Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Salto

For one person, living is cheaper in Salto: $1,332 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index
64

Cost of Living Index in Salto
Learn more

Salto Living Index

Jump to prices

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Salto

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$1,332

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Salto

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

A single person spends $1,837 per month in Nosara vs $1,332 in Salto, rent included.

Nosara $1,837
Salto $1,332

A couple spends around $2,775 per month in Nosara vs $1,921 in Salto, rent included.

Nosara $2,775
Salto $1,921

A family of three spends $3,712 per month in Nosara vs $2,510 in Salto, rent included.

Nosara $3,712
Salto $2,510

Nosara costs about 38% more than Salto, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Nosara sits 37% above the global median, while Salto is 1% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.22 ₡5,509

$15.98 UYU 643

-23.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.2 ₡27.1K

$37.19 UYU 1,495

61.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.54 ₡3,399

$11.86 UYU 477

-36.42%

Cappuccino

$4.31 ₡1,941

$3.26 UYU 131

32.21%

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

$1.72 ₡773

$2.21 UYU 89.0

-22.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 ₡608

$1.57 UYU 63.1

-14.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,459

$4.57 UYU 184

-29.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 ₡2,018

$3.08 UYU 124

45.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡707

$1.40 UYU 56.2

12.14%

White Bread (500g)

$3.17 ₡1,429

$2.12 UYU 85.1

49.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 ₡1,091

$1.50 UYU 60.3

61.33%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,609

$5.34 UYU 215

-33.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,349

$15.05 UYU 605

-50.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.42 ₡4,697

$8.73 UYU 351

19.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.66 ₡6,156

$9.86 UYU 397

38.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.32 ₡1,044

$1.27 UYU 51.0

82.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡728

$2.16 UYU 86.7

-25.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.74 ₡2,138

$1.24 UYU 49.93

282.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 ₡747

$1.86 UYU 74.8

-10.75%

Potato (1kg)

$3.72 ₡1,679

$0.90 UYU 36.05

313.33%

Onion (1kg)

$3.57 ₡1,611

$1.66 UYU 66.8

115.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 ₡497

$0.89 UYU 35.78

23.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.55 ₡1,149

$1.53 UYU 61.4

66.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.95 ₡2,232

$5.29 UYU 213

-6.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.01 ₡9,020

$7.55 UYU 303

165.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 ₡1,256

$1.91 UYU 76.9

46.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 ₡1,589

$2.61 UYU 105

35.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₡537

$0.60 UYU 23.98

98.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.1 ₡32.5K

$29.75 UYU 1,196

142.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.24 ₡1,011

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

$3.61 UYU 145

-57.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.86 ₡3,993

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡708

$1.95 UYU 78.3

-19.49%

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

$21.8K ₡9.8M

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

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

$93.5 ₡42.1K

$200 UYU 8,032

-53.22%

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

$35.11 ₡15.8K

$21.70 UYU 872

61.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.5 ₡23.2K

$29.62 UYU 1,191

73.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.4 ₡32.2K

$36.74 UYU 1,478

94.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.44 ₡16.0K

$12.46 UYU 501

184.43%

Cinema Ticket

$7.84 ₡3,535

$9.93 UYU 399

-21.05%

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

$490 ₡220.7K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

$4,463 UYU 179.4K

166.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ₡24.1K

$85.5 UYU 3,437

-37.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 ₡25.1K

$55.9 UYU 2,247

-0.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 ₡35.7K

$114 UYU 4,576

-30.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.9 ₡35.6K

$67.1 UYU 2,697

17.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$786 ₡354.3K

$438 UYU 17.6K

79.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 ₡351.6K

$300 UYU 12.1K

159.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,860 ₡1.7M

$749 UYU 30.1K

415.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 ₡634.4K

$417 UYU 16.8K

237.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,972 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,201 ₡541.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$876 ₡395.0K

$628 UYU 25.3K

39.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

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

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Last update for Salto: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$780 43%

Salto

$300 22.7% 61.5% $480

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$350 19.3%

Salto

$272 20.6% 22.1% $77

Eating Out

Nosara

$209 11.6%

Salto

$247 18.7% 17.8% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$180 9.9%

Salto

$251 19% 39.5% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.6%

Salto

$145 11% 20.5% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Salto

$57 4.3% 35% $30

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Salto

$50 * 3.8% 42.2% $37

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $786 in Nosara versus $438 in Salto. 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 40% 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 $60.0 in Nosara versus $37.00 in Salto. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $350 vs $272 – making Salto the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇺🇾 Salto

🕒 Local time

07:00 7:00 AM

10:00 10:00 AM

3 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

104,028

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 40.21 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.06 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Salto 5,460 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Salto

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 Salto: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,837 in Nosara, $1,332 in Salto – roughly 38% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,756 per month in Nosara and $1,998 in Salto. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 142% less in Salto. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Groceries cost about 28% 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 $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Salto, where all-in costs run around $1,332, than in Nosara at $1,837. In Salto 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 $1,332 in Salto to $1,837 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 Salto. 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.