Costa Rica vs United Kingdom - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Costa Rica United Kingdom
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1328
$2432
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$3222
$5701
🏠 One person rent
$625
$1515
🏘️ Family rent
$982
$2540
🍽️ Food expenses
$489
$573
🚐 Transport expenses
$67.1
$179
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1013
$3269
💸 GDP per capita
$18587
$53246
😃 Human freedom index
8.36
8.6
❤️ Life expectancy
80.8
81.2
👮 Corruption perceptions index
56
70
🌐 English speaking %
8.2%
98.3%
🎓 Higher education
75
100
😀 Quality of life
65
91
🏙️ Population
5.13M
69.2M

The average cost of living in Costa Rica ($1328) is 45% less expensive than in the United Kingdom ($2432). Costa Rica ranked 52nd vs 11th for the United Kingdom in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 0.8 months in Costa Rica compared to 1.3 months in the United Kingdom. Ranked 59th and 16th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

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Prices in Costa Rica vs the United Kingdom

We calculate prices for Costa Rica and the United Kingdom as a population-weighted mean of 9 and 277 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Costa Rica United Kingdom
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$9.94
$21.4
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$48.4
$87.7
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$9.69
$10.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.68
$7.24
 Cappuccino
$4.25
$5.03
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.1
$2.65
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$700
$1589
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$471
$1223
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1192
$2759
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$811
$2247
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$61.4
$177
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$94.1
$272
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$50.2
$43.4
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
9.37%
5.07%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2325
$8898
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$1680
$5803
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1
$3.8
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$59.9
$95.1
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$14.5
$24
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.42
$1.88
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$2.23
$1.7
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.45
$1.8
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.26
$2.27
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.88
$4.4
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.1
$10.9
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.53
$9.2
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.5
$15.5
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.23
$3
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.48
$1.68
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.83
$2.86
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.05
$3.51
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.18
$1.66
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.83
$1.65
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.69
$1.1
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$3.29
$3.16
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$17
$11.8
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.36
$3.06
🚬 Cigarette pack
$5.27
$22.2
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$8.13
$6.39
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$9.94
$5.52
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$3.51
$2.9
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$4.3
$2.59
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$55.6
$55.7
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$7.79
$15.5
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$96.2
$99.2
💇 Haircut, simple
$15.9
$14.5
👖 Brand Jeans
$64.1
$96.6
👟 Brand Sneakers
$125
$105
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$642
$1842
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$13147
$23184

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Costa Rica vs the United Kingdom

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Costa Rica

City Cost of living Population
San Jose
$1454
335K
Limon
$1332
71.5K
Alajuela
$1323
44.4K
Liberia
$957
65.9K
Puntarenas
$825
41.5K
Cartago
$1290
22.8K
Heredia
$1378
16.7K
Tamarindo
$1832
7.13K
Santa Teresa
$1273
3K

In the United Kingdom

City Cost of living Population
London
$3740
8.8M
Birmingham
$2219
1.14M
Glasgow
$2121
626K
Manchester
$2365
548K
Edinburgh
$2331
488K
Sheffield
$1940
518K
Leeds
$2087
536K
Liverpool
$1998
513K
Bristol
$2592
472K
Cardiff
$2194
384K
Bolton
$2079
285K
Coventry
$2010
363K
Newcastle upon Tyne
$2012
300K
Bradford
$1787
293K
Leicester
$1838
369K
Nottingham
$1891
289K
Belfast
$1954
345K
Sunderland
$1573
277K
Derby
$1733
255K
Brighton and Hove
$2204
277K
Southampton
$2286
271K
Milton Keynes
$2310
264K
Northampton
$1894
246K
Plymouth
$1849
268K
Kingston upon Hull
$1667
260K
Swansea
$1753
247K
Portsmouth
$2044
248K
Solihull
$1957
207K
Croydon
$2564
192K
Wolverhampton
$1836
251K