Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Semarang and Guanacaste

For one person, living is cheaper in Semarang: $593 a month against $1,534 in Guanacaste, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Semarang
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Semarang Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Guanacaste
Learn more

Guanacaste Living Index

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Semarang

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$593

/mo nomad

Guanacaste

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,534

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Semarang and in Guanacaste

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Semarang and in Guanacaste actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $593 per month in Semarang vs $1,534 in Guanacaste, rent included.

Semarang $593
Guanacaste $1,534

A couple spends around $938 per month in Semarang vs $2,421 in Guanacaste, rent included.

Semarang $938
Guanacaste $2,421

A family of three spends $1,282 per month in Semarang vs $3,307 in Guanacaste, rent included.

Semarang $1,282
Guanacaste $3,307

Semarang is about 61% cheaper than Guanacaste, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Semarang sits 56% below the global median, while Guanacaste is 13% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.34 Rp 24.4K

$10.77 ₡4,860

-87.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$10.53 Rp 191.3K

$47.69 ₡21.5K

-77.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.04 Rp 55.3K

$11.68 ₡5,270

-73.97%

Cappuccino

$1.28 Rp 23.2K

$4.44 ₡2,003

-71.17%

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

$0.43 Rp 7,808

$2.70 ₡1,220

-84.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 Rp 2,847

$1.93 ₡871

-91.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.64 Rp 29.8K

$3.10 ₡1,398

-47.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 Rp 59.1K

$4.47 ₡2,019

-27.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 Rp 19.0K

$2.04 ₡921

-48.53%

White Bread (500g)

$0.92 Rp 16.7K

$3.19 ₡1,439

-71.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.79 Rp 14.4K

$2.42 ₡1,091

-67.36%

Eggs

$1.18 Rp 21.4K

$3.59 ₡1,618

-67.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.86 Rp 70.2K

$5.63 ₡2,542

-31.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.33 Rp 42.4K

$4.30 ₡1,942

-45.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.55 Rp 137.3K

$11.09 ₡5,005

-31.92%

Apples (1kg)

$1.96 Rp 35.7K

$2.68 ₡1,210

-26.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 Rp 23.3K

$1.57 ₡708

-18.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.8K

$4.40 ₡1,988

-59.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.47 Rp 26.7K

$1.53 ₡689

-3.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 Rp 23.3K

$3.86 ₡1,744

-66.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 Rp 34.3K

$2.25 ₡1,017

-16.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 Rp 17.0K

$0.90 ₡406

3.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 Rp 7,359

$3.07 ₡1,385

-86.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.87 Rp 34.1K

$4.34 ₡1,958

-56.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$25.05 Rp 455.2K

$20.25 ₡9,140

23.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 Rp 29.8K

$2.80 ₡1,261

-41.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 Rp 35.4K

$2.66 ₡1,202

-26.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 Rp 3,816

$1.29 ₡584

-83.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.93 Rp 253.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.50 Rp 9,128

$2.50 ₡1,128

-80.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 Rp 5,331

$1.57 ₡706

-81.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.69 Rp 48.8K

$8.85 ₡3,996

-69.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.77 Rp 14.0K

$1.57 ₡709

-50.96%

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

$24.5K Rp 446.0M

$33.7K ₡15.2M

-27.20%

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

$32.2K Rp 585.5M

$41.3K ₡18.6M

-21.92%

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

$86.1 Rp 1.6M

$93.5 ₡42.2K

-7.90%

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

$2.67 Rp 48.4K

$36.18 ₡16.3K

-92.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.96 Rp 344.7K

$32.69 ₡14.7K

-42.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$20.30 Rp 368.9K

$66.5 ₡30.0K

-69.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.49 Rp 81.5K

Cinema Ticket

$2.25 Rp 40.9K

$7.85 ₡3,542

-71.34%

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

$49.33 Rp 896.6K

$968 ₡436.8K

-94.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,076 Rp 37.7M

$17.5K ₡7.9M

-88.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$34.61 Rp 629.1K

$66.5 ₡30.0K

-47.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.31 Rp 532.7K

$44.53 ₡20.1K

-34.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$56.4 Rp 1.0M

$86.6 ₡39.1K

-34.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$38.07 Rp 691.9K

$78.2 ₡35.3K

-51.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$226 Rp 4.1M

$795 ₡358.9K

-71.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$136 Rp 2.5M

$620 ₡279.6K

-77.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$477 Rp 8.7M

$1,899 ₡856.7K

-74.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$380 Rp 6.9M

$1,279 ₡577.2K

-70.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,223 Rp 22.2M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$833 Rp 15.1M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$186 Rp 3.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.82

8.62

2.32%

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

Last update for Semarang: October 24, 2026

Last update for Guanacaste: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Semarang

$184 31%

Guanacaste

$312 20.4% 69.9% $129

Accommodation & Living

Semarang

$136 23%

Guanacaste

$620 40.4% 354% $483

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Semarang

$108 18.2%

Guanacaste

$162 10.6% 50.7% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Semarang

$71 12%

Guanacaste

$124 8.1% 74.1% $53

Eating Out

Semarang

$52 8.8%

Guanacaste

$217 14.2% 316% $165

Sport & Entertainment

Semarang

$25 4.2%

Guanacaste

$82 5.4% 231% $57

Getting Around

Semarang

$17 2.8%

Guanacaste

$16 * 1% 7.4% $1.2

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $226 in Semarang versus $795 in Guanacaste. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $11 in Semarang versus $48 in Guanacaste. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $184 vs $312 – making Semarang the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Semarang

🇨🇷 Guanacaste

🕒 Local time

04:35 4:35 AM

15:35 3:35 PM

13 h behind Semarang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,555,984

1,823

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18,175 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20,233 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Semarang Guanacaste 18,240 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Semarang
Guanacaste

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

Semarang vs Guanacaste: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Guanacaste is pricier by about 159%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $890 per month in Semarang and $2,301 in Guanacaste. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Semarang, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $226 there versus $795 in Guanacaste.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $593 in Semarang and $1,534 in Guanacaste. That makes Semarang about 61% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $49 per month in Semarang and $968 in Guanacaste. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Semarang, where all-in costs run around $593, than in Guanacaste at $1,534. In Semarang it covers expenses comfortably, while in Guanacaste it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Semarang – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.