Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Swansea and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,837 a month against $2,186 in Swansea, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

104

Cost of Living Index in Swansea
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Swansea Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Swansea

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,186

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,186 per month in Swansea vs $1,837 in Nosara, rent included.

Swansea $2,186
Nosara $1,837

A couple spends around $3,158 per month in Swansea vs $2,775 in Nosara, rent included.

Swansea $3,158
Nosara $2,775

A family of three spends $4,131 per month in Swansea vs $3,712 in Nosara, rent included.

Swansea $4,131
Nosara $3,712

Swansea costs about 19% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Swansea and Nosara sit above the global median – Swansea by 63%, Nosara by 37%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.61 £14.82

$12.22 ₡5,509

60.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.6 £46.56

$60.2 ₡27.1K

2.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.41 £7.87

$7.54 ₡3,399

38.06%

Cappuccino

$4.83 £3.65

$4.31 ₡1,941

12.06%

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

$2.32 £1.76

$1.72 ₡773

34.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.22 £0.92

$1.35 ₡608

-9.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.91 £4.47

$3.24 ₡1,459

82.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.33 £4.78

$4.48 ₡2,018

41.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 £0.97

$1.57 ₡707

-18.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.93 £1.46

$3.17 ₡1,429

-39.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 £1.52

$2.42 ₡1,091

-16.94%

Eggs

$3.52 £2.66

$3.57 ₡1,609

-1.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.46 £5.64

$7.43 ₡3,349

0.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.53 £6.45

$10.42 ₡4,697

-18.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.52 £9.46

$13.66 ₡6,156

-8.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 £1.80

$2.32 ₡1,044

3.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.27 £0.96

$1.61 ₡728

-21.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.78 £2.10

$4.74 ₡2,138

-41.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.63 £2.74

$1.66 ₡747

118.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.32 £1.75

$3.72 ₡1,679

-37.63%

Onion (1kg)

$2.92 £2.21

$3.57 ₡1,611

-18.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.31 £0.99

$1.10 ₡497

19.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.32 £1.75

$2.55 ₡1,149

-9.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.24 £17.56

$4.95 ₡2,232

369.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.43 £7.88

$20.01 ₡9,020

-47.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.66

$2.79 ₡1,256

-21.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 £2.45

$3.53 ₡1,589

-8.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.99 £3.02

$1.19 ₡537

235.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.0 £72.6

$72.1 ₡32.5K

33.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.86 £2.91

$2.24 ₡1,011

72.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.65 £2.01

$1.55 ₡701

70.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.61 £24.64

$8.86 ₡3,993

268.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.97 £1.49

$1.57 ₡708

25.48%

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

$39.0K £29.4K

$21.8K ₡9.8M

78.65%

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

$41.2K £31.1K

$34.6K ₡15.6M

18.83%

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

$304 £230

$93.5 ₡42.1K

225.45%

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

$14.67 £11.08

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-58.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.04 £32.52

$51.5 ₡23.2K

-16.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.43 £26.02

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-51.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.90 £11.26

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-57.96%

Cinema Ticket

$10.16 £7.68

$7.84 ₡3,535

29.59%

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

$1,463 £1,105

$490 ₡220.7K

198.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.4M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 £68.4

$53.5 ₡24.1K

69.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.37 £36.55

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-13.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 £89.0

$79.3 ₡35.7K

48.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.4 £63.8

$78.9 ₡35.6K

7.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,088 £822

$786 ₡354.3K

38.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$844 £638

$780 ₡351.6K

8.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,387 £1,048

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-64.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,408 £1,064

$1,407 ₡634.4K

0.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,880 £2,932

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-44.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,949 £2,228

$1,201 ₡541.3K

145.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,165 £2,392

$876 ₡395.0K

261.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.04

8.62

-29.93%

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

Last update for Swansea: October 6, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Swansea

$844 39.5%

Nosara

$780 43% 7.6% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Swansea

$362 16.9%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 50.2% $182

Eating Out

Swansea

$303 14.2%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 30.8% $93

Groceries & Markets

Swansea

$290 13.6%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 20.6% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Swansea

$153 7.2%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 21.6% $33

Getting Around

Swansea

$129 6.1%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 32.7% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Swansea

$55 2.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 59% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,088 in Swansea versus $786 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 261% higher in Swansea, 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 $62.0 in Swansea versus $60.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $290 in Swansea vs $350 in Nosara – so Swansea wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Swansea

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

04:32 4:32 AM

21:32 9:32 PM

7 h behind Swansea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

239,000

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Swansea Nosara 8,570 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Swansea
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

Swansea vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,186 in Swansea, $1,837 in Nosara – roughly 19% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,279 per month in Swansea and $2,756 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 33% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $1,463 per month in Swansea 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 $1,837, than in Swansea at $2,186. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Swansea 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 $1,837 in Nosara to $2,186 in Swansea. 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, Swansea makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.