Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nosara and Van

For one person, living is cheaper in Van: $956 a month against $1,846 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Van
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Van Living Index

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Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,846

/mo nomad

Van

🇹🇷 Turkey

$956

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nosara and in Van

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

A single person spends $1,846 per month in Nosara vs $956 in Van, rent included.

Nosara $1,846
Van $956

A couple spends around $2,833 per month in Nosara vs $1,536 in Van, rent included.

Nosara $2,833
Van $1,536

A family of three spends $3,820 per month in Nosara vs $2,116 in Van, rent included.

Nosara $3,820
Van $2,116

Nosara costs about 93% more than Van, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Nosara sits 36% above the global median, while Van is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.36 ₡5,575

$7.48 ₺373

65.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.8 ₡27.4K

$34.59 ₺1,724

75.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.88 ₡3,557

$7.93 ₺395

-0.63%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₡1,986

$3.57 ₺178

23.25%

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

$1.72 ₡776

$1.14 ₺56.6

50.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 ₡603

$0.42 ₺21.18

219.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.34 ₡1,505

$3.33 ₺166

0.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.54 ₡2,048

$3.10 ₺154

46.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 ₡739

$0.96 ₺47.68

70.83%

White Bread (500g)

$3.16 ₡1,426

$1.00 ₺49.81

216.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 ₡1,080

$2.25 ₺112

6.22%

Eggs

$3.47 ₡1,564

$1.48 ₺73.9

134.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.13 ₡3,217

$8.99 ₺448

-20.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.32 ₡4,655

$4.07 ₺203

153.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,302

$22.62 ₺1,127

-38.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 ₡1,031

$1.82 ₺90.9

25.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 ₡731

$1.83 ₺91.1

-11.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.81 ₡2,169

$1.09 ₺54.4

341.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.68 ₡758

$1.15 ₺57.4

46.09%

Potato (1kg)

$3.91 ₡1,765

$0.52 ₺25.74

651.92%

Onion (1kg)

$3.63 ₡1,640

$0.35 ₺17.45

937.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡509

$0.74 ₺36.88

52.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.63 ₡1,188

$0.61 ₺30.54

331.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.02 ₡2,267

$2.16 ₺108

132.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.71 ₡8,893

$10.36 ₺516

90.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.91 ₡1,314

$2.01 ₺100.0

44.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 ₡1,597

$2.79 ₺139

26.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 ₡545

$0.73 ₺36.60

65.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.8 ₡33.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.15 ₡969

$1.30 ₺64.6

65.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 ₡738

$0.76 ₺37.86

114.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.77 ₡3,958

$7.21 ₺359

21.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 ₡700

$1.28 ₺64.0

21.09%

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

$33.9K ₡15.3M

$42.2K ₺2.1M

-19.78%

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

$38.5K ₡17.4M

$38.9K ₺1.9M

-1.11%

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

$95.2 ₡43.0K

$79.9 ₺3,982

19.16%

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

$36.29 ₡16.4K

$10.46 ₺522

246.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.0 ₡23.5K

$13.39 ₺667

288.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.6 ₡30.5K

$57.0 ₺2,842

18.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.55 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$7.54 ₡3,404

$6.49 ₺324

16.18%

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

$496 ₡224.0K

$624 ₺31.1K

-20.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.8K ₡5.3M

$11.4K ₺566.2K

3.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.1 ₡24.9K

$45.86 ₺2,285

20.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 ₡25.3K

$33.35 ₺1,662

68.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.8 ₡35.1K

$79.7 ₺3,970

-2.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.1 ₡35.7K

$88.8 ₺4,426

-10.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$817 ₡368.9K

$469 ₺23.4K

74.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$806 ₡363.6K

$278 ₺13.9K

189.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,988 ₡1.8M

$816 ₺40.7K

388.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 ₡644.9K

$586 ₺29.2K

143.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,068 ₡3.2M

$1,491 ₺74.3K

374.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,197 ₡540.1K

$968 ₺48.2K

23.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$888 ₡400.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

41.33

-79.14%

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

Last update for Nosara: October 24, 2026

Last update for Van: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nosara

$806 43.7%

Van

$278 29.1% 65.4% $527

Groceries & Markets

Nosara

$351 19%

Van

$229 23.9% 34.9% $122

Eating Out

Nosara

$213 11.6%

Van

$156 16.3% 27.1% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nosara

$184 9.9%

Van

$104 10.9% 43.5% $80

Clothing & Footwear

Nosara

$121 6.5%

Van

$111 11.7% 7.6% $9.2

Getting Around

Nosara

$89 4.8%

Van

$8 * 0.8% 91% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Nosara

$83 4.5%

Van

$70 7.3% 15.3% $13

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $817 in Nosara versus $469 in Van. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Nosara versus $35 in Van. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $351 vs $229 – making Van the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Nosara

🇹🇷 Van

🕒 Local time

06:55 6:55 AM

15:55 3:55 PM

9 h ahead of Nosara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912

1,141,015

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

100 TRY = 2.01 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 49.83 TRY (100 TRY = 2.01 USD). 1 EUR = 55.46 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nosara Van 12,470 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Nosara
Van

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 Van: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,846 in Nosara, $956 in Van – roughly 93% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,769 per month in Nosara and $1,434 in Van. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Van, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $469 there versus $817 in Nosara.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Nosara and $35 in Van. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 54% more in Nosara, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

It depends on your priorities. Nosara has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $956 in Van to $1,846 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.