Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oban and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,110 in Oban, rent and utilities included – about $3,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

102

Cost of Living Index in Oban
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Oban Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Oban

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,110

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Oban 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 Oban and in Nosara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,110 per month in Oban vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Oban $2,110
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,122 per month in Oban vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Oban $3,122
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $4,134 per month in Oban vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Oban $4,134
Nosara $3,818

Oban costs about 15% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Oban and Nosara sit above the global median – Oban by 56%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.10 £12.08

$12.35 ₡5,539

30.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$86.5 £64.9

$61.2 ₡27.4K

41.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.48 £7.11

$7.52 ₡3,373

26.06%

Cappuccino

$4.82 £3.62

$4.41 ₡1,978

9.30%

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

$2.13 £1.60

$1.74 ₡780

22.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 £1.57

$1.31 ₡587

60.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.89 £4.42

$3.28 ₡1,471

79.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.88 £3.66

$4.47 ₡2,004

9.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 £1.17

$1.56 ₡701

-0.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.78 £1.33

$3.02 ₡1,355

-41.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.02 £1.52

$2.51 ₡1,125

-19.52%

Eggs

$4.31 £3.23

$3.57 ₡1,603

20.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.89 £6.67

$7.43 ₡3,333

19.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.01 £9.01

$10.52 ₡4,717

14.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.56 £12.43

$13.97 ₡6,265

18.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.82 £2.12

$2.35 ₡1,052

20.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.33 £1.00

$1.61 ₡720

-17.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 £2.03

$4.80 ₡2,152

-43.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.72 £2.79

$1.61 ₡724

131.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.69 £1.26

$3.80 ₡1,703

-55.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.44 £1.08

$3.69 ₡1,657

-60.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 £0.94

$1.13 ₡507

10.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 £1.26

$2.66 ₡1,191

-36.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.81 £16.36

$5.18 ₡2,321

321.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.93 £8.20

$19.88 ₡8,916

-45.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.63 £1.97

$2.90 ₡1,300

-9.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.93 £2.20

$3.63 ₡1,626

-19.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.36 £2.52

$1.12 ₡504

200.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$103 £77.2

$72.6 ₡32.6K

41.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.04 £3.03

$2.14 ₡958

88.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.40 £1.80

$1.57 ₡703

52.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.71 £17.78

$8.52 ₡3,823

178.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 £1.52

$1.52 ₡682

33.55%

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

$38.6K £29.0K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

78.68%

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

$39.8K £29.9K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

15.34%

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

$332 £249

$96.3 ₡43.2K

244.39%

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

$27.87 £20.91

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-22.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.49 £31.88

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-20.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.14 £33.86

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-36.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.45 £4.84

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-81.52%

Cinema Ticket

$11.34 £8.50

$7.89 ₡3,539

43.73%

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

$1,759 £1,320

$494 ₡221.6K

255.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.6K £16.9K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

90.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$98.0 £73.5

$53.9 ₡24.2K

81.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.44 £35.59

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-14.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 £78.0

$77.9 ₡34.9K

33.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 £83.8

$79.6 ₡35.7K

40.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 £917

$788 ₡353.4K

55.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$753 £565

$794 ₡356.2K

-5.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,088 £1,566

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-47.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,212 £909

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-14.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,924 £3,694

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-28.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,862 £2,897

$1,224 ₡549.0K

215.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,983 £2,238

$864 ₡387.3K

245.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

8.62

-40.72%

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

Last update for Oban: October 12, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Oban

$753 35.7%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 5.4% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oban

$402 19.1%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 53.8% $216

Groceries & Markets

Oban

$320 15.2%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 9.9% $32

Eating Out

Oban

$271 12.9%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 21.9% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Oban

$162 7.7%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 26.1% $42

Getting Around

Oban

$132 6.3%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 34.2% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Oban

$68 3.2%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 28.8% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,222 in Oban 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 245% higher in Oban, 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 $86.0 in Oban versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $320 in Oban vs $352 in Nosara – so Oban wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Oban

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

19:15 7:15 PM

12:15 12:15 PM

7 h behind Oban

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,500

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Oban Nosara 8,480 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Oban
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

Oban vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,110 in Oban, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 15% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,164 per month in Oban 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 Nosara, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 42% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $1,759 per month in Oban and $494 in Nosara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,839, than in Oban at $2,110. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Oban 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 $1,839 in Nosara to $2,110 in Oban. 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 Nosara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Oban makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.