Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Moritz and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $3,609 in St. Moritz, rent and utilities included – about $21,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

175

Cost of Living Index in St. Moritz
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St. Moritz Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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St. Moritz

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,609

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,609 per month in St. Moritz vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

St. Moritz $3,609
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $6,451 per month in St. Moritz vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

St. Moritz $6,451
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $9,292 per month in St. Moritz vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

St. Moritz $9,292
Nosara $3,818

St. Moritz costs about 96% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both St. Moritz and Nosara sit above the global median – St. Moritz by 167%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$35.22 CHF 29.01

$12.35 ₡5,539

185.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$143 CHF 118

$61.2 ₡27.4K

134.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.44 CHF 11.89

$7.52 ₡3,373

92.02%

Cappuccino

$6.14 CHF 5.05

$4.41 ₡1,978

39.23%

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

$5.49 CHF 4.52

$1.74 ₡780

215.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 CHF 3.79

$1.31 ₡587

251.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.64 CHF 7.94

$3.28 ₡1,471

193.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.07 CHF 5.00

$4.47 ₡2,004

35.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 CHF 1.48

$1.56 ₡701

14.74%

White Bread (500g)

$3.76 CHF 3.09

$3.02 ₡1,355

24.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.69 CHF 3.04

$2.51 ₡1,125

47.01%

Eggs

$7.46 CHF 6.14

$3.57 ₡1,603

108.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.32 CHF 21.68

$7.43 ₡3,333

254.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$27.45 CHF 22.61

$10.52 ₡4,717

160.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$60.5 CHF 49.86

$13.97 ₡6,265

333.36%

Apples (1kg)

$4.03 CHF 3.32

$2.35 ₡1,052

71.49%

Banana (1kg)

$2.82 CHF 2.32

$1.61 ₡720

75.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.36 CHF 2.77

$4.80 ₡2,152

-30.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.50 CHF 3.71

$1.61 ₡724

179.50%

Potato (1kg)

$2.53 CHF 2.08

$3.80 ₡1,703

-33.42%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 CHF 1.76

$3.69 ₡1,657

-42.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.41 CHF 1.99

$1.13 ₡507

113.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 CHF 1.03

$2.66 ₡1,191

-53.01%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.91 CHF 8.98

$5.18 ₡2,321

110.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 CHF 11.56

$19.88 ₡8,916

-29.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.74 CHF 2.26

$2.90 ₡1,300

-5.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.12 CHF 2.57

$3.63 ₡1,626

-14.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.77 CHF 3.10

$1.12 ₡504

236.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$92.4 CHF 76.1

$72.6 ₡32.6K

27.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.02 CHF 6.60

$2.14 ₡958

274.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.58 CHF 3.77

$1.57 ₡703

191.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$88.1 CHF 72.5

$8.52 ₡3,823

933.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.10 CHF 1.73

$1.52 ₡682

38.16%

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

$39.8K CHF 32.8K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

84.11%

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

$38.2K CHF 31.4K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

10.59%

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

$97.5 CHF 80.3

$96.3 ₡43.2K

1.20%

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

$36.42 CHF 30.00

$35.89 ₡16.1K

1.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.0 CHF 46.14

$53.6 ₡24.0K

4.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.2 CHF 60.3

$71.6 ₡32.1K

2.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$18.35 CHF 15.11

$7.89 ₡3,539

132.57%

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

$3,525 CHF 2,903

$494 ₡221.6K

613.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$42.5K CHF 35.0K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

258.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$140 CHF 115

$53.9 ₡24.2K

159.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.2 CHF 48.72

$55.4 ₡24.8K

6.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$163 CHF 134

$77.9 ₡34.9K

109.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$250 CHF 206

$79.6 ₡35.7K

214.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,799 CHF 1,481

$788 ₡353.4K

128.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,740 CHF 1,433

$794 ₡356.2K

119.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,419 CHF 4,463

$3,939 ₡1.8M

37.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,642 CHF 3,823

$1,419 ₡636.5K

227.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$12.1K CHF 9,973

$1,224 ₡549.0K

889.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,707 CHF 3,877

$864 ₡387.3K

445.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.8

8.62

-79.12%

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

Last update for St. Moritz: 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

St. Moritz

$1.7K 48.2%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 54.3% $946

Groceries & Markets

St. Moritz

$656 18.2%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 46.3% $303

Eating Out

St. Moritz

$499 13.8%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 57.6% $288

Clothing & Footwear

St. Moritz

$276 7.6%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 56.5% $156

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St. Moritz

$190 5.3%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 2.2% $4.1

Getting Around

St. Moritz

$138 3.8%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 37.1% $51

Sport & Entertainment

St. Moritz

$110 3.1%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 20.5% $23

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,799 in St. Moritz 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 445% higher in St. Moritz, 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 $143 in St. Moritz versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $656 vs $352 – making Nosara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 St. Moritz

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

02:50 2:50 AM

18:50 6:50 PM

8 h behind St. Moritz

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,000

4,912

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

St. Moritz Nosara 9,620 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

St. Moritz
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

St. Moritz vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,609 in St. Moritz, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 96% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,413 per month in St. Moritz 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 27% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $3,525 per month in St. Moritz 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 St. Moritz at $3,609. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in St. Moritz 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 $3,609 in St. Moritz. 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, St. Moritz makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.