

$1.79 ₡803

$1.31 R$6.66

36.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 ₡580

$0.58 R$2.93

122.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,451

$1.21 R$6.15

167.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.43 ₡1,985

$4.69 R$23.79

-5.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 ₡696

$0.93 R$4.70

66.67%

White Bread (500g)

$3.08 ₡1,380

$1.52 R$7.69

102.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.53 ₡1,133

$1.43 R$7.24

76.92%

Eggs

$3.45 ₡1,546

$2.04 R$10.32

69.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.32 ₡3,284

$9.19 R$46.60

-20.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.24 ₡4,594

$4.33 R$21.93

136.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.10 ₡6,326

$9.57 R$48.50

47.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 ₡1,027

$1.64 R$8.33

39.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.64 ₡737

$1.15 R$5.83

42.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.79 ₡2,149

$0.98 R$4.94

388.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.64 ₡735

$1.21 R$6.11

35.54%

Potato (1kg)

$3.85 ₡1,727

$0.65 R$3.31

492.31%

Onion (1kg)

$3.75 ₡1,681

$0.87 R$4.40

331.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 ₡488

$0.58 R$2.92

87.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.59 ₡1,160

$0.61 R$3.10

324.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.12 ₡2,295

$2.16 R$10.96

137.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.92 ₡8,931

$5.88 R$29.79

238.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.80 ₡1,255

$1.04 R$5.27

169.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.52 ₡1,580

$1.42 R$7.21

147.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 ₡549

$1.03 R$5.24

18.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.9 ₡33.1K

$49.31 R$250

49.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.17 ₡973

$1.15 R$5.82

88.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 ₡698

$1.02 R$5.15

52.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.67 ₡3,886

$8.01 R$40.60

8.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 ₡697

$1.24 R$6.28

25.00%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$20.9K R$105.8K

65.58%

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

$38.7K ₡17.4M

$31.2K R$158.3K

24.07%

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

$94.8 ₡42.5K

$70.9 R$359

33.78%

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

$36.15 ₡16.2K

$9.78 R$49.60

269.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.1 ₡23.8K

$18.71 R$94.9

183.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.8 ₡33.1K

$31.96 R$162

130.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.63 ₡16.0K

$32.15 R$163

10.82%

Cinema Ticket

$7.91 ₡3,548

$7.10 R$36.02

11.41%

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

$490 ₡219.9K

$362 R$1,836

35.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$11.1K R$56.1K

7.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.8 ₡24.6K

$55.2 R$280

-0.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.9 ₡25.1K

$49.65 R$252

12.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.4 ₡36.0K

$88.2 R$447

-8.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$69.1 R$350

12.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$801 ₡359.1K

$527 R$2,671

52.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$790 ₡354.1K

$401 R$2,033

96.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,005 ₡1.8M

$837 R$4,241

378.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,409 ₡632.0K

$630 R$3,194

123.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,064 ₡3.2M

$2,748 R$13.9K

157.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,236 ₡554.3K

$1,985 R$10.1K

-37.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

$613 R$3,110

44.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

11.87

-27.38%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Last update for Petropolis: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$790 43%

Petropolis

$401 39.7% 49.2% $389

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$350 19.1%

Petropolis

$174 17.2% 50.1% $175

Eating Out

Nosara

$213 11.6%

Petropolis

$113 11.2% 47% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$184 10%

Petropolis

$99 9.8% 46% $85

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$121 6.6%

Petropolis

$118 11.7% 2.5% $3.1

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$90 4.9%

Petropolis

$46 4.6% 48.5% $43

Getting Around

Nosara

$89 4.8%

Petropolis

$60 5.9% 32.7% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $801 in Nosara versus $527 in Petropolis. 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 45% 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 $29.00 in Petropolis. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $350 vs $174 – making Petropolis the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇧🇷 Petropolis

🕒 Local time

15:44 3:44 PM

18:44 6:44 PM

3 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

278,881

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, 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).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nosara Petropolis 5,870 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Petropolis

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 Petropolis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,835 in Nosara, $1,011 in Petropolis – roughly 81% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,753 per month in Nosara and $1,517 in Petropolis. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 50% less in Petropolis. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $490 per month in Nosara and $362 in Petropolis. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Petropolis, where all-in costs run around $1,011, than in Nosara at $1,835. In Petropolis 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 $1,011 in Petropolis to $1,835 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 Petropolis. 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.