Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surfers Paradise and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,824 in Surfers Paradise, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

136

Cost of Living Index in Surfers Paradise
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Surfers Paradise Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Surfers Paradise

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,824

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,824 per month in Surfers Paradise vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Surfers Paradise $2,824
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $4,398 per month in Surfers Paradise vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Surfers Paradise $4,398
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $5,973 per month in Surfers Paradise vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Surfers Paradise $5,973
Nosara $3,818

Surfers Paradise costs about 54% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Surfers Paradise and Nosara sit above the global median – Surfers Paradise by 109%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.36 A$24.87

$12.35 ₡5,556

40.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$105 A$150

$61.2 ₡27.5K

71.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.85 A$15.55

$7.52 ₡3,383

44.28%

Cappuccino

$4.10 A$5.87

$4.41 ₡1,984

-7.03%

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

$2.81 A$4.03

$1.74 ₡782

61.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 A$3.44

$1.31 ₡589

83.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.86 A$11.26

$3.28 ₡1,475

139.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.87 A$11.27

$4.47 ₡2,010

76.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.56 ₡703

6.41%

White Bread (500g)

$2.70 A$3.87

$3.02 ₡1,359

-10.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.41 A$3.45

$2.51 ₡1,129

-3.98%

Eggs

$4.90 A$7.02

$3.57 ₡1,608

37.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.68 A$12.43

$7.43 ₡3,344

16.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.09 A$13.01

$10.52 ₡4,732

-13.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.47 A$20.73

$13.97 ₡6,284

3.58%

Apples (1kg)

$3.92 A$5.62

$2.35 ₡1,055

66.81%

Banana (1kg)

$3.08 A$4.41

$1.61 ₡722

91.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.37 A$4.83

$4.80 ₡2,159

-29.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.84 A$6.93

$1.61 ₡726

200.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.82 A$4.04

$3.80 ₡1,708

-25.79%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.49

$3.69 ₡1,662

-33.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.39 A$3.43

$1.13 ₡508

111.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.07 A$2.97

$2.66 ₡1,195

-22.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$37.58 A$53.8

$5.18 ₡2,328

625.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.26 A$20.43

$19.88 ₡8,944

-28.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.97 A$8.55

$2.90 ₡1,304

105.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.12 A$7.33

$3.63 ₡1,631

41.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 A$0.49

$1.12 ₡506

-69.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.7K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 A$3.01

$2.14 ₡961

-1.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.62 A$2.32

$1.57 ₡706

3.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.24 A$50.5

$8.52 ₡3,835

313.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 A$1.86

$1.52 ₡684

-14.47%

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

$27.0K A$38.7K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

25.08%

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

$28.3K A$40.6K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-17.87%

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

$212 A$304

$96.3 ₡43.3K

120.44%

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

$29.92 A$42.87

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-16.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.4 A$79.4

$53.6 ₡24.1K

3.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.1 A$94.6

$71.6 ₡32.2K

-7.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.45 A$20.70

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-58.61%

Cinema Ticket

$17.42 A$24.95

$7.89 ₡3,550

120.79%

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

$1,944 A$2,785

$494 ₡222.3K

293.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K A$17.7K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

4.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$83.1 A$119

$53.9 ₡24.3K

54.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.1 A$78.9

$55.4 ₡24.9K

-0.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$77.9 ₡35.1K

42.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 A$174

$79.6 ₡35.8K

52.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,912 A$2,739

$788 ₡354.5K

142.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,570 A$2,250

$794 ₡357.3K

97.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,770 A$5,400

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-4.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,067 A$4,393

$1,419 ₡638.4K

116.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,895 A$8,444

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-14.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,954 A$7,096

$1,224 ₡550.7K

304.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,288 A$4,710

$864 ₡388.5K

280.76%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.81

8.62

-32.60%

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

Last update for Surfers Paradise: 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

Surfers Paradise

$1.6K 55.6%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 49.4% $776

Groceries & Markets

Surfers Paradise

$380 13.5%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 7.3% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surfers Paradise

$298 10.5%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 37.6% $112

Eating Out

Surfers Paradise

$297 10.5%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 28.6% $85

Clothing & Footwear

Surfers Paradise

$167 5.9%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 27.9% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Surfers Paradise

$101 3.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 13.4% $14

Getting Around

Surfers Paradise

$12 * 0.4%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 654% $76

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,912 in Surfers Paradise 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 281% higher in Surfers Paradise, 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 $105 in Surfers Paradise versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $380 vs $352 – making Nosara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Surfers Paradise

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

09:06 9:06 AM

17:06 5:06 PM

16 h behind Surfers Paradise

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,668

4,912

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.698 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.698 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Surfers Paradise Nosara 13,550 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Surfers Paradise
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

Surfers Paradise vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,824 in Surfers Paradise, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 54% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,235 per month in Surfers Paradise 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $105 in Surfers Paradise and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 8% more in Surfers Paradise, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,839, than in Surfers Paradise at $2,824. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Surfers Paradise 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 $2,824 in Surfers Paradise. 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, Surfers Paradise makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.