Cost of living in Costa Rica
Are you moving to Costa Rica? Do you know how much money you will need there to maintain your current standard of living?
Find out what is the real equivalent in Costa Rica of your current salary and improve your chances of a happy relocation.
Get a salary calculation for:
| Food | ||
|---|---|---|
| Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district | ₡ 4,564 | |
| Combo meal in fast food restaurant (Big Mac Meal or similar) | ₡ 3,857 | |
| 500 gr (1 lb.) of boneless chicken breast | ₡ 2,373 | |
| 1 liter (1 qt.) of whole fat milk | ₡ 820 | |
| 12 eggs, large | ₡ 1,758 | |
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of tomatoes | ₡ 1,291 | |
| 500 gr (16 oz.) of local cheese | ₡ 3,644 | |
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of apples | ₡ 2,664 | |
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of potatoes | ₡ 1,028 | |
| 0.5 l (16 oz) domestic beer in the supermarket | ₡ 911 | |
| 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality | ₡ 7,729 | |
| 2 liters of Coca-Cola | ₡ 1,443 | |
| Bread for 2 people for 1 day | ₡ 708 | |
| Housing | ||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 Sqft) furnished accommodation in EXPENSIVE area | ₡ 746,201 | |
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 Sqft) furnished accommodation in NORMAL area | ₡ 244,609 | |
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 2 people in 85m2 flat | ₡ 65,737 | |
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 Sqft) furnished studio in EXPENSIVE area | ₡ 654,422 | |
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 Sqft) furnished studio in NORMAL area | ₡ 342,587 | |
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 1 person in 45 m2 (480 Sqft) studio | ₡ 65,586 | |
| Internet 8 Mbps (1 month) | ₡ 21,618 | |
| 40” flat screen TV | ₡ 288,323 | |
| Microwave 800/900 Watt (Bosch, Panasonic, LG, Sharp, or equivalent brands) | ₡ 50,097 | |
| Laundry detergent (3 l. ~ 100 oz.) | ₡ 3,472 | |
| Hourly rate for cleaning help | ₡ 1,724 | |
| Clothes | ||
| 1 pair of jeans (Levis 501 or similar) | ₡ 35,124 | |
| 1 summer dress in a High Street Store (Zara, H&M or similar retailers) | ₡ 29,683 | |
| 1 pair of sport shoes (Nike, Adidas, or equivalent brands) | ₡ 62,578 | |
| 1 pair of men’s leather business shoes | ₡ 56,848 | |
| Transportation | ||
| Volkswagen Golf 1.4 TSI 150 CV (or equivalent), with no extras, new | ₡ 11,181,900 | |
| 1 liter (1/4 gallon) of gas | ₡ 636 | |
| Monthly ticket public transport | ₡ 15,808 | |
| Personal Care | ||
| Cold medicine for 6 days (Tylenol, Frenadol, Coldrex, or equivalent brands) | ₡ 2,882 | |
| 1 box of antibiotics (12 doses) | ₡ 13,001 | |
| Short visit to private Doctor (15 minutes) | ₡ 38,188 | |
| 1 box of 32 tampons (Tampax, OB, ...) | ₡ 3,801 | |
| Deodorant, roll-on (50ml ~ 1.5 oz.) | ₡ 2,677 | |
| Hair shampoo 2-in-1 (400 ml ~ 12 oz.) | ₡ 3,242 | |
| 4 rolls of toilet paper | ₡ 1,779 | |
| Tube of toothpaste | ₡ 1,453 | |
| Standard men's haircut in expat area of the city | ₡ 4,833 | |
| Entertainment | ||
| Basic dinner out for two in neighborhood pub | ₡ 15,648 | |
| 2 tickets to the movies | ₡ 6,033 | |
| 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats) | ₡ 17,808 | |
| Dinner for two at an Italian restaurant in the expat area including appetisers, main course, wine and dessert | ₡ 30,732 | |
| 1 cocktail drink in downtown club | ₡ 3,561 | |
| Cappuccino in expat area of the city | ₡ 2,136 | |
| 1 beer in neighbourhood pub (500ml or 1pt.) | ₡ 1,776 | |
| iPad Air 2, 64GB | - | |
| 1 min. of prepaid mobile tariff (no discounts or plans) | ₡ 37 | |
| 1 month of gym membership in business district | ₡ 30,240 | |
| 1 package of Marlboro cigarettes | ₡ 1,961 | |
Map of Cost of Living in Costa Rica
This map shows only the top cities in Costa Rica. We also have on this page a list of all the cities available in Expatistan.
The color of each marker corresponds with the Cost of Living in the city. Red markers show more expensive cities, green ones show cheaper cities.
Moving the mouse on top of a city will show its name and the Cost of Living Index of that city.
What is the Cost of Living Index? To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of 100 to a
central reference city (that happens to be Prague).
Once the reference point has been established, the Price Index value of every other city in the
database is calculated by comparing their cost of living to the cost of living in Prague.
Therefore, if a city has a Price Index of 134, that means that living there is 34% more expensive than living in Prague.
Are you moving to Costa Rica? Do you know how much money you will need there to maintain your current standard of living?
Find out what is the real equivalent in Costa Rica of your current salary and improve your chances of a happy relocation.
Get a salary calculation for:
What do you think about the cost of living in Costa Rica?
Recent Comparisons
- Cost of living in San Jose is 24% more expensive than in Mexico City
- Cost of living in San Jose is 17% cheaper than in Madrid
- Cost of living in San Jose is 10% cheaper than in Panama City
- Cost of living in San Jose is 30% more expensive than in Bogotá
- Cost of living in San Jose is 40% cheaper than in Los Angeles, California
- Cost of living in San Jose is 33% cheaper than in Miami, Florida
- Cost of living in San Jose is 20% more expensive than in San Salvador
- Cost of living in San Jose is 17% cheaper than in São Paulo
- Cost of living in San Jose is 68% more expensive than in Managua
- Cost of living in San Jose is 14% cheaper than in Tallahassee, Florida
- Cost of living in San Jose is about the same as in Johannesburg
- Cost of living in San Jose is 28% cheaper than in Calgary
- Cost of living in San Jose is 41% cheaper than in Seattle, Washington
- Cost of living in San Jose is 6% more expensive than in Buenos Aires
- Cost of living in San Jose is about the same as in Santiago
- Cost of living in San Jose is 68% more expensive than in Delhi
- Cost of living in San Jose is 12% cheaper than in Montevideo
- Cost of living in San Jose is about the same as in Seville
- Cost of living in San Jose is 22% cheaper than in Halifax
- Cost of living in San Jose is 38% cheaper than in Chicago, Illinois
Compare other countries
Recent Prices Added
- Bread for 2 people for 1 day (250 g) in San Jose costs ₡ 850 (1 day ago)
- 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality in San Jose costs ₡ 7,000 (1 day ago)
- 1 kg of tomatoes in San Jose costs ₡ 1,000 (1 day ago)
- Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district in San Jose costs ₡ 10,000 (1 day ago)