Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Waterloo and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,259 in Waterloo, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in Waterloo
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Waterloo Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Waterloo

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,259

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,259 per month in Waterloo vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Waterloo $2,259
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,111 per month in Waterloo vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Waterloo $3,111
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $3,962 per month in Waterloo vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Waterloo $3,962
Nosara $3,818

Waterloo costs about 23% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Waterloo and Nosara sit above the global median – Waterloo by 67%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.30 €19.83

$12.35 ₡5,539

80.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$101 €89.6

$61.2 ₡27.4K

64.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.79 €13.16

$7.52 ₡3,373

96.68%

Cappuccino

$4.53 €4.03

$4.41 ₡1,978

2.72%

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

$3.79 €3.37

$1.74 ₡780

117.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 €2.83

$1.31 ₡587

142.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.63 €5.00

$3.28 ₡1,471

71.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.48 €4.87

$4.47 ₡2,004

22.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.56 ₡701

-17.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.67 €2.38

$3.02 ₡1,355

-11.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 €1.99

$2.51 ₡1,125

-11.16%

Eggs

$3.99 €3.55

$3.57 ₡1,603

11.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.65 €15.70

$7.43 ₡3,333

137.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.25 €10.90

$10.52 ₡4,717

16.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.60 €17.43

$13.97 ₡6,265

40.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 €2.50

$2.35 ₡1,052

19.57%

Banana (1kg)

$2.44 €2.17

$1.61 ₡720

51.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.85 €2.54

$4.80 ₡2,152

-40.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.61 ₡724

73.91%

Potato (1kg)

$2.17 €1.93

$3.80 ₡1,703

-42.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$3.69 ₡1,657

-46.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 €1.18

$1.13 ₡507

17.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 €0.93

$2.66 ₡1,191

-60.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.93 €11.50

$5.18 ₡2,321

149.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.74 €7.77

$19.88 ₡8,916

-56.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 €1.75

$2.90 ₡1,300

-32.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 €2.13

$3.63 ₡1,626

-33.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.12 ₡504

136.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.94 €2.61

$2.14 ₡958

37.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.22 €1.98

$1.57 ₡703

41.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.93 €36.41

$8.52 ₡3,823

380.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.10 €1.86

$1.52 ₡682

38.16%

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

$35.3K €31.4K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

63.15%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-2.39%

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

$224 €199

$96.3 ₡43.2K

132.37%

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

$21.29 €18.94

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-40.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.59 €44.11

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-7.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.89 €28.37

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-55.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.37 €18.12

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-41.65%

Cinema Ticket

$15.93 €14.17

$7.89 ₡3,539

101.90%

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

$788 €701

$494 ₡221.6K

59.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.5K €23.6K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

123.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.0

$53.9 ₡24.2K

87.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.40 €40.38

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-18.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 €98.1

$77.9 ₡34.9K

41.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$147 €131

$79.6 ₡35.7K

85.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,061 €943

$788 ₡353.4K

34.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$998 €888

$794 ₡356.2K

25.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,402 €1,247

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-64.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 €902

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-28.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,096 €3,644

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-40.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,821 €2,509

$1,224 ₡549.0K

130.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,468 €2,195

$864 ₡387.3K

185.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.71

8.62

-56.96%

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

Last update for Waterloo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Waterloo

$998 44.2%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 20.4% $204

Groceries & Markets

Waterloo

$352 15.6%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 0.1% $0.3

Eating Out

Waterloo

$344 15.2%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 38.4% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Waterloo

$295 13%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 36.9% $109

Clothing & Footwear

Waterloo

$182 8.1%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 34% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Waterloo

$64 2.8%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 37.1% $24

Getting Around

Waterloo

$25 * 1.1%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 253% $62

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,061 in Waterloo 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 186% higher in Waterloo, 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 $101 in Waterloo versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $352 in Waterloo vs $352 in Nosara – so Waterloo wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Waterloo

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

22:11 10:11 PM

14:11 2:11 PM

8 h behind Waterloo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

29,649

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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 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

Waterloo Nosara 9,150 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Waterloo
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

Waterloo vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,259 in Waterloo, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 23% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,389 per month in Waterloo 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 $101 in Waterloo 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 0% cheaper in Waterloo – 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 Waterloo at $2,259. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Waterloo 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 $2,259 in Waterloo. 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, Waterloo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.