Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Padang and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Padang: $620 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $14,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Padang
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Padang Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Padang

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$620

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $620 per month in Padang vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Padang $620
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $996 per month in Padang vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Padang $996
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $1,372 per month in Padang vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Padang $1,372
Nosara $3,818

Padang is about 66% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Padang sits 54% below the global median, while Nosara is 36% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.64 Rp 29.6K

$12.35 ₡5,539

-86.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.72 Rp 283.0K

$61.2 ₡27.4K

-74.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.92 Rp 52.5K

$7.52 ₡3,373

-61.17%

Cappuccino

$1.44 Rp 26.0K

$4.41 ₡1,978

-67.35%

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

$0.41 Rp 7,394

$1.74 ₡780

-76.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.22 Rp 3,925

$1.31 ₡587

-83.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.14 Rp 38.6K

$3.28 ₡1,471

-34.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 Rp 67.3K

$4.47 ₡2,004

-16.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.14 Rp 20.5K

$1.56 ₡701

-26.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 Rp 18.7K

$3.02 ₡1,355

-65.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.96 Rp 17.4K

$2.51 ₡1,125

-61.75%

Eggs

$1.49 Rp 26.8K

$3.57 ₡1,603

-58.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.82 Rp 122.8K

$7.43 ₡3,333

-8.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.88 Rp 51.8K

$10.52 ₡4,717

-72.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.49 Rp 116.9K

$13.97 ₡6,265

-53.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.51 Rp 45.2K

$2.35 ₡1,052

6.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 Rp 22.4K

$1.61 ₡720

-22.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 Rp 31.2K

$4.80 ₡2,152

-63.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.24 Rp 22.4K

$1.61 ₡724

-22.98%

Potato (1kg)

$1.15 Rp 20.6K

$3.80 ₡1,703

-69.74%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 Rp 33.2K

$3.69 ₡1,657

-50.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.80 Rp 14.4K

$1.13 ₡507

-29.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 Rp 7,241

$2.66 ₡1,191

-84.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.72 Rp 48.9K

$5.18 ₡2,321

-47.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.21 Rp 381.7K

$19.88 ₡8,916

6.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 Rp 31.1K

$2.90 ₡1,300

-40.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 Rp 59.1K

$3.63 ₡1,626

-9.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 Rp 5,254

$1.12 ₡504

-74.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.52 Rp 9,417

$2.14 ₡958

-75.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 Rp 6,239

$1.57 ₡703

-77.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.77 Rp 49.8K

$8.52 ₡3,823

-67.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 Rp 17.0K

$1.52 ₡682

-37.50%

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

$20.4K Rp 366.6M

$21.6K ₡9.7M

-5.75%

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

$32.7K Rp 588.6M

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-5.26%

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

$67.6 Rp 1.2M

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-29.81%

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

$4.97 Rp 89.5K

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-86.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.99 Rp 377.8K

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-60.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.55 Rp 351.9K

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-72.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.88 Rp 159.9K

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-74.56%

Cinema Ticket

$2.60 Rp 46.7K

$7.89 ₡3,539

-67.05%

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

$80.4 Rp 1.4M

$494 ₡221.6K

-83.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,325 Rp 149.8M

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-29.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.73 Rp 769.2K

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-20.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.93 Rp 484.8K

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-51.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$63.8 Rp 1.1M

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-18.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.4 Rp 1.3M

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-9.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$206 Rp 3.7M

$788 ₡353.4K

-73.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$154 Rp 2.8M

$794 ₡356.2K

-80.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$494 Rp 8.9M

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-87.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$391 Rp 7.0M

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-72.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,124 Rp 20.2M

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-83.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$706 Rp 12.7M

$1,224 ₡549.0K

-42.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$165 Rp 3.0M

$864 ₡387.3K

-80.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.46

8.62

9.74%

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

Last update for Padang: October 13, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Padang

$192 31%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 83.5% $160

Accommodation & Living

Padang

$154 24.8%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 417% $641

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Padang

$94 15.1%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 98.6% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Padang

$93 14.9%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 29.6% $27

Eating Out

Padang

$60 9.7%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 254% $152

Sport & Entertainment

Padang

$25 4%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 253% $63

Getting Around

Padang

$3.4 * 0.6%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 2447% $84

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $206 in Padang 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 423% 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 $16.00 in Padang versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $192 vs $352 – making Padang the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Padang

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

13:09 1:09 PM

00:09 12:09 AM

13 h behind Padang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,000,096

4,912

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 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 IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Padang Nosara 18,810 km ≈ 24 h nonstop flight

From you

Padang
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

Padang vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $620 in Padang, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 197% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $930 per month in Padang 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 Padang, 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 $16.00 in Padang 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 84% 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 Padang, where all-in costs run around $620, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Padang 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 $620 in Padang 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 Padang. 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.