Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Cruz and Nosara Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Cruz and Nosara

😐 Solo nomad: Santa Cruz is 8.4% more expensive than Nosara without rent, and 7.3% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Santa Cruz is 17.5% cheaper than Nosara without rent, and 7.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.11 ₡5,562

$10.9 ₡5,457

1.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.7 ₡29.4K

$60.5 ₡30.3K

-2.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.68 ₡4,844

$6.9 ₡3,453

40.29%

Cappuccino

$3.94 ₡1,972

$3.89 ₡1,949

1.29%

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

$2.07 ₡1,036

$1.54 ₡773

34.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 ₡823

$1.17 ₡587

40.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.02 ₡1,510

$3.06 ₡1,530

-1.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 ₡2,292

$4.75 ₡2,379

-3.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.99 ₡998

$1.43 ₡715

39.16%

White Bread (500g)

$2.85 ₡1,427

$2.89 ₡1,447

-1.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.21 ₡1,107

$2.23 ₡1,117

-0.90%

Eggs

$2.95 ₡1,475

$3.01 ₡1,508

-1.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.69 ₡4,850

$6.48 ₡3,242

49.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.05 ₡4,531

$9.36 ₡4,687

-3.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.55 ₡6,783

$13.41 ₡6,715

1.04%

Apples (1kg)

$4.6 ₡2,301

$2.1 ₡1,053

119.05%

Banana (1kg)

$0.98 ₡489

$1.43 ₡716

-31.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.38 ₡2,194

$4.19 ₡2,096

4.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.58 ₡1,791

$1.47 ₡736

143.54%

Potato (1kg)

$3.55 ₡1,777

$3.51 ₡1,759

1.14%

Onion (1kg)

$3.09 ₡1,546

$3.23 ₡1,616

-4.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1 ₡502

$0.96 ₡482

4.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.8 ₡1,403

$2.31 ₡1,158

21.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.22 ₡2,615

$4.49 ₡2,248

16.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.14 ₡9,581

$18.93 ₡9,475

1.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.5 ₡1,250

$2.44 ₡1,223

2.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.94 ₡1,469

$2.8 ₡1,399

5.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.03 ₡517

$1.04 ₡518

-0.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.5 ₡33.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.81 ₡909

$1.85 ₡925

-2.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 ₡889

$1.77 ₡884

0.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.75 ₡3,879

$7.85 ₡3,931

-1.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₡734

$1.36 ₡679

8.09%

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

$38K ₡19M

$32.3K ₡16.2M

17.45%

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

$33.2K ₡16.6M

$32.7K ₡16.3M

1.62%

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

$95.2 ₡47.7K

$95 ₡47.6K

0.23%

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

$26.25 ₡13.1K

$26.15 ₡13.1K

0.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 ₡26.8K

$48.48 ₡24.3K

10.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 ₡29K

$55.8 ₡27.9K

3.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.63 ₡11.8K

$23.73 ₡11.9K

-0.42%

Cinema Ticket

$5.9 ₡2,955

$10 ₡5,008

-41.00%

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

$575 ₡288K

$448 ₡224.4K

28.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K ₡6.3M

$10.5K ₡5.2M

20.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.1 ₡31.6K

$49.72 ₡24.9K

26.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.1 ₡26.1K

$50.5 ₡25.3K

2.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 ₡63.3K

$70.6 ₡35.3K

79.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 ₡52.8K

$71.1 ₡35.6K

48.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$763 ₡381.8K

$751 ₡376K

1.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$586 ₡293.3K

$757 ₡378.9K

-22.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,494 ₡748K

$1,505 ₡753.2K

-0.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$978 ₡489.7K

$1,303 ₡652.3K

-24.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,322 ₡3.2M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,079 ₡540.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$805 ₡402.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.17

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

Last update for Santa Cruz: October 27, 2025

Last update for Nosara: October 27, 2025

Similar cities

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

Rome

🇮🇹 Italy

Taipei

🇹🇼 Taiwan

Riga

🇱🇻 Latvia

Thessaloniki

🇬🇷 Greece

Ljubljana

🇸🇮 Slovenia