Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Palau and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,837 a month against $1,985 in Palau, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. The total is higher in Palau despite lower rent and utilities.

96

Cost of Living Index in Palau
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Palau Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

Jump to prices

🇵🇼 Palau

$1,985

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Palau is 59.5% more expensive than Nosara without rent, and 8% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Palau is 5.3% more expensive than Nosara without rent, and 8.5% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.61 $13.61

$12.22 ₡5,509

11.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.1 $75.1

$60.2 ₡27.1K

24.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.94 $9.94

$7.54 ₡3,399

31.83%

Cappuccino

$4.04 $4.04

$4.31 ₡1,941

-6.26%

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

$1.40 $1.40

$1.72 ₡773

-18.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 $1.05

$1.35 ₡608

-22.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.53 $1.53

$3.24 ₡1,459

-52.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 $2.14

$4.48 ₡2,018

-52.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.59 $2.59

$1.57 ₡707

64.97%

White Bread (500g)

$3.05 $3.05

$3.17 ₡1,429

-3.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.26 $0.26

$2.42 ₡1,091

-89.26%

Eggs

$6.35 $6.35

$3.57 ₡1,609

77.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.95 $9.95

$7.43 ₡3,349

33.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.65 $13.65

$10.42 ₡4,697

31.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.59 $19.59

$13.66 ₡6,156

43.41%

Apples (1kg)

$5.37 $5.37

$2.32 ₡1,044

131.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.26 $2.26

$1.61 ₡728

40.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.57 $5.57

$4.74 ₡2,138

17.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$16.51 $16.51

$1.66 ₡747

894.58%

Potato (1kg)

$4.70 $4.70

$3.72 ₡1,679

26.34%

Onion (1kg)

$3.40 $3.40

$3.57 ₡1,611

-4.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.98 $1.98

$1.10 ₡497

80.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 $1.74

$2.55 ₡1,149

-31.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.91 $14.91

$4.95 ₡2,232

201.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.37 $22.37

$20.01 ₡9,020

11.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.49 $3.49

$2.79 ₡1,256

25.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 $3.40

$3.53 ₡1,589

-3.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₡537

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.1 ₡32.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.47 $2.47

$2.24 ₡1,011

10.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.86 $5.86

$8.86 ₡3,993

-33.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.92 $1.92

$1.57 ₡708

22.29%

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

$17.8K $17.8K

$21.8K ₡9.8M

-18.45%

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

$15.2K $15.2K

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-56.21%

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

$170 $170

$93.5 ₡42.1K

82.25%

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

$52.3 $52.3

$35.11 ₡15.8K

49.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$198 $198

$51.5 ₡23.2K

283.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$79.3 $79.3

$71.4 ₡32.2K

11.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.44 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$7.84 ₡3,535

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

$255 $255

$490 ₡220.7K

-47.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.0 $84.0

$53.5 ₡24.1K

56.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.4 $65.4

$55.8 ₡25.1K

17.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$195 $195

$79.3 ₡35.7K

145.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$195 $195

$78.9 ₡35.6K

146.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 $737

$786 ₡354.3K

-6.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$530 $530

$780 ₡351.6K

-32.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,156 $2,156

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-44.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$934 $934

$1,407 ₡634.4K

-33.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,972 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,201 ₡541.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$773 $773

$876 ₡395.0K

-11.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

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

Last update for Palau: 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

Palau

$530 26.7%

Nosara

$780 43% 47.1% $250

Groceries & Markets

Palau

$504 25.4%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 30.6% $154

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Palau

$420 21.2%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 57.1% $240

Clothing & Footwear

Palau

$243 12.2%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 50.4% $122

Eating Out

Palau

$209 10.5%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 0.3% $0.6

Sport & Entertainment

Palau

$79 * 4%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 9.8% $7.8

Getting Around

Palau

$2.5 * 0.1%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 3416% $84

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

Good to know

🇵🇼 Palau

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

14:04 2:04 PM

23:04 11:04 PM

15 h behind Palau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,729

4,912

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 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).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Palau Nosara 15,170 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Palau
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

Palau vs other spots: cost of living compared

Cost of Living Comparison Between Palau and Nosara

CRC, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Palau

Nosara

Palau

Nosara

Palau vs other spots: cost of living compared

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