Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Rabat

For one person, living costs are similar in Nosara and in Rabat: $1,839 and $1,928 a month, rent and utilities included.

89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Rabat
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Rabat Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Rabat

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,928

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Rabat

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

A single person spends $1,839 per month in Nosara vs $1,928 in Rabat, rent included.

Nosara $1,839
Rabat $1,928

A couple spends around $2,828 per month in Nosara vs $2,701 in Rabat, rent included.

Nosara $2,828
Rabat $2,701

A family of three spends $3,818 per month in Nosara vs $3,474 in Rabat, rent included.

Nosara $3,818
Rabat $3,474

Nosara is about 5% cheaper than Rabat, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Nosara and Rabat sit above the global median – Nosara by 36%, Rabat by 43%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$16.55 €14.72

-25.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$50.4 €44.82

21.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$11.19 €9.96

-32.80%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.25 €2.00

96.00%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$2.48 €2.20

-29.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$1.69 €1.51

-22.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$3.33 €2.97

-1.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$3.43 €3.05

30.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.11 €0.99

40.54%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$1.34 €1.19

125.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$2.26 €2.01

11.06%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$3.50 €3.11

2.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$7.97 €7.09

-6.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$7.87 €7.00

33.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$12.51 €11.13

11.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$4.12 €3.67

-42.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$2.18 €1.94

-26.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$3.55 €3.16

35.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$2.21 €1.97

-27.15%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$1.15 €1.02

230.43%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$1.14 €1.01

223.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.09 €0.97

3.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$1.09 €0.97

144.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$6.80 €6.05

-23.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$8.23 €7.32

141.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.76 €1.57

64.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.44 €2.17

48.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$2.71 €2.41

-58.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$5.73 €5.09

-62.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$2.21 €1.96

-28.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$26.77 €23.81

-68.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.51 €1.34

0.66%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$37.7K €33.6K

-42.76%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$38.6K €34.3K

-10.61%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$101 €90.2

-5.04%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$12.17 €10.82

194.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$42.85 €38.12

25.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$62.1 €55.3

15.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$22.18 €19.73

57.39%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$10.09 €8.98

-21.80%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$369 €328

33.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$11.3K €10.0K

5.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$86.2 €76.7

-37.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$27.60 €24.55

100.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$73.7 €65.6

5.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$76.8 €68.3

3.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$1,051 €934

-24.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$1,049 €933

-24.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$1,735 €1,543

127.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$1,460 €1,299

-2.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$4,396 €3,910

57.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$3,149 €2,801

-61.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

$1,318 €1,173

-34.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

2.9

197.24%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Rabat: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Rabat

$1K 54.4% 32.1% $255

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Rabat

$261 13.5% 26% $92

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Rabat

$233 12.1% 10.1% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Rabat

$156 8.1% 15.8% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Rabat

$119 6.2% 0.9% $1.1

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Rabat

$82 4.3% 5.8% $5.1

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Rabat

$28 * 1.4% 68.3% $60

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 $1,051 in Rabat. 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 53% higher in Rabat, 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 $50.0 in Rabat. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $352 vs $261 – making Rabat the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇲🇹 Rabat

🕒 Local time

09:03 9:03 AM

17:03 5:03 PM

8 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

11,497

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nosara Rabat 10,250 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Rabat

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 Rabat: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,839 in Nosara, $1,928 in Rabat – roughly 5% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,758 per month in Nosara and $2,892 in Rabat. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Nosara, 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 $50.0 in Rabat. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 35% cheaper in Rabat – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,839, than in Rabat at $1,928. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Rabat 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 $1,839 in Nosara to $1,928 in Rabat. 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 Nosara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Rabat makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.