Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Puntarenas and Da Nang

For one person, living is cheaper in Da Nang: $889 a month against $1,019 in Puntarenas, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. The total is higher in Puntarenas despite lower rent and utilities.

49

Cost of Living Index in Puntarenas
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Puntarenas Living Index
42

Cost of Living Index in Da Nang
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Da Nang Living Index

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Puntarenas

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,019

/mo nomad

Da Nang

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$889

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Puntarenas and in Da Nang

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Puntarenas and in Da Nang actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,019 per month in Puntarenas vs $889 in Da Nang, rent included.

Puntarenas $1,019
Da Nang $889

A couple spends around $1,582 per month in Puntarenas vs $1,426 in Da Nang, rent included.

Puntarenas $1,582
Da Nang $1,426

A family of three spends $2,145 per month in Puntarenas vs $1,963 in Da Nang, rent included.

Puntarenas $2,145
Da Nang $1,963

Puntarenas costs about 15% more than Da Nang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Puntarenas and Da Nang are more affordable than the global median – Puntarenas 25% lower, Da Nang 35% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.14 ₡3,671

$2.17 ₫56.1K

275.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.71 ₡17.9K

$19.53 ₫504.6K

103.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.67 ₡4,363

$4.53 ₫117.1K

113.47%

Cappuccino

$4.42 ₡1,995

$1.64 ₫42.4K

169.51%

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

$2.61 ₡1,177

$0.60 ₫15.6K

335.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₡841

$0.34 ₫8,912

447.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.24 ₡1,464

$1.33 ₫34.4K

143.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.52 ₡2,039

$2.36 ₫61.0K

91.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.04 ₡919

$1.60 ₫41.2K

27.50%

White Bread (500g)

$3.18 ₡1,435

$1.20 ₫31.1K

165.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 ₡872

$1.05 ₫27.1K

83.81%

Eggs

$2.92 ₡1,317

$1.52 ₫39.4K

92.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.13 ₡2,767

$12.82 ₫331.1K

-52.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.48 ₡3,376

$4.17 ₫107.6K

79.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.50 ₡5,639

$9.33 ₫240.9K

33.98%

Apples (1kg)

$3.88 ₡1,752

$2.60 ₫67.3K

49.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 ₡672

$1.21 ₫31.4K

23.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₡1,064

$1.28 ₫33.1K

84.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.44 ₡1,099

$1.57 ₫40.6K

55.41%

Potato (1kg)

$2.44 ₡1,102

$1.20 ₫31.0K

103.33%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 ₡1,084

$1.31 ₫33.9K

83.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 ₡404

$1.04 ₫26.9K

-14.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 ₡1,246

$0.49 ₫12.7K

463.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.94 ₡2,227

$1.51 ₫39.0K

227.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.25 ₡3,723

$7.97 ₫205.9K

3.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 ₡798

$0.93 ₫24.0K

90.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 ₡1,039

$2.18 ₫56.4K

5.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.03 ₡464

$0.30 ₫7,702

243.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.31 ₫162.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.21 ₡998

$1.04 ₫26.8K

112.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 ₡508

$0.57 ₫14.6K

98.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.49 ₡3,832

$19.27 ₫497.7K

-55.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡687

$0.91 ₫23.5K

67.03%

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

$34.2K ₡15.4M

$30.8K ₫796.3M

10.99%

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

$18.6K ₡8.4M

$28.4K ₫733.1M

-34.28%

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

$54.5 ₡24.6K

$78.5 ₫2.0M

-30.56%

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

$27.98 ₡12.6K

$6.35 ₫164.1K

340.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.15 ₡18.6K

$8.33 ₫215.2K

394.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.11 ₡11.8K

$27.08 ₫699.4K

-3.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.32 ₫137.4K

Cinema Ticket

$7.73 ₡3,489

$3.37 ₫87.0K

129.38%

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

$1,002 ₡451.9K

$423 ₫10.9M

136.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.4K ₡7.9M

$15.1K ₫390.0M

15.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$26.17 ₡11.8K

$45.19 ₫1.2M

-42.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.89 ₡8,074

$27.75 ₫717.0K

-35.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 ₡57.9K

$101 ₫2.6M

27.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$53.3 ₡24.1K

$82.8 ₫2.1M

-35.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$358 ₡161.7K

$553 ₫14.3M

-35.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$256 ₡115.6K

$369 ₫9.5M

-30.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$530 ₡239.2K

$1,228 ₫31.7M

-56.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$414 ₡186.6K

$821 ₫21.2M

-49.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$986 ₡445.1K

$3,858 ₫99.6M

-74.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$661 ₡298.3K

$1,877 ₫48.5M

-64.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$862 ₡389.1K

$362 ₫9.4M

137.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

10.72

-19.59%

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

Last update for Puntarenas: October 24, 2026

Last update for Da Nang: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Puntarenas

$294 28.8%

Da Nang

$200 22.5% 31.9% $94

Accommodation & Living

Puntarenas

$256 25.1%

Da Nang

$369 41.5% 44.1% $113

Eating Out

Puntarenas

$190 18.7%

Da Nang

$66 7.4% 65.4% $124

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Puntarenas

$124 12.1%

Da Nang

$93 10.5% 24.6% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Puntarenas

$102 10%

Da Nang

$115 13% 13.6% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Puntarenas

$42 4.1%

Da Nang

$34 3.8% 18.7% $7.8

Getting Around

Puntarenas

$12 * 1.2%

Da Nang

$11 1.3% 4.9% $0.6

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $358 in Puntarenas versus $553 in Da Nang. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Puntarenas are about 2.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $40 in Puntarenas versus $20 in Da Nang. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $294 vs $200 – making Da Nang the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Puntarenas

🇻🇳 Da Nang

🕒 Local time

17:30 5:30 PM

06:30 6:30 AM

13 h ahead of Puntarenas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

70,000

1,245,200

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.87 USD

100,000 VND = 3.48 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 25,832 VND (100,000 VND = 3.87 USD). 1 EUR = 28,757 VND (100,000 VND = 3.48 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Puntarenas Da Nang 16,780 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Puntarenas
Da Nang

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

Puntarenas vs Da Nang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,019 in Puntarenas, $889 in Da Nang – Da Nang comes out roughly 13% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,528 per month in Puntarenas and $1,333 in Da Nang. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Puntarenas, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $358 there versus $553 in Da Nang.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,019 in Puntarenas and $889 in Da Nang. That makes Da Nang about 13% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $1,002 per month in Puntarenas and $423 in Da Nang. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,019 in Puntarenas and $889 in Da Nang, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Da Nang has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $889 in Da Nang to $1,019 in Puntarenas. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Da Nang. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Puntarenas makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.