Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nova Friburgo and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nova Friburgo: $611 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $14,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Nova Friburgo
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Nova Friburgo Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Nova Friburgo

🇧🇷 Brazil

$611

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nova Friburgo and in Nosara

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Nova Friburgo and in Nosara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $611 per month in Nova Friburgo vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Nova Friburgo $611
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $1,026 per month in Nova Friburgo vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Nova Friburgo $1,026
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $1,440 per month in Nova Friburgo vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Nova Friburgo $1,440
Nosara $3,818

Nova Friburgo is about 67% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Nova Friburgo sits 55% below the global median, while Nosara is 36% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.87 R$29.44

$12.35 ₡5,547

-52.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.15 R$151

$61.2 ₡27.5K

-50.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.38 R$32.01

$7.52 ₡3,377

-15.16%

Cappuccino

$1.76 R$8.84

$4.41 ₡1,981

-60.09%

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

$0.88 R$4.42

$1.74 ₡781

-49.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 R$2.89

$1.31 ₡588

-55.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.19 R$5.95

$3.28 ₡1,473

-63.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 R$12.30

$4.47 ₡2,007

-45.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.97 R$4.85

$1.56 ₡702

-37.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.51 R$7.58

$3.02 ₡1,357

-50.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.38 R$6.94

$2.51 ₡1,127

-45.02%

Eggs

$1.94 R$9.75

$3.57 ₡1,605

-45.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.21 R$46.22

$7.43 ₡3,338

23.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.42 R$17.16

$10.52 ₡4,724

-67.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.52 R$47.79

$13.97 ₡6,274

-31.85%

Apples (1kg)

$1.62 R$8.14

$2.35 ₡1,054

-31.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.20 R$6.04

$1.61 ₡721

-25.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.93 R$4.65

$4.80 ₡2,155

-80.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.28 R$6.43

$1.61 ₡725

-20.50%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 R$3.25

$3.80 ₡1,706

-82.89%

Onion (1kg)

$0.81 R$4.04

$3.69 ₡1,659

-78.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.56 R$2.82

$1.13 ₡507

-50.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 R$3.83

$2.66 ₡1,193

-71.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.58 R$7.94

$5.18 ₡2,324

-69.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.07 R$30.43

$19.88 ₡8,929

-69.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 R$5.07

$2.90 ₡1,302

-65.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 R$7.12

$3.63 ₡1,628

-60.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.96 R$4.83

$1.12 ₡505

-14.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.22 R$6.11

$2.14 ₡959

-42.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.56 R$2.79

$1.57 ₡704

-64.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.87 R$34.45

$8.52 ₡3,828

-19.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 R$6.27

$1.52 ₡683

-17.76%

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

$20.0K R$100.3K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

-7.51%

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

$31.0K R$155.6K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-10.18%

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

$41.63 R$209

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-56.77%

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

$9.54 R$47.85

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-73.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.74 R$94.0

$53.6 ₡24.1K

-65.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.35 R$112

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-68.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 R$33.95

$7.89 ₡3,544

-14.20%

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

$147 R$739

$494 ₡221.9K

-70.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,693 R$13.5K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-77.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.1 R$357

$53.9 ₡24.2K

31.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$84.5 R$424

$55.4 ₡24.9K

52.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.1 R$342

$77.9 ₡35.0K

-12.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$47.77 R$240

$79.6 ₡35.8K

-39.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$161 R$809

$788 ₡353.9K

-79.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$99.3 R$498

$794 ₡356.7K

-87.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$396 R$1,987

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-89.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$243 R$1,221

$1,419 ₡637.4K

-82.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,604 R$8,050

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-76.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$810 R$4,062

$1,224 ₡549.8K

-33.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$521 R$2,613

$864 ₡387.8K

-39.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.67

8.62

23.78%

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

Last update for Nova Friburgo: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Nova Friburgo

$172 28.1%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 105% $180

Clothing & Footwear

Nova Friburgo

$122 20%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 1.7% $2.1

Eating Out

Nova Friburgo

$104 17%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 104% $108

Accommodation & Living

Nova Friburgo

$99 16.3%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 700% $695

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nova Friburgo

$70 11.5%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 166% $116

Sport & Entertainment

Nova Friburgo

$36 5.9%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 144% $51

Getting Around

Nova Friburgo

$7.9 * 1.3%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 1010% $79

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $161 in Nova Friburgo versus $788 in Nosara. 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 66% 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 $30.00 in Nova Friburgo versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $172 vs $352 – making Nova Friburgo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Nova Friburgo

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

16:25 4:25 PM

13:25 1:25 PM

3 h behind Nova Friburgo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

189,939

4,912

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.199 USD

1 BRL = 0.178 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 5.02 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.62 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 449 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Nova Friburgo Nosara 5,920 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Nova Friburgo
Nosara

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

Nova Friburgo vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $611 in Nova Friburgo, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 201% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $916 per month in Nova Friburgo and $2,758 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Nova Friburgo, 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 $30.00 in Nova Friburgo and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 105% 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 $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Nova Friburgo, where all-in costs run around $611, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Nova Friburgo 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 $611 in Nova Friburgo 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 Nova Friburgo. 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.