Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tarxien and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $1,989 in Tarxien, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Tarxien
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Tarxien Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Tarxien

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,989

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,989 per month in Tarxien vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Tarxien $1,989
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,162 per month in Tarxien vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Tarxien $3,162
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $4,335 per month in Tarxien vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Tarxien $4,335
Nosara $3,818

Tarxien costs about 8% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Tarxien and Nosara sit above the global median – Tarxien by 47%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.37 €19.90

$12.35 ₡5,539

81.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$88.2 €78.4

$61.2 ₡27.4K

44.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.21 €11.75

$7.52 ₡3,373

75.66%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.76

$4.41 ₡1,978

-29.71%

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

$2.44 €2.17

$1.74 ₡780

40.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.31 ₡587

45.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.51 €4.90

$3.28 ₡1,471

67.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.50 €5.78

$4.47 ₡2,004

45.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.56 ₡701

-12.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 €1.29

$3.02 ₡1,355

-51.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.40 €3.02

$2.51 ₡1,125

35.46%

Eggs

$4.29 €3.81

$3.57 ₡1,603

20.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.21 €9.08

$7.43 ₡3,333

37.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.09 €10.76

$10.52 ₡4,717

14.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.48 €16.44

$13.97 ₡6,265

32.28%

Apples (1kg)

$3.67 €3.27

$2.35 ₡1,052

56.17%

Banana (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$1.61 ₡720

66.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.77 €3.36

$4.80 ₡2,152

-21.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.81 €3.39

$1.61 ₡724

136.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.92 €1.71

$3.80 ₡1,703

-49.47%

Onion (1kg)

$3.32 €2.96

$3.69 ₡1,657

-10.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.13 ₡507

92.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 €1.33

$2.66 ₡1,191

-43.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.12 €5.44

$5.18 ₡2,321

18.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.87 €5.22

$19.88 ₡8,916

-70.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.46 €2.19

$2.90 ₡1,300

-15.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 €2.03

$3.63 ₡1,626

-37.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.12 ₡504

80.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$2.14 ₡958

86.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.77 €1.57

$1.57 ₡703

12.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.01 €28.47

$8.52 ₡3,823

275.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 €1.35

$1.52 ₡682

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

$28.4K €25.3K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

31.49%

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

$38.3K €34.1K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

10.95%

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

$154 €137

$96.3 ₡43.2K

59.46%

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

$31.65 €28.16

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-11.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.76 €26.47

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-44.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.7 €49.56

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-22.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$11.27 €10.03

$7.89 ₡3,539

42.84%

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

$277 €246

$494 ₡221.6K

-44.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.2K €10.8K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

2.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.9 €51.5

$53.9 ₡24.2K

7.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.8 €61.2

$55.4 ₡24.8K

24.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 €101

$77.9 ₡34.9K

44.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €114

$79.6 ₡35.7K

60.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,255 €1,116

$788 ₡353.4K

59.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$853 €759

$794 ₡356.2K

7.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,942 €1,728

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-50.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,631 €1,451

$1,419 ₡636.5K

14.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,683 €3,276

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-46.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,954 €2,627

$1,224 ₡549.0K

141.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.05

8.62

-53.02%

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

Last update for Tarxien: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tarxien

$853 42.9%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 6.9% $59

Groceries & Markets

Tarxien

$342 17.2%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 3.1% $10

Eating Out

Tarxien

$314 15.8%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 32.5% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tarxien

$215 10.8%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 13.6% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Tarxien

$165 8.3%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 27.4% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Tarxien

$78 3.9%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 11.6% $9.1

Getting Around

Tarxien

$21 * 1.1%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 317% $66

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,255 in Tarxien 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $88.0 in Tarxien versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $342 in Tarxien vs $352 in Nosara – so Tarxien wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Tarxien

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

14:41 2:41 PM

06:41 6:41 AM

8 h behind Tarxien

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,600

4,912

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tarxien Nosara 10,260 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Tarxien
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

Tarxien vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,989 in Tarxien, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 8% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,983 per month in Tarxien 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 $88.0 in Tarxien and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 3% cheaper in Tarxien – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,839, than in Tarxien at $1,989. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Tarxien 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 $1,989 in Tarxien. 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, Tarxien makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.