Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Utena and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Utena: $1,317 a month against $1,835 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

64

Cost of Living Index in Utena
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Utena Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Utena

🇱🇹 Lithuania

$1,317

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,317 per month in Utena vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Utena $1,317
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $2,028 per month in Utena vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Utena $2,028
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $2,739 per month in Utena vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Utena $2,739
Nosara $3,814

Utena is about 28% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Utena sits 3% below the global median, while Nosara is 35% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.22 €10.87

$12.34 ₡5,535

-0.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.7 €45.13

$61.3 ₡27.5K

-17.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.77 €6.02

$7.76 ₡3,481

-12.76%

Cappuccino

$3.15 €2.80

$4.44 ₡1,992

-29.05%

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

$2.65 €2.36

$1.79 ₡803

48.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.29 ₡580

43.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.50 €4.89

$3.24 ₡1,451

69.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.04 €4.48

$4.43 ₡1,985

13.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 €1.08

$1.55 ₡696

-21.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.51 €1.34

$3.08 ₡1,380

-50.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 €1.55

$2.53 ₡1,133

-31.23%

Eggs

$2.82 €2.51

$3.45 ₡1,546

-18.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.08 €8.96

$7.32 ₡3,284

37.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.60 €4.98

$10.24 ₡4,594

-45.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.72 €8.65

$14.10 ₡6,326

-31.06%

Apples (1kg)

$1.61 €1.43

$2.29 ₡1,027

-29.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.64 ₡737

-15.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.70 €1.51

$4.79 ₡2,149

-64.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.95 €2.63

$1.64 ₡735

79.88%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 €0.66

$3.85 ₡1,727

-80.78%

Onion (1kg)

$0.98 €0.87

$3.75 ₡1,681

-73.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.09 ₡488

34.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 €0.70

$2.59 ₡1,160

-69.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.74 €5.11

$5.12 ₡2,295

12.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.22 €7.32

$19.92 ₡8,931

-58.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 €1.42

$2.80 ₡1,255

-43.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$3.52 ₡1,580

-50.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.22 ₡549

-7.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.66 €29.05

$73.9 ₡33.1K

-55.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.14 €2.79

$2.17 ₡973

44.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.81 €0.72

$1.56 ₡698

-48.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.14 €11.69

$8.67 ₡3,886

51.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 €1.61

$1.55 ₡697

16.77%

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

$27.2K €24.2K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-21.33%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

-27.79%

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

$208 €185

$94.8 ₡42.5K

119.01%

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

$13.18 €11.73

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-63.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.32 €10.07

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-78.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.99 €35.57

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-45.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.23 €19.78

$35.63 ₡16.0K

-37.61%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 €7.91

$7.91 ₡3,548

12.39%

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

$471 €419

$490 ₡219.9K

-3.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,278 €8,253

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-21.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$136 €121

$54.8 ₡24.6K

148.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$63.9 €56.9

$55.9 ₡25.1K

14.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 €70.5

$80.4 ₡36.0K

-1.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$179 €160

$77.9 ₡34.9K

130.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$532 €474

$801 ₡359.1K

-33.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$347 €308

$790 ₡354.1K

-56.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$813 €723

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-79.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$630 €560

$1,409 ₡632.0K

-55.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,058 €2,720

$7,064 ₡3.2M

-56.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,829 €1,627

$1,236 ₡554.3K

47.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,222 €1,087

$887 ₡397.6K

37.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.97

8.62

-53.94%

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

Last update for Utena: October 20, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Utena

$347 26.3%

Nosara

$790 43% 128% $443

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Utena

$232 17.6%

Nosara

$184 10% 20.7% $48

Groceries & Markets

Utena

$218 16.6%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 60.2% $131

Eating Out

Utena

$211 16.1%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 0.6% $1.3

Clothing & Footwear

Utena

$207 15.7%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 41.4% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Utena

$58 4.4%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 55.1% $32

Getting Around

Utena

$44 3.4%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 100% $44

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $532 in Utena 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.

Salaries run about 38% higher in Utena, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $51.0 in Utena versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $218 vs $350 – making Utena the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇹 Utena

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

22:59 10:59 PM

13:59 1:59 PM

9 h behind Utena

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

28,997

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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Utena Nosara 10,390 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Utena
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

Utena vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,317 in Utena, $1,835 in Nosara – roughly 39% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,976 per month in Utena 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 Utena, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 126% less in Utena. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $471 per month in Utena and $490 in Nosara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Utena, where all-in costs run around $1,317, than in Nosara at $1,835. In Utena 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 $1,317 in Utena 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 Utena. 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.