Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Stirling and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,088 in Stirling, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Stirling outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

102

Cost of Living Index in Stirling
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Stirling Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Stirling

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,088

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,088 per month in Stirling vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Stirling $2,088
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,217 per month in Stirling vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Stirling $3,217
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $4,347 per month in Stirling vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Stirling $4,347
Nosara $3,818

Stirling costs about 14% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Stirling and Nosara sit above the global median – Stirling by 55%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.80 £14.86

$12.35 ₡5,539

60.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.8 £70.4

$61.2 ₡27.4K

53.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 £7.91

$7.52 ₡3,373

40.16%

Cappuccino

$4.66 £3.50

$4.41 ₡1,978

5.67%

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

$2.45 £1.83

$1.74 ₡780

40.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 £1.42

$1.31 ₡587

44.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.96 £4.47

$3.28 ₡1,471

81.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 £3.40

$4.47 ₡2,004

1.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 £1.02

$1.56 ₡701

-12.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 £1.02

$3.02 ₡1,355

-54.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.91 £1.43

$2.51 ₡1,125

-23.90%

Eggs

$3.52 £2.64

$3.57 ₡1,603

-1.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 £6.64

$7.43 ₡3,333

19.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.63 £5.72

$10.52 ₡4,717

-27.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.74 £5.06

$13.97 ₡6,265

-51.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 £2.22

$2.35 ₡1,052

25.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.34 £1.01

$1.61 ₡720

-16.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.71 £2.03

$4.80 ₡2,152

-43.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 £1.93

$1.61 ₡724

60.25%

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 £1.22

$3.80 ₡1,703

-57.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.44 £1.08

$3.69 ₡1,657

-60.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 £0.77

$1.13 ₡507

-8.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.43 £1.07

$2.66 ₡1,191

-46.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.77 £16.33

$5.18 ₡2,321

320.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.91 £8.18

$19.88 ₡8,916

-45.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 £2.07

$2.90 ₡1,300

-4.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 £2.23

$3.63 ₡1,626

-17.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$6.17 £4.63

$1.12 ₡504

450.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$75.6 £56.7

$72.6 ₡32.6K

4.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 £2.96

$2.14 ₡958

84.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.44 £1.83

$1.57 ₡703

55.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.54 £17.66

$8.52 ₡3,823

176.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.00 £1.50

$1.52 ₡682

31.58%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

76.68%

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

$39.9K £29.9K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

15.50%

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

$274 £206

$96.3 ₡43.2K

185.03%

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

$15.17 £11.38

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-57.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.10 £29.33

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-27.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.86 £23.90

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-55.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.57 £12.43

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-52.54%

Cinema Ticket

$8.96 £6.72

$7.89 ₡3,539

13.56%

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

$1,729 £1,297

$494 ₡221.6K

249.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.0K £17.3K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

94.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.4 £71.6

$53.9 ₡24.2K

76.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.37 £27.28

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-34.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.2 £70.7

$77.9 ₡34.9K

20.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$53.0 £39.73

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-33.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,042 £782

$788 ₡353.4K

32.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$914 £686

$794 ₡356.2K

15.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,379 £1,785

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-39.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,714 £1,286

$1,419 ₡636.5K

20.79%

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)

$3,411 £2,559

$864 ₡387.3K

295.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

8.62

-40.72%

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

Last update for Stirling: October 12, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Stirling

$914 43.8%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 13.1% $120

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Stirling

$329 15.8%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 43.5% $143

Eating Out

Stirling

$302 14.5%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 29.9% $90

Groceries & Markets

Stirling

$251 12%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 40.3% $101

Clothing & Footwear

Stirling

$126 6%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 4.3% $5.4

Getting Around

Stirling

$116 5.6%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 25.1% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Stirling

$50 2.4%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 75.5% $38

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,042 in Stirling 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 295% higher in Stirling, 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 $94.0 in Stirling versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $251 in Stirling vs $352 in Nosara – so Stirling wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Stirling

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

16:45 4:45 PM

09:45 9:45 AM

7 h behind Stirling

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

37,800

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Stirling Nosara 8,570 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Stirling
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

Stirling vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,088 in Stirling, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 14% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,131 per month in Stirling 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 4% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $1,729 per month in Stirling 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 Stirling at $2,088. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Stirling 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 $2,088 in Stirling. 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, Stirling makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.