Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and San Fernando

For one person, living is cheaper in San Fernando: $1,263 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in San Fernando
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San Fernando Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

San Fernando

🇹🇹 Trinidad And Tobago

$1,263

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in San Fernando

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

A single person spends $1,839 per month in Nosara vs $1,263 in San Fernando, rent included.

Nosara $1,839
San Fernando $1,263

A couple spends around $2,828 per month in Nosara vs $2,045 in San Fernando, rent included.

Nosara $2,828
San Fernando $2,045

A family of three spends $3,818 per month in Nosara vs $2,827 in San Fernando, rent included.

Nosara $3,818
San Fernando $2,827

Nosara costs about 46% more than San Fernando, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Nosara sits 36% above the global median, while San Fernando is 6% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$10.22 TTD 68.8

20.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$59.6 TTD 401

2.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$8.00 TTD 53.9

-6.00%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$3.66 TTD 24.65

20.49%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$1.02 TTD 6.88

70.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.76 TTD 5.09

72.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$1.89 TTD 12.69

73.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$2.63 TTD 17.71

69.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.98 TTD 13.33

-21.21%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$2.29 TTD 15.41

31.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$2.92 TTD 19.61

-14.04%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$3.90 TTD 26.27

-8.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$6.58 TTD 44.24

12.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$10.17 TTD 68.4

3.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$9.04 TTD 60.8

54.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$5.59 TTD 37.61

-57.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$2.57 TTD 17.31

-37.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$3.60 TTD 24.21

33.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$4.38 TTD 29.43

-63.24%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$0.75 TTD 5.05

406.67%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$0.74 TTD 5.00

398.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$1.50 TTD 10.11

-24.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$1.15 TTD 7.73

131.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$5.71 TTD 38.38

-9.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$17.92 TTD 121

10.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.55 TTD 10.43

87.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$2.93 TTD 19.74

23.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

$0.46 TTD 3.10

143.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

$44.31 TTD 298

63.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$0.86 TTD 5.79

148.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.92 TTD 6.20

70.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$14.57 TTD 98.0

-41.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.16 TTD 7.81

31.03%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$36.1K TTD 243.1K

-40.20%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$40.3K TTD 270.8K

-14.27%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$44.87 TTD 302

114.60%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$42.63 TTD 287

-15.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$45.78 TTD 308

17.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$50.5 TTD 340

41.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

$22.37 TTD 151

56.06%

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$8.70 TTD 58.5

-9.31%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$402 TTD 2,702

23.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$10.9K TTD 73.0K

9.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$53.6 TTD 360

0.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$37.29 TTD 251

48.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$88.1 TTD 593

-11.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$89.7 TTD 603

-11.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$517 TTD 3,480

52.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$398 TTD 2,675

99.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$914 TTD 6,149

330.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$743 TTD 5,000

90.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$1,991 TTD 13.4K

247.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$1,492 TTD 10.0K

-17.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

$1,043 TTD 7,019

-17.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

5.75

49.91%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Last update for San Fernando: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

San Fernando

$398 31.5% 49.9% $397

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

San Fernando

$320 25.4% 9.1% $32

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

San Fernando

$172 13.6% 19% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

San Fernando

$133 10.6% 28.3% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

San Fernando

$121 9.6% 0.7% $0.8

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

San Fernando

$68 5.4% 22.3% $19

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

San Fernando

$52 4.1% 40.7% $35

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $788 in Nosara versus $517 in San Fernando. 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 21% higher in San Fernando, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Nosara versus $60.0 in San Fernando. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $352 vs $320 – making San Fernando the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇹🇹 San Fernando

🕒 Local time

11:44 11:44 AM

13:44 1:44 PM

2 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

55,419

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar TTD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 TTD = 0.149 USD

1 TTD = 0.132 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TTD, 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).

Trinidad and Tobago Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.73 TTD (1 TTD = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.56 TTD (1 TTD = 0.132 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara San Fernando 2,650 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
San Fernando

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 San Fernando: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,839 in Nosara, $1,263 in San Fernando – roughly 46% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,758 per month in Nosara and $1,895 in San Fernando. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 64% less in San Fernando. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $494 per month in Nosara and $402 in San Fernando. 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 San Fernando, where all-in costs run around $1,263, than in Nosara at $1,839. In San Fernando 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 $1,263 in San Fernando 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 San Fernando. 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.