Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Surabaya

For one person, living is cheaper in Surabaya: $688 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $13,800 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
33

Cost of Living Index in Surabaya
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Surabaya Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Surabaya

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$688

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Surabaya

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

A single person spends $1,837 per month in Nosara vs $688 in Surabaya, rent included.

Nosara $1,837
Surabaya $688

A couple spends around $2,775 per month in Nosara vs $1,191 in Surabaya, rent included.

Nosara $2,775
Surabaya $1,191

A family of three spends $3,712 per month in Nosara vs $1,695 in Surabaya, rent included.

Nosara $3,712
Surabaya $1,695

Nosara costs about 167% more than Surabaya, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Nosara sits 37% above the global median, while Surabaya is 49% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.22 ₡5,509

$1.69 Rp 30.3K

623.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.2 ₡27.1K

$11.40 Rp 204.0K

428.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.54 ₡3,399

$3.05 Rp 54.6K

147.21%

Cappuccino

$4.31 ₡1,941

$1.57 Rp 28.0K

174.52%

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

$1.72 ₡773

$0.61 Rp 10.8K

181.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 ₡608

$0.28 Rp 5,030

382.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,459

$2.26 Rp 40.5K

43.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 ₡2,018

$4.09 Rp 73.2K

9.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡707

$1.22 Rp 21.8K

28.69%

White Bread (500g)

$3.17 ₡1,429

$1.27 Rp 22.8K

149.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 ₡1,091

$0.84 Rp 15.0K

188.10%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,609

$1.20 Rp 21.5K

197.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,349

$7.66 Rp 137.1K

-3.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.42 ₡4,697

$3.08 Rp 55.1K

238.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.66 ₡6,156

$7.85 Rp 140.4K

74.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.32 ₡1,044

$2.09 Rp 37.5K

11.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡728

$1.30 Rp 23.2K

23.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.74 ₡2,138

$1.82 Rp 32.6K

160.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 ₡747

$1.56 Rp 27.8K

6.41%

Potato (1kg)

$3.72 ₡1,679

$1.30 Rp 23.3K

186.15%

Onion (1kg)

$3.57 ₡1,611

$1.91 Rp 34.2K

86.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 ₡497

$0.96 Rp 17.2K

14.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.55 ₡1,149

$0.43 Rp 7,686

493.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.95 ₡2,232

$1.94 Rp 34.6K

155.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.01 ₡9,020

$24.67 Rp 441.4K

-18.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 ₡1,256

$1.73 Rp 30.9K

61.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 ₡1,589

$3.00 Rp 53.6K

17.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₡537

$0.32 Rp 5,674

271.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.1 ₡32.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.24 ₡1,011

$0.48 Rp 8,526

366.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

$0.43 Rp 7,686

260.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.86 ₡3,993

$2.61 Rp 46.8K

239.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡708

$0.83 Rp 14.8K

89.16%

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

$21.8K ₡9.8M

$25.0K Rp 446.4M

-12.62%

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

$32.8K Rp 586.0M

5.74%

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

$93.5 ₡42.1K

$86.2 Rp 1.5M

8.46%

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

$35.11 ₡15.8K

$4.58 Rp 82.0K

666.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.5 ₡23.2K

$19.24 Rp 344.2K

167.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.4 ₡32.2K

$17.96 Rp 321.3K

297.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.44 ₡16.0K

$6.82 Rp 122.0K

419.65%

Cinema Ticket

$7.84 ₡3,535

$2.72 Rp 48.7K

188.24%

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

$490 ₡220.7K

$280 Rp 5.0M

74.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

$9,557 Rp 171.0M

24.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.5 ₡24.1K

$70.0 Rp 1.3M

-23.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 ₡25.1K

$39.31 Rp 703.2K

41.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 ₡35.7K

$81.4 Rp 1.5M

-2.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.9 ₡35.6K

$73.4 Rp 1.3M

7.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$786 ₡354.3K

$279 Rp 5.0M

181.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$780 ₡351.6K

$147 Rp 2.6M

431.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,860 ₡1.7M

$1,247 Rp 22.3M

209.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 ₡634.4K

$620 Rp 11.1M

127.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,972 ₡3.1M

$2,155 Rp 38.6M

223.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,201 ₡541.3K

$1,047 Rp 18.7M

14.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$876 ₡395.0K

$273 Rp 4.9M

220.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

7.5

14.93%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Last update for Surabaya: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$780 43%

Surabaya

$147 21.7% 81.2% $633

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$350 19.3%

Surabaya

$209 30.9% 40.2% $140

Eating Out

Nosara

$209 11.6%

Surabaya

$65 9.5% 69.2% $145

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$180 9.9%

Surabaya

$110 16.3% 38.9% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$120 6.6%

Surabaya

$119 17.6% 1.2% $1.5

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Surabaya

$23 3.5% 73.1% $64

Getting Around

Nosara

$87 4.8%

Surabaya

$3.9 * 0.6% 95.5% $83

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 $279 in Surabaya. 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 221% 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 $11.00 in Surabaya. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $350 vs $209 – making Surabaya the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇮🇩 Surabaya

🕒 Local time

00:24 12:24 AM

13:24 1:24 PM

13 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

2,765,487

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, 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 = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,890 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,065 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.98 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Surabaya 17,970 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Surabaya

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 Surabaya: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,837 in Nosara, $688 in Surabaya – roughly 167% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,756 per month in Nosara and $1,032 in Surabaya. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Surabaya, 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 $60.0 in Nosara and $11.00 in Surabaya. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 67% 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 Surabaya, where all-in costs run around $688, than in Nosara at $1,837. In Surabaya 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 $688 in Surabaya 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 Surabaya. 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.