Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oxford and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,837 a month against $3,140 in Oxford, rent and utilities included – about $15,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

154

Cost of Living Index in Oxford
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Oxford Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Oxford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,140

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,140 per month in Oxford vs $1,837 in Nosara, rent included.

Oxford $3,140
Nosara $1,837

A couple spends around $4,486 per month in Oxford vs $2,775 in Nosara, rent included.

Oxford $4,486
Nosara $2,775

A family of three spends $5,831 per month in Oxford vs $3,712 in Nosara, rent included.

Oxford $5,831
Nosara $3,712

Oxford costs about 71% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Oxford and Nosara sit above the global median – Oxford by 134%, Nosara by 37%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.41 £18.44

$12.22 ₡5,509

99.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$105 £79.5

$60.2 ₡27.1K

74.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.78 £8.15

$7.54 ₡3,399

42.97%

Cappuccino

$5.00 £3.78

$4.31 ₡1,941

16.01%

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

$4.41 £3.33

$1.72 ₡773

156.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 £1.73

$1.35 ₡608

69.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.99 £6.79

$3.24 ₡1,459

177.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.39 £6.34

$4.48 ₡2,018

87.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.57 ₡707

6.37%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 £1.22

$3.17 ₡1,429

-49.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 £1.45

$2.42 ₡1,091

-20.66%

Eggs

$4.27 £3.23

$3.57 ₡1,609

19.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.46 £10.93

$7.43 ₡3,349

94.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.20 £6.20

$10.42 ₡4,697

-21.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.87 £11.24

$13.66 ₡6,156

8.86%

Apples (1kg)

$3.44 £2.60

$2.32 ₡1,044

48.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 £1.22

$1.61 ₡728

0.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$4.74 ₡2,138

-36.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.50 £2.64

$1.66 ₡747

110.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$3.72 ₡1,679

-53.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$3.57 ₡1,611

-51.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 £0.88

$1.10 ₡497

6.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 £1.25

$2.55 ₡1,149

-35.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.08 £17.44

$4.95 ₡2,232

366.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.15 £8.43

$20.01 ₡9,020

-44.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.44 £2.60

$2.79 ₡1,256

23.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 £2.70

$3.53 ₡1,589

1.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.04 £3.05

$1.19 ₡537

239.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$107 £80.7

$72.1 ₡32.5K

48.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.95 £3.74

$2.24 ₡1,011

120.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.14 £2.37

$1.55 ₡701

102.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.40 £31.28

$8.86 ₡3,993

367.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 £1.58

$1.57 ₡708

33.12%

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

$38.9K £29.4K

$21.8K ₡9.8M

78.32%

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

$40.1K £30.3K

$34.6K ₡15.6M

15.87%

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

$355 £268

$93.5 ₡42.1K

279.49%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-49.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.92 £32.44

$51.5 ₡23.2K

-16.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.70 £33.78

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-37.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.33 £8.56

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-68.03%

Cinema Ticket

$14.51 £10.97

$7.84 ₡3,535

85.08%

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

$2,266 £1,713

$490 ₡220.7K

362.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.4K £11.6K

$11.9K ₡5.4M

29.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.3 £72.0

$53.5 ₡24.1K

77.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.69 £34.53

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-18.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 £76.4

$79.3 ₡35.7K

27.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 £77.1

$78.9 ₡35.6K

29.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,279 £1,722

$786 ₡354.3K

189.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,656 £1,252

$780 ₡351.6K

112.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,222 £2,435

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-16.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,582 £1,951

$1,407 ₡634.4K

83.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,976 £6,028

$6,972 ₡3.1M

14.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,813 £5,148

$1,201 ₡541.3K

467.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,924 £2,966

$876 ₡395.0K

347.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.79

8.62

-44.43%

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

Last update for Oxford: October 3, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Oxford

$1.7K 52.7%

Nosara

$780 43% 52.9% $876

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oxford

$415 13.2%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 56.7% $235

Eating Out

Oxford

$376 12%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 44.3% $167

Groceries & Markets

Oxford

$323 10.3%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 8.2% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Oxford

$155 4.9%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 22.3% $35

Getting Around

Oxford

$144 4.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 39.5% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Oxford

$74 2.4%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 18.1% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,279 in Oxford versus $786 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 348% higher in Oxford, 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 $105 in Oxford versus $60.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $323 in Oxford vs $350 in Nosara – so Oxford wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Oxford

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

04:22 4:22 AM

21:22 9:22 PM

7 h behind Oxford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

165,000

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

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).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Oxford Nosara 8,750 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Oxford
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

Oxford vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,140 in Oxford, $1,837 in Nosara – roughly 71% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,711 per month in Oxford and $2,756 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 48% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,266 per month in Oxford and $490 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 $1,837, than in Oxford at $3,140. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Oxford 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 $1,837 in Nosara to $3,140 in Oxford. 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, Oxford makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.