Quality of life comparison
If you lived in China instead of Costa Rica, you would:
Health
be 71.6% less likely to be obese
In Costa Rica, 32.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In China, that number is 9.3% of people as of 2024.
have 15.8% more doctors per person
Costa Rica has 26.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. China has 31.1 as of 2022.
live 3.0 years less
In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In China, that number is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
see 22.9% less spent on your healthcare
Costa Rica spends $1,928 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). China spends $1,487 as of 2023.
be 11.0% more likely to die by suicide
Costa Rica has a suicide rate of 8.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In China, it is 8.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 32.5% less likely to be unemployed
In Costa Rica, 6.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In China, that number is 4.6% as of 2025.
make 30.6% less money
Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $19,970 as of 2025, while in China, the GDP per capita is $13,862 as of 2025.
Life
be 33.3% less 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 China, 16.0 women do as of 2023.
be 54.9% less 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 China, on the other hand, 4.1 children do as of 2024.
have 32.2% fewer children
In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In China, there are 6.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 26.6% less on education
Costa Rica spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. China spends 3.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 13.5% less on healthcare
Costa Rica spends 6.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In China, that number is 5.9% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 11.2 times more coastline
Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In China, that number is 14,500 km.
Safety
be 97.2% less likely to be murdered
Costa Rica has a homicide rate of 17.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In China, that number is 0.5 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 12.3% more likely to die in a road accident
In Costa Rica, road accidents kill 15.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In China, they kill 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 2.0 times more home broadband
Costa Rica has 23.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. China has 47.2 as of 2024.
use 2.9 times more electricity
Costa Rica uses 2,282 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. China uses 6,524 kWh as of 2023.
live with 7.1 times more strain on fresh water
Costa Rica withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. China withdraws 42% as of 2022.
Environment
be 4.3 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 China, it causes 64.0 as of 2019.
emit 5.7 times more CO2
Costa Rica emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. China emits 9.3 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Costa Rica vs. China
China: At a glance
How big is China compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.