Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Retford and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,835 a month against $2,255 in Retford, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

113

Cost of Living Index in Retford
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Retford Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Retford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,255

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,255 per month in Retford vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Retford $2,255
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $3,343 per month in Retford vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Retford $3,343
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $4,432 per month in Retford vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Retford $4,432
Nosara $3,814

Retford costs about 23% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Retford and Nosara sit above the global median – Retford by 66%, Nosara by 35%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.72 £11.04

$12.34 ₡5,535

19.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.5 £49.87

$61.3 ₡27.5K

8.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.14 £5.36

$7.76 ₡3,481

-7.99%

Cappuccino

$3.88 £2.91

$4.44 ₡1,992

-12.61%

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

$1.75 £1.31

$1.79 ₡803

-2.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 £1.33

$1.29 ₡580

37.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.30 £3.22

$3.24 ₡1,451

32.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 £3.26

$4.43 ₡1,985

-2.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 £1.29

$1.55 ₡696

10.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.83 £1.38

$3.08 ₡1,380

-40.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.64 £1.23

$2.53 ₡1,133

-35.18%

Eggs

$4.66 £3.50

$3.45 ₡1,546

35.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.18 £8.39

$7.32 ₡3,284

52.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.16 £7.62

$10.24 ₡4,594

-0.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.50 £9.38

$14.10 ₡6,326

-11.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 £1.56

$2.29 ₡1,027

-8.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.80 £1.35

$1.64 ₡737

9.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 £1.32

$4.79 ₡2,149

-63.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$1.64 ₡735

6.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 £1.11

$3.85 ₡1,727

-61.56%

Onion (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$3.75 ₡1,681

-57.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.42 £0.31

$1.09 ₡488

-61.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 £1.17

$2.59 ₡1,160

-39.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.33 £17.50

$5.12 ₡2,295

355.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.77 £5.83

$19.92 ₡8,931

-60.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 £1.27

$2.80 ₡1,255

-39.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 £1.53

$3.52 ₡1,580

-42.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.65 £2.74

$1.22 ₡549

199.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$108 £80.7

$73.9 ₡33.1K

45.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.93 £3.70

$2.17 ₡973

127.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.91 £2.93

$1.56 ₡698

150.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.85 £21.64

$8.67 ₡3,886

232.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 £1.57

$1.55 ₡697

34.84%

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

$40.1K £30.1K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

16.18%

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

$44.2K £33.2K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

14.08%

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

$342 £257

$94.8 ₡42.5K

260.63%

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

$27.87 £20.91

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-22.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.53 £34.91

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-12.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 £39.53

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-28.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.63 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$11.50 £8.62

$7.91 ₡3,548

45.39%

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

$1,926 £1,445

$490 ₡219.9K

292.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.9K £17.9K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

100.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.1 £63.9

$54.8 ₡24.6K

55.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.8 £45.59

$55.9 ₡25.1K

8.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 £81.4

$80.4 ₡36.0K

35.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$161 £121

$77.9 ₡34.9K

106.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,398 £1,049

$801 ₡359.1K

74.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$924 £693

$790 ₡354.1K

17.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,099 £1,575

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-47.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,675 £1,257

$1,409 ₡632.0K

18.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,059 £3,796

$7,064 ₡3.2M

-28.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,851 £2,889

$1,236 ₡554.3K

211.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,711 £1,283

$887 ₡397.6K

92.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.3

8.62

-38.52%

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

Last update for Retford: October 18, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Retford

$924 41%

Nosara

$790 43% 14.5% $134

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Retford

$416 18.5%

Nosara

$184 10% 55.8% $232

Groceries & Markets

Retford

$276 12.2%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 26.8% $74

Eating Out

Retford

$230 10.2%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 7.6% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Retford

$187 8.3%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 35.3% $66

Getting Around

Retford

$147 6.5%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 39.5% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Retford

$76 3.4%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 18.4% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,398 in Retford versus $801 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 93% higher in Retford, 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 $66.0 in Retford versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $276 in Retford vs $350 in Nosara – so Retford wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Retford

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

19:08 7:08 PM

12:08 12:08 PM

7 h behind Retford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

22,023

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Retford Nosara 8,770 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Retford
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

Retford vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,255 in Retford, $1,835 in Nosara – roughly 23% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,383 per month in Retford and $2,753 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 46% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $1,926 per month in Retford 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 $1,835, than in Retford at $2,255. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Retford 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 $1,835 in Nosara to $2,255 in Retford. 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, Retford makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.