Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Piliyandala

For one person, living is cheaper in Piliyandala: $573 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $15,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index
28

Cost of Living Index in Piliyandala
Learn more

Piliyandala Living Index

Jump to prices

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Piliyandala

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$573

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Piliyandala

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

A single person spends $1,839 per month in Nosara vs $573 in Piliyandala, rent included.

Nosara $1,839
Piliyandala $573

A couple spends around $2,828 per month in Nosara vs $902 in Piliyandala, rent included.

Nosara $2,828
Piliyandala $902

A family of three spends $3,818 per month in Nosara vs $1,232 in Piliyandala, rent included.

Nosara $3,818
Piliyandala $1,232

Nosara costs about 221% more than Piliyandala, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Nosara sits 36% above the global median, while Piliyandala is 58% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$3.07 LKR 1,017

302.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$12.01 LKR 3,977

409.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$7.54 LKR 2,497

-0.27%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.48 LKR 822

77.82%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.72 LKR 238

141.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.27 LKR 89.9

385.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$1.78 LKR 589

84.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$3.10 LKR 1,028

44.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.62 LKR 536

-3.70%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$0.57 LKR 187

429.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$0.75 LKR 248

234.67%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$1.63 LKR 540

119.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$13.83 LKR 4,582

-46.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$4.95 LKR 1,638

112.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$7.24 LKR 2,399

92.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$6.47 LKR 2,142

-63.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$0.80 LKR 264

101.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$4.28 LKR 1,419

12.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.34 LKR 443

20.15%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$0.99 LKR 329

283.84%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$0.84 LKR 277

339.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$0.87 LKR 289

29.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.45 LKR 149

491.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$10.41 LKR 3,448

-50.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$13.07 LKR 4,329

52.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.95 LKR 646

48.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.95 LKR 976

23.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.38 LKR 125

194.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$0.40 LKR 133

435.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.31 LKR 104

406.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$0.87 LKR 289

879.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.34 LKR 445

13.43%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$36.4K LKR 12.0M

-40.56%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$39.9K LKR 13.2M

-13.42%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$59.6 LKR 19.7K

61.51%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$4.36 LKR 1,444

723.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$20.37 LKR 6,748

163.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$4.64 LKR 1,538

70.04%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$37.70 LKR 12.5K

1210.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$1,214 LKR 402.2K

876.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$18.00 LKR 5,961

199.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$16.53 LKR 5,477

235.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$77.6 LKR 25.7K

0.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$41.97 LKR 13.9K

89.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$105 LKR 34.8K

649.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$74.5 LKR 24.7K

965.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$254 LKR 84.3K

1448.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$178 LKR 59.0K

696.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

$304 LKR 100.8K

183.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

12.69

-32.07%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Piliyandala: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Piliyandala

$75 13% 90.6% $720

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Piliyandala

$236 41.1% 33.1% $117

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Piliyandala

$96 16.8% 54.7% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Piliyandala

$84 14.7% 54.6% $101

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Piliyandala

$69 12.1% 42.3% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Piliyandala

$9.3 * 1.6% 89.4% $78

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Piliyandala

$3.5 * 0.6% 96% $84

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 $105 in Piliyandala. 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 184% 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 $12.00 in Piliyandala. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $352 vs $236 – making Piliyandala the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇱🇰 Piliyandala

🕒 Local time

19:44 7:44 PM

07:14 7:14 AM

11 h 30 min ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, 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).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Piliyandala 17,560 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Piliyandala

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 Piliyandala: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,839 in Nosara, $573 in Piliyandala – roughly 221% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,758 per month in Nosara and $859 in Piliyandala. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Nosara and $12.00 in Piliyandala. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 50% more in Nosara, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Piliyandala, where all-in costs run around $573, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Piliyandala 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 $573 in Piliyandala 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 Piliyandala. 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.