Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Isabel and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Isabel: $1,300 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Nosara outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

63

Cost of Living Index in Santa Isabel
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Santa Isabel Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Santa Isabel

🇵🇷 Puerto Rico

$1,300

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,300 per month in Santa Isabel vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Santa Isabel $1,300
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $2,047 per month in Santa Isabel vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Santa Isabel $2,047
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $2,793 per month in Santa Isabel vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Santa Isabel $2,793
Nosara $3,818

Santa Isabel is about 29% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Santa Isabel sits 4% below the global median, while Nosara is 36% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.81 $18.81

$12.35 ₡5,539

52.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.3 $83.3

$61.2 ₡27.4K

36.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.95 $8.95

$7.52 ₡3,373

19.02%

Cappuccino

$3.55 $3.55

$4.41 ₡1,978

-19.50%

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

$1.91 $1.91

$1.74 ₡780

9.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.50 $1.50

$1.31 ₡587

14.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 $2.96

$3.28 ₡1,471

-9.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.09 $5.09

$4.47 ₡2,004

13.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 $1.31

$1.56 ₡701

-16.03%

White Bread (500g)

$3.40 $3.40

$3.02 ₡1,355

12.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 $2.31

$2.51 ₡1,125

-7.97%

Eggs

$6.33 $6.33

$3.57 ₡1,603

77.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.63 $12.63

$7.43 ₡3,333

69.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.52 $9.52

$10.52 ₡4,717

-9.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.13 $13.13

$13.97 ₡6,265

-6.01%

Apples (1kg)

$4.95 $4.95

$2.35 ₡1,052

110.64%

Banana (1kg)

$2.62 $2.62

$1.61 ₡720

62.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.83 $4.83

$4.80 ₡2,152

0.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.95 $4.95

$1.61 ₡724

207.45%

Potato (1kg)

$3.73 $3.73

$3.80 ₡1,703

-1.84%

Onion (1kg)

$4.05 $4.05

$3.69 ₡1,657

9.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.54 $3.54

$1.13 ₡507

213.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 $1.66

$2.66 ₡1,191

-37.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.99 $11.99

$5.18 ₡2,321

131.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.63 $15.63

$19.88 ₡8,916

-21.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.98 $2.98

$2.90 ₡1,300

2.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.98 $3.98

$3.63 ₡1,626

9.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.44 $2.44

$2.14 ₡958

14.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.66 $0.66

$1.57 ₡703

-57.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.77 $40.77

$8.52 ₡3,823

378.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 $1.05

$1.52 ₡682

-30.92%

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

$39.5K $39.5K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

82.66%

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

$28.2K $28.2K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-18.29%

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

$326 $326

$96.3 ₡43.2K

238.78%

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

$68.8 $68.8

$35.89 ₡16.1K

91.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.0 $69.0

$53.6 ₡24.0K

28.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$10.32 $10.32

$7.89 ₡3,539

30.80%

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

$830 $830

$494 ₡221.6K

67.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K $12.6K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

5.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.0 $56.0

$53.9 ₡24.2K

3.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.4 $61.4

$55.4 ₡24.8K

10.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 $109

$77.9 ₡34.9K

40.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 $113

$79.6 ₡35.7K

42.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

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)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.55

8.62

-24.01%

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

Last update for Santa Isabel: October 11, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Isabel

$464 35.7%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 60% $278

Groceries & Markets

Santa Isabel

$399 30.7%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 11.6% $46

Eating Out

Santa Isabel

$259 19.9%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 18.1% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Isabel

$153 11.8%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 21.5% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Isabel

$21 * 1.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 324% $67

Getting Around

Santa Isabel

$5.8 * 0.4%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 1415% $81

Accommodation & Living

Santa Isabel

- * 0%

Nosara

$794 43.2%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $83.0 in Santa Isabel versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $399 vs $352 – making Nosara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇷 Santa Isabel

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

15:07 3:07 PM

13:07 1:07 PM

2 h behind Santa Isabel

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

23,000

4,912

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.889 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

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

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).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Santa Isabel Nosara 2,260 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Santa Isabel
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

Santa Isabel vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,300 in Santa Isabel, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 41% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,951 per month in Santa Isabel and $2,758 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $83.0 in Santa Isabel and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 13% cheaper in Nosara – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Santa Isabel, where all-in costs run around $1,300, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Santa Isabel it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara 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 $1,300 in Santa Isabel to $1,839 in Nosara. 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 Santa Isabel. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Nosara makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.