Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

For one person, living is cheaper in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte: $713 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte
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Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$713

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

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 Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,839 per month in Nosara vs $713 in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, rent included.

Nosara $1,839
Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte $713

A couple spends around $2,828 per month in Nosara vs $1,101 in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, rent included.

Nosara $2,828
Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte $1,101

A family of three spends $3,818 per month in Nosara vs $1,490 in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, rent included.

Nosara $3,818
Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte $1,490

Nosara costs about 158% more than Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Nosara sits 36% above the global median, while Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is 47% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.35 ₡5,539

$4.32 LKR 1,430

185.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 ₡27.4K

$24.52 LKR 8,122

149.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 ₡3,373

$7.48 LKR 2,478

0.53%

Cappuccino

$4.41 ₡1,978

$2.46 LKR 815

79.27%

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

$1.74 ₡780

$0.68 LKR 225

155.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₡587

$0.27 LKR 90.2

385.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

$2.17 LKR 719

51.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

$2.95 LKR 976

51.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ₡701

$1.33 LKR 440

17.29%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,355

$0.53 LKR 175

469.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 ₡1,125

$0.73 LKR 243

243.84%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,603

$1.63 LKR 541

119.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

$13.88 LKR 4,599

-46.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

$4.47 LKR 1,480

135.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

$5.32 LKR 1,762

162.59%

Apples (1kg)

$2.35 ₡1,052

$6.20 LKR 2,054

-62.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

$0.80 LKR 266

101.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

$4.42 LKR 1,465

8.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.61 ₡724

$1.25 LKR 413

28.80%

Potato (1kg)

$3.80 ₡1,703

$0.94 LKR 312

304.26%

Onion (1kg)

$3.69 ₡1,657

$0.80 LKR 265

361.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

$0.88 LKR 291

28.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 ₡1,191

$0.47 LKR 155

465.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 ₡2,321

$8.81 LKR 2,919

-41.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

$12.64 LKR 4,185

57.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

$1.90 LKR 628

52.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

$3.04 LKR 1,006

19.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

$0.31 LKR 103

590.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

$0.34 LKR 114

361.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.52 ₡3,823

$0.93 LKR 307

816.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$1.10 LKR 364

38.18%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

$36.8K LKR 12.2M

-41.34%

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

$40.6K LKR 13.5M

-15.04%

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

$96.3 ₡43.2K

$44.92 LKR 14.9K

114.36%

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

$35.89 ₡16.1K

$4.15 LKR 1,373

764.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡24.0K

$12.29 LKR 4,069

336.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

$15.01 LKR 4,972

376.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$7.89 ₡3,539

$3.01 LKR 998

162.13%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

$37.46 LKR 12.4K

1219.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

$909 LKR 301.0K

1204.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

$18.47 LKR 6,118

192.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

$16.90 LKR 5,597

227.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

$80.6 LKR 26.7K

-3.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

$41.96 LKR 13.9K

89.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

$307 LKR 101.7K

156.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

$228 LKR 75.6K

247.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

$449 LKR 148.6K

778.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

$383 LKR 126.8K

270.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

$675 LKR 223.5K

924.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

$538 LKR 178.2K

127.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

$307 LKR 101.8K

180.95%

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 Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$794 43.2%

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

$228 32% 71.3% $566

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$352 19.2%

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

$222 31.2% 37% $130

Eating Out

Nosara

$212 11.5%

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

$107 15% 49.5% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$186 10.1%

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

$61 8.6% 67% $124

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.5%

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

$71 10% 40.8% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

$21 3% 75.9% $66

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.7%

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

$2 * 0.3% 97.7% $85

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 $307 in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte. 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 181% 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 $25.00 in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $352 vs $222 – making Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇱🇰 Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

🕒 Local time

03:42 3:42 AM

15:12 3:12 PM

11 h 30 min ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

115,826 Capital

💱 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

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Between locations

Nosara Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte 17,550 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

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 Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,839 in Nosara, $713 in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte – roughly 158% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,758 per month in Nosara and $1,069 in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, 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 $25.00 in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 59% 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 Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, where all-in costs run around $713, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte 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 $713 in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte 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 Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte. 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.