Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Gwann and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,049 in San Gwann, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

99

Cost of Living Index in San Gwann
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San Gwann Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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San Gwann

🇲🇹 Malta

$2,049

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,049 per month in San Gwann vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

San Gwann $2,049
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,115 per month in San Gwann vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

San Gwann $3,115
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $4,180 per month in San Gwann vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

San Gwann $4,180
Nosara $3,818

San Gwann costs about 11% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both San Gwann and Nosara sit above the global median – San Gwann by 52%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.52 €19.14

$12.35 ₡5,539

74.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.9 €60.4

$61.2 ₡27.4K

10.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.47 €11.98

$7.52 ₡3,373

79.12%

Cappuccino

$2.89 €2.57

$4.41 ₡1,978

-34.47%

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

$2.14 €1.90

$1.74 ₡780

22.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.07 €0.95

$1.31 ₡587

-18.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.51 €4.01

$3.28 ₡1,471

37.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 €3.88

$4.47 ₡2,004

-2.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 €1.20

$1.56 ₡701

-13.46%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 €1.25

$3.02 ₡1,355

-53.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.47 €3.08

$2.51 ₡1,125

38.25%

Eggs

$4.30 €3.83

$3.57 ₡1,603

20.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.35 €9.20

$7.43 ₡3,333

39.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.78 €10.48

$10.52 ₡4,717

11.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.77 €15.80

$13.97 ₡6,265

27.20%

Apples (1kg)

$3.84 €3.41

$2.35 ₡1,052

63.40%

Banana (1kg)

$2.76 €2.46

$1.61 ₡720

71.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.86 €3.43

$4.80 ₡2,152

-19.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.81 €3.39

$1.61 ₡724

136.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.87 €1.67

$3.80 ₡1,703

-50.79%

Onion (1kg)

$2.29 €2.03

$3.69 ₡1,657

-37.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.13 ₡507

92.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 €1.37

$2.66 ₡1,191

-41.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.12 €5.44

$5.18 ₡2,321

18.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.51 €4.90

$19.88 ₡8,916

-72.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 €2.15

$2.90 ₡1,300

-16.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 €2.07

$3.63 ₡1,626

-35.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 €2.01

$1.12 ₡504

101.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$14.55 €12.94

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-79.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.87 €3.44

$2.14 ₡958

80.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.57 ₡703

15.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.51 €28.91

$8.52 ₡3,823

281.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 €1.35

$1.52 ₡682

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

$27.9K €24.8K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

28.89%

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

$34.1K €30.3K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-1.33%

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

$113 €100

$96.3 ₡43.2K

17.13%

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

$31.71 €28.20

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-11.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.81 €30.96

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-35.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.6 €50.3

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-20.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.93 €16.84

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-45.77%

Cinema Ticket

$10.09 €8.98

$7.89 ₡3,539

27.88%

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

$272 €242

$494 ₡221.6K

-44.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.2K €9,932

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-5.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.9 €48.85

$53.9 ₡24.2K

1.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.5 €53.8

$55.4 ₡24.8K

9.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.4 €73.3

$77.9 ₡34.9K

5.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €114

$79.6 ₡35.7K

61.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$788 ₡353.4K

51.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$981 €873

$794 ₡356.2K

23.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,281 €2,029

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-42.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,663 €1,479

$1,419 ₡636.5K

17.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,627 €5,005

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-18.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,776 €2,469

$1,224 ₡549.0K

126.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,741 €1,548

$864 ₡387.3K

101.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.05

8.62

-53.02%

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

Last update for San Gwann: October 11, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Gwann

$981 47.9%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 19.1% $187

Groceries & Markets

San Gwann

$337 16.5%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 4.4% $15

Eating Out

San Gwann

$291 14.2%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 27.3% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Gwann

$179 8.8%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 3.6% $6.5

Clothing & Footwear

San Gwann

$147 7.2%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 18.1% $27

Sport & Entertainment

San Gwann

$77 3.8%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 13.8% $11

Getting Around

San Gwann

$37 1.8%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 138% $51

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,197 in San Gwann 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 102% higher in San Gwann, 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 $68.0 in San Gwann versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $337 in San Gwann vs $352 in Nosara – so San Gwann wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇹 San Gwann

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

11:26 11:26 AM

03:26 3:26 AM

8 h behind San Gwann

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,523

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

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Highest

Between locations

San Gwann Nosara 10,250 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

San Gwann
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

San Gwann vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,049 in San Gwann, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 11% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,074 per month in San Gwann 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 399% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $272 per month in San Gwann 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 San Gwann at $2,049. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in San Gwann 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 $2,049 in San Gwann. 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, San Gwann makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.