Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santo Andre and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Santo Andre: $1,003 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Santo Andre
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Santo Andre Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Santo Andre

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,003

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,003 per month in Santo Andre vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Santo Andre $1,003
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $1,619 per month in Santo Andre vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Santo Andre $1,619
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $2,234 per month in Santo Andre vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Santo Andre $2,234
Nosara $3,818

Santo Andre is about 45% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Santo Andre sits 26% below the global median, while Nosara is 36% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.09 R$45.62

$12.35 ₡5,547

-26.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.1 R$256

$61.2 ₡27.5K

-16.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.11 R$45.68

$7.52 ₡3,377

21.14%

Cappuccino

$2.57 R$12.91

$4.41 ₡1,981

-41.72%

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

$1.39 R$6.96

$1.74 ₡781

-20.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R$4.72

$1.31 ₡588

-28.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.38 R$11.92

$3.28 ₡1,473

-27.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.03 R$20.21

$4.47 ₡2,007

-9.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 R$5.32

$1.56 ₡702

-32.05%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 R$9.60

$3.02 ₡1,357

-36.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 R$6.95

$2.51 ₡1,127

-44.62%

Eggs

$2.51 R$12.58

$3.57 ₡1,605

-29.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.00 R$55.2

$7.43 ₡3,338

48.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.82 R$24.20

$10.52 ₡4,724

-54.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.54 R$52.9

$13.97 ₡6,274

-24.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.37 R$11.91

$2.35 ₡1,054

0.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 R$8.32

$1.61 ₡721

3.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.52 R$7.63

$4.80 ₡2,155

-68.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.62 R$8.15

$1.61 ₡725

0.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 R$6.41

$3.80 ₡1,706

-66.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.25 R$6.28

$3.69 ₡1,659

-66.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.98 R$4.93

$1.13 ₡507

-13.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.86 R$4.34

$2.66 ₡1,193

-67.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.53 R$12.71

$5.18 ₡2,324

-51.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.99 R$40.08

$19.88 ₡8,929

-59.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 R$7.59

$2.90 ₡1,302

-47.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 R$12.95

$3.63 ₡1,628

-28.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.03 R$5.15

$1.12 ₡505

-8.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.72 R$139

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-61.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.23 R$6.18

$2.14 ₡959

-42.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 R$5.13

$1.57 ₡704

-35.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.45 R$42.38

$8.52 ₡3,828

-0.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 R$6.51

$1.52 ₡683

-14.47%

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

$23.9K R$119.9K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

10.60%

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

$32.6K R$163.5K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-5.60%

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

$67.2 R$337

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-30.18%

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

$15.08 R$75.7

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-57.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.57 R$113

$53.6 ₡24.1K

-57.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.32 R$127

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-64.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.89 R$140

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-20.11%

Cinema Ticket

$7.93 R$39.77

$7.89 ₡3,544

0.51%

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

$545 R$2,733

$494 ₡221.9K

10.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K R$83.3K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

40.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.1 R$332

$53.9 ₡24.2K

22.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 R$286

$55.4 ₡24.9K

2.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.4 R$459

$77.9 ₡35.0K

17.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.5 R$404

$79.6 ₡35.8K

1.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$404 R$2,025

$788 ₡353.9K

-48.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$307 R$1,539

$794 ₡356.7K

-61.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$674 R$3,380

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-82.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$548 R$2,750

$1,419 ₡637.4K

-61.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,748 R$8,771

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-74.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,174 R$5,889

$1,224 ₡549.8K

-4.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$554 R$2,781

$864 ₡387.8K

-35.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.81

8.62

25.41%

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

Last update for Santo Andre: 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

Santo Andre

$307 30.6%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 159% $488

Groceries & Markets

Santo Andre

$219 21.9%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 60.6% $133

Eating Out

Santo Andre

$160 16%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 32.3% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Santo Andre

$133 13.2%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 9.6% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santo Andre

$105 10.5%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 77.1% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Santo Andre

$41 4.1%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 112% $46

Getting Around

Santo Andre

$38 3.8%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 128% $49

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $404 in Santo Andre 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 56% higher in Nosara, 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 $51.0 in Santo Andre versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $219 vs $352 – making Santo Andre the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Santo Andre

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

15:33 3:33 PM

12:33 12:33 PM

3 h behind Santo Andre

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

748,919

4,912

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.199 USD

1 BRL = 0.178 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 5.02 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.62 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 449 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Santo Andre Nosara 5,660 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Santo Andre
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

Santo Andre vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,003 in Santo Andre, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 83% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,505 per month in Santo Andre 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 Santo Andre, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 162% less in Santo Andre. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $545 per month in Santo Andre and $494 in Nosara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Santo Andre, where all-in costs run around $1,003, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Santo Andre 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 $1,003 in Santo Andre 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 Santo Andre. 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.