Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Staefa and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,835 a month against $3,334 in Staefa, rent and utilities included – about $18,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

167

Cost of Living Index in Staefa
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Staefa Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Staefa

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,334

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,334 per month in Staefa vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Staefa $3,334
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $5,350 per month in Staefa vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Staefa $5,350
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $7,365 per month in Staefa vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Staefa $7,365
Nosara $3,814

Staefa costs about 82% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Staefa and Nosara sit above the global median – Staefa by 146%, Nosara by 35%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$32.82 CHF 27.03

$12.34 ₡5,535

165.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$121 CHF 99.3

$61.3 ₡27.5K

96.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.37 CHF 13.49

$7.76 ₡3,481

110.95%

Cappuccino

$6.22 CHF 5.12

$4.44 ₡1,992

40.09%

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

$5.88 CHF 4.84

$1.79 ₡803

228.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.00 CHF 4.12

$1.29 ₡580

287.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.26 CHF 6.80

$3.24 ₡1,451

154.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.41 CHF 6.93

$4.43 ₡1,985

89.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.23 CHF 1.84

$1.55 ₡696

43.87%

White Bread (500g)

$3.45 CHF 2.84

$3.08 ₡1,380

12.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.77 CHF 3.11

$2.53 ₡1,133

49.01%

Eggs

$8.37 CHF 6.90

$3.45 ₡1,546

142.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.91 CHF 22.17

$7.32 ₡3,284

267.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$25.91 CHF 21.34

$10.24 ₡4,594

153.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$55.2 CHF 45.46

$14.10 ₡6,326

291.42%

Apples (1kg)

$3.47 CHF 2.86

$2.29 ₡1,027

51.53%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 CHF 2.27

$1.64 ₡737

67.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.58 CHF 2.95

$4.79 ₡2,149

-25.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.48 CHF 3.69

$1.64 ₡735

173.17%

Potato (1kg)

$2.49 CHF 2.05

$3.85 ₡1,727

-35.32%

Onion (1kg)

$2.28 CHF 1.88

$3.75 ₡1,681

-39.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.48 CHF 2.05

$1.09 ₡488

127.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 CHF 1.06

$2.59 ₡1,160

-50.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.79 CHF 8.88

$5.12 ₡2,295

110.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 CHF 11.27

$19.92 ₡8,931

-31.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.74 CHF 2.26

$2.80 ₡1,255

-2.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.21 CHF 2.64

$3.52 ₡1,580

-8.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.37 CHF 3.60

$1.22 ₡549

258.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$100 CHF 82.5

$73.9 ₡33.1K

35.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.40 CHF 6.10

$2.17 ₡973

241.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.73 CHF 3.89

$1.56 ₡698

203.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$87.0 CHF 71.7

$8.67 ₡3,886

903.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 CHF 1.93

$1.55 ₡697

50.97%

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

$39.6K CHF 32.6K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

14.66%

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

$39.5K CHF 32.5K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

1.89%

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

$236 CHF 194

$94.8 ₡42.5K

148.87%

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

$31.65 CHF 26.06

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-12.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.5 CHF 46.52

$53.1 ₡23.8K

6.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$79.0 CHF 65.1

$73.8 ₡33.1K

7.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$44.96 CHF 37.03

$35.63 ₡16.0K

26.19%

Cinema Ticket

$22.08 CHF 18.18

$7.91 ₡3,548

179.14%

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

$2,812 CHF 2,316

$490 ₡219.9K

473.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$42.2K CHF 34.7K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

254.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$138 CHF 113

$54.8 ₡24.6K

151.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.9 CHF 49.37

$55.9 ₡25.1K

7.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$147 CHF 121

$80.4 ₡36.0K

83.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$171 CHF 141

$77.9 ₡34.9K

119.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,581 CHF 1,302

$801 ₡359.1K

97.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,382 CHF 1,138

$790 ₡354.1K

74.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,894 CHF 2,383

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-27.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,779 CHF 2,289

$1,409 ₡632.0K

97.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$17.3K CHF 14.3K

$7,064 ₡3.2M

145.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$14.1K CHF 11.6K

$1,236 ₡554.3K

1036.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.72

8.62

-80.05%

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

Last update for Staefa: October 20, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Staefa

$1.4K 41.4%

Nosara

$790 43% 42.8% $592

Groceries & Markets

Staefa

$637 19.1%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 45.1% $287

Eating Out

Staefa

$488 14.6%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 56.4% $275

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Staefa

$324 9.7%

Nosara

$184 10% 43.2% $140

Clothing & Footwear

Staefa

$232 7%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 47.9% $111

Getting Around

Staefa

$149 4.5%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 40.3% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Staefa

$123 3.7%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 27.3% $34

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,581 in Staefa versus $801 in Nosara. 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 $121 in Staefa versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $637 vs $350 – making Nosara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Staefa

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

18:50 6:50 PM

10:50 10:50 AM

8 h behind Staefa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,567

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 20, 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 20, 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

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Highest

Between locations

Staefa Nosara 9,520 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Staefa
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

Staefa vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,334 in Staefa, $1,835 in Nosara – roughly 82% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,002 per month in Staefa and $2,753 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 35% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,812 per month in Staefa and $490 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 $1,835, than in Staefa at $3,334. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Staefa 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 $1,835 in Nosara to $3,334 in Staefa. 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, Staefa makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.