Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Yala and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Yala: $895 a month against $1,835 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Yala
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Yala Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Yala

🇹🇭 Thailand

$895

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $895 per month in Yala vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Yala $895
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $1,487 per month in Yala vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Yala $1,487
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $2,079 per month in Yala vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Yala $2,079
Nosara $3,814

Yala is about 51% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Yala sits 34% below the global median, while Nosara is 35% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.51 ฿50.3

$12.34 ₡5,535

-87.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.70 ฿825

$61.3 ₡27.5K

-59.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.73 ฿225

$7.76 ₡3,481

-13.27%

Cappuccino

$1.92 ฿64.0

$4.44 ₡1,992

-56.76%

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

$0.56 ฿18.76

$1.79 ₡803

-68.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ฿5.42

$1.29 ₡580

-87.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.90 ฿63.4

$3.24 ₡1,451

-41.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 ฿110

$4.43 ₡1,985

-25.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.54 ฿51.3

$1.55 ₡696

-0.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 ฿40.90

$3.08 ₡1,380

-60.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.51

$2.53 ₡1,133

-47.43%

Eggs

$1.79 ฿59.7

$3.45 ₡1,546

-48.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.29 ฿611

$7.32 ₡3,284

149.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.96 ฿98.8

$10.24 ₡4,594

-71.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 ฿309

$14.10 ₡6,326

-34.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.02 ฿101

$2.29 ₡1,027

31.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.14 ฿37.97

$1.64 ₡737

-30.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.09 ฿69.7

$4.79 ₡2,149

-56.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.95 ฿65.3

$1.64 ₡735

18.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 ฿52.3

$3.85 ₡1,727

-59.22%

Onion (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.44

$3.75 ₡1,681

-74.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 ฿39.17

$1.09 ₡488

7.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ฿17.62

$2.59 ₡1,160

-79.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.87 ฿163

$5.12 ₡2,295

-4.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.33 ฿546

$19.92 ₡8,931

-18.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 ฿54.8

$2.80 ₡1,255

-41.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 ฿86.2

$3.52 ₡1,580

-26.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.61 ฿20.44

$1.22 ₡549

-50.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.9 ₡33.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.12 ฿37.42

$2.17 ₡973

-48.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.31 ฿43.70

$1.56 ₡698

-16.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 ฿215

$8.67 ₡3,886

-25.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ฿47.43

$1.55 ₡697

-8.39%

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

$26.5K ฿887.0K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-23.17%

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

$26.5K ฿887.1K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

-31.50%

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

$85.4 ฿2,853

$94.8 ₡42.5K

-9.97%

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

$11.99 ฿401

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-66.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.46 ฿650

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-63.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.07 ฿1,473

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-40.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.69 ฿458

$35.63 ₡16.0K

-61.58%

Cinema Ticket

$6.63 ฿222

$7.91 ₡3,548

-16.18%

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

$589 ฿19.7K

$490 ₡219.9K

20.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿376.2K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-5.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.88 ฿1,533

$54.8 ₡24.6K

-16.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 ฿1,079

$55.9 ₡25.1K

-42.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.6 ฿2,592

$80.4 ₡36.0K

-3.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.9 ฿2,704

$77.9 ₡34.9K

3.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$475 ฿15.9K

$801 ₡359.1K

-40.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$289 ฿9,662

$790 ₡354.1K

-63.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 ฿39.1K

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-70.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$759 ฿25.4K

$1,409 ₡632.0K

-46.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,762 ฿58.9K

$7,064 ₡3.2M

-75.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,405 ฿46.9K

$1,236 ₡554.3K

13.66%

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 Yala: 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

Yala

$289 32.3%

Nosara

$790 43% 173% $500

Groceries & Markets

Yala

$241 26.9%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 45% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Yala

$117 13.1%

Nosara

$184 10% 57.5% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Yala

$106 11.9%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 13.6% $15

Eating Out

Yala

$74 8.3%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 187% $138

Sport & Entertainment

Yala

$57 6.4%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 56.3% $32

Getting Around

Yala

$10 * 1.1%

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 $475 in Yala 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 Yala versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $241 vs $350 – making Yala the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Yala

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

01:27 1:27 AM

12:27 12:27 PM

13 h behind Yala

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

60,617

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

Yala Nosara 18,020 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Yala
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

Yala vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $895 in Yala, $1,835 in Nosara – roughly 105% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,343 per month in Yala 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 Yala, 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 Yala 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 45% 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 Yala, where all-in costs run around $895, than in Nosara at $1,835. In Yala 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 $895 in Yala 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 Yala. 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.