Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surin and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Surin: $869 a month against $1,835 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Surin
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Surin Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Surin

🇹🇭 Thailand

$869

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $869 per month in Surin vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Surin $869
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $1,444 per month in Surin vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Surin $1,444
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $2,018 per month in Surin vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Surin $2,018
Nosara $3,814

Surin is about 53% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Surin sits 36% below the global median, while Nosara is 35% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.03 ฿101

$12.34 ₡5,535

-75.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.70 ฿826

$61.3 ₡27.5K

-59.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.23 ฿242

$7.76 ₡3,481

-6.83%

Cappuccino

$1.74 ฿58.3

$4.44 ₡1,992

-60.81%

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

$0.61 ฿20.30

$1.79 ₡803

-65.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ฿10.89

$1.29 ₡580

-74.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.20 ฿73.5

$3.24 ₡1,451

-32.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.42 ฿114

$4.43 ₡1,985

-22.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ฿52.4

$1.55 ₡696

1.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.31 ฿43.79

$3.08 ₡1,380

-57.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 ฿48.98

$2.53 ₡1,133

-41.90%

Eggs

$1.90 ฿63.5

$3.45 ₡1,546

-44.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.41 ฿582

$7.32 ₡3,284

137.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.48 ฿83.0

$10.24 ₡4,594

-75.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.89 ฿297

$14.10 ₡6,326

-36.95%

Apples (1kg)

$2.57 ฿86.0

$2.29 ₡1,027

12.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.02 ฿34.23

$1.64 ₡737

-37.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.48 ฿82.9

$4.79 ₡2,149

-48.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.5

$1.64 ₡735

25.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.44 ฿48.20

$3.85 ₡1,727

-62.60%

Onion (1kg)

$0.95 ฿31.77

$3.75 ₡1,681

-74.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.94 ฿31.37

$1.09 ₡488

-13.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.44 ฿14.59

$2.59 ₡1,160

-83.01%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 ฿143

$5.12 ₡2,295

-16.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.36 ฿547

$19.92 ₡8,931

-17.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.57 ฿52.4

$2.80 ₡1,255

-43.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 ฿100

$3.52 ₡1,580

-14.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 ฿30.79

$1.22 ₡549

-24.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.9 ₡33.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.37 ฿45.65

$2.17 ₡973

-36.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 ฿33.73

$1.56 ₡698

-35.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.04 ฿202

$8.67 ₡3,886

-30.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 ฿45.06

$1.55 ₡697

-12.90%

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

$22.7K ฿758.4K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-34.32%

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

$27.1K ฿904.4K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

-30.16%

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

$77.8 ฿2,601

$94.8 ₡42.5K

-17.93%

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

$11.53 ฿385

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-68.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.68 ฿624

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-64.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.58 ฿1,390

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-43.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.45 ฿383

$35.63 ₡16.0K

-67.86%

Cinema Ticket

$6.51 ฿218

$7.91 ₡3,548

-17.70%

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

$628 ฿21.0K

$490 ₡219.9K

28.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.1K ฿405.0K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

1.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.1 ฿1,773

$54.8 ₡24.6K

-3.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.95 ฿934

$55.9 ₡25.1K

-49.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.3 ฿2,451

$80.4 ₡36.0K

-8.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.0 ฿2,274

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-12.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$440 ฿14.7K

$801 ₡359.1K

-45.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$273 ฿9,126

$790 ₡354.1K

-65.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,185 ฿39.6K

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-70.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$714 ฿23.9K

$1,409 ₡632.0K

-49.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,730 ฿57.8K

$7,064 ₡3.2M

-75.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,518 ฿50.7K

$1,236 ₡554.3K

22.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

8.62

-35.38%

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

Last update for Surin: October 18, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Surin

$273 31.4%

Nosara

$790 43% 189% $517

Groceries & Markets

Surin

$235 27%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 49.1% $115

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surin

$108 12.4%

Nosara

$184 10% 70.3% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Surin

$100 11.5%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 20.9% $21

Eating Out

Surin

$88 10.2%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 140% $124

Sport & Entertainment

Surin

$55 6.3%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 64.1% $35

Getting Around

Surin

$10 * 1.2%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 779% $79

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $440 in Surin 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 $25.00 in Surin versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $235 vs $350 – making Surin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Surin

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

03:23 3:23 AM

14:23 2:23 PM

13 h behind Surin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

40,104

4,912

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 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 THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Surin Nosara 17,070 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Surin
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

Surin vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $869 in Surin, $1,835 in Nosara – roughly 111% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,303 per month in Surin 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 Surin, 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 $25.00 in Surin 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 49% more in Nosara, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Surin, where all-in costs run around $869, than in Nosara at $1,835. In Surin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara 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 $869 in Surin to $1,835 in Nosara. 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 Surin. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Nosara makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.