Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Portlaoise and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,347 in Portlaoise, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Portlaoise
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Portlaoise Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Portlaoise

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,347

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,347 per month in Portlaoise vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Portlaoise $2,347
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,746 per month in Portlaoise vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Portlaoise $3,746
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $5,145 per month in Portlaoise vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Portlaoise $5,145
Nosara $3,818

Portlaoise costs about 28% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Portlaoise and Nosara sit above the global median – Portlaoise by 74%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.70 €20.19

$12.35 ₡5,539

83.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.5 €69.8

$61.2 ₡27.4K

28.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.72 €11.32

$7.52 ₡3,373

69.15%

Cappuccino

$4.40 €3.91

$4.41 ₡1,978

-0.23%

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

$2.50 €2.22

$1.74 ₡780

43.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.31 ₡587

29.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.60 €5.87

$3.28 ₡1,471

101.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.12 €5.44

$4.47 ₡2,004

36.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 €1.52

$1.56 ₡701

9.62%

White Bread (500g)

$2.25 €2.00

$3.02 ₡1,355

-25.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.51 ₡1,125

-25.90%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$3.57 ₡1,603

29.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.04 €12.49

$7.43 ₡3,333

88.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.88 €11.46

$10.52 ₡4,717

22.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.74 €14.89

$13.97 ₡6,265

19.83%

Apples (1kg)

$3.32 €2.95

$2.35 ₡1,052

41.28%

Banana (1kg)

$2.94 €2.62

$1.61 ₡720

82.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.26 €2.90

$4.80 ₡2,152

-32.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.86 €4.32

$1.61 ₡724

201.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.32 €2.07

$3.80 ₡1,703

-38.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 €1.54

$3.69 ₡1,657

-53.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.13 ₡507

22.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.66 ₡1,191

-21.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.38 €18.13

$5.18 ₡2,321

293.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.49 €12.00

$19.88 ₡8,916

-32.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.10 €3.64

$2.90 ₡1,300

41.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.61 €3.21

$3.63 ₡1,626

-0.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.66 €4.14

$1.12 ₡504

316.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.08 €39.21

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-39.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.23 €4.65

$2.14 ₡958

144.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.57 ₡703

-1.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.30 €29.62

$8.52 ₡3,823

290.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.52 ₡682

33.55%

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

$38.8K €34.5K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

79.68%

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

$38.0K €33.8K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

10.23%

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

$239 €212

$96.3 ₡43.2K

147.91%

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

$21.79 €19.38

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-39.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.6 €49.41

$53.6 ₡24.0K

3.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.3 €49.22

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-22.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$13.45 €11.96

$7.89 ₡3,539

70.47%

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

$1,072 €953

$494 ₡221.6K

116.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,427 €4,827

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-54.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$94.5 €84.0

$53.9 ₡24.2K

75.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.66 €37.95

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-23.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 €96.3

$77.9 ₡34.9K

38.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$79.6 ₡35.7K

52.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,229 €1,093

$788 ₡353.4K

55.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$984 €875

$794 ₡356.2K

23.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,264 €2,014

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-42.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,151 €1,913

$1,419 ₡636.5K

51.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,785 €2,477

$864 ₡387.3K

222.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.5

8.62

-59.40%

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

Last update for Portlaoise: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Portlaoise

$984 41.9%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 19.3% $190

Groceries & Markets

Portlaoise

$390 16.6%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 9.6% $37

Eating Out

Portlaoise

$335 14.3%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 36.7% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Portlaoise

$316 13.5%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 41.2% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Portlaoise

$165 7%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 27.2% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Portlaoise

$82 3.5%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 6.3% $5.1

Getting Around

Portlaoise

$76 3.2%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 15.1% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,229 in Portlaoise 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 222% higher in Portlaoise, 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 $78.0 in Portlaoise versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $390 vs $352 – making Nosara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Portlaoise

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

14:29 2:29 PM

07:29 7:29 AM

7 h behind Portlaoise

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

23,494

4,912

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Portlaoise Nosara 8,340 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Portlaoise
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

Portlaoise vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,347 in Portlaoise, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 28% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,521 per month in Portlaoise 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 65% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $1,072 per month in Portlaoise 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 Portlaoise at $2,347. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Portlaoise 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 $2,347 in Portlaoise. 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, Portlaoise makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.