Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Burkina Faso instead of Costa Rica, you would:
Health
be 76.5% less likely to be obese
In Costa Rica, 32.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 7.7% of people as of 2024.
live 19.7 years less
In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 61 years (59 years for men, 63 years for women) as of 2024.
see 88.4% less spent on your healthcare
Costa Rica spends $1,928 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Burkina Faso spends $224 as of 2023.
have 94.5% fewer doctors per person
Costa Rica has 26.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Burkina Faso has 1.5 as of 2022.
have 50.6% less access to essential health services
Costa Rica scores 81 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Burkina Faso scores 40 as of 2021.
Economy
be 49.1% less likely to be unemployed
In Costa Rica, 6.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Burkina Faso, that number is 3.5% as of 2025.
make 94.3% less money
Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $19,970 as of 2025, while in Burkina Faso, the GDP per capita is $1,148 as of 2025.
Life
have 3.1 times more children
In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, there are 31.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 10.1 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Costa Rica, approximately 24.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Burkina Faso, 242.0 women do as of 2023.
be 57.6% less likely to be literate
In Costa Rica, the literacy rate is 98.0% as of 2021. In Burkina Faso, it is 41.6% as of 2023.
be 4.8 times more likely to die during infancy
In Costa Rica, approximately 9.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, on the other hand, 43.6 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 78.3% less likely to have access to electricity
In Costa Rica, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Burkina Faso, that number is 22% of people on average (63% in urban areas, and 2% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 67.6% less likely to have internet access
In Costa Rica, approximately 87.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, about 28.2% do as of 2024.
be 49.9% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Costa Rica, approximately 100% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 50% of people on average (81% in urban areas, and 34% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 13.5% more on healthcare
Costa Rica spends 6.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Burkina Faso, that number is 7.8% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 79.4% more likely to die in a road accident
In Costa Rica, road accidents kill 15.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Burkina Faso, they kill 27.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 96.4% less home broadband
Costa Rica has 23.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Burkina Faso has 0.8 as of 2024.
live with 33.0% more strain on fresh water
Costa Rica withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Burkina Faso withdraws 8% as of 2022.
use 94.2% less electricity
Costa Rica uses 2,282 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Burkina Faso uses 133 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 83.4% less CO2
Costa Rica emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Burkina Faso emits 0.3 tonnes as of 2024.
be 5.6 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Costa Rica, air pollution causes 15.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Burkina Faso, it causes 84.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Costa Rica vs. Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso: At a glance
How big is Burkina Faso compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.