Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Latvia instead of Costa Rica, you would:
Health
be 31.8% less likely to be obese
In Costa Rica, 32.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Latvia, that number is 22.3% of people as of 2024.
see 57.4% more spent on your healthcare
Costa Rica spends $1,928 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Latvia spends $3,034 as of 2023.
have 26.5% more doctors per person
Costa Rica has 26.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Latvia has 34.0 as of 2022.
live 4.6 years less
In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Latvia, that number is 76 years (72 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2024.
be 88.7% more likely to die by suicide
Costa Rica has a suicide rate of 8.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Latvia, it is 15.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
make 31.8% more money
Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $19,970 as of 2025, while in Latvia, the GDP per capita is $26,312 as of 2025.
be 31.6% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Costa Rica, 17.1% live below the poverty line as of 2025. In Latvia, however, that number is 22.5% as of 2022.
Life
be 20.8% 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 Latvia, 19.0 women do as of 2023.
be 75.8% 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 Latvia, on the other hand, 2.2 children do as of 2024.
have 30.9% fewer children
In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Latvia, there are 6.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 18.6% less on education
Costa Rica spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Latvia spends 4.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
Geography
see 61.4% less coastline
Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In Latvia, that number is 498 km.
Safety
be 85.9% less likely to be murdered
Costa Rica has a homicide rate of 17.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Latvia, that number is 2.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 36.8% less likely to die in a road accident
In Costa Rica, road accidents kill 15.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Latvia, they kill 9.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 10.6% more home broadband
Costa Rica has 23.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Latvia has 25.8 as of 2024.
live with 82.7% less strain on fresh water
Costa Rica withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Latvia withdraws 1% as of 2022.
use 65.1% more electricity
Costa Rica uses 2,282 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Latvia uses 3,768 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
be 2.7 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 Latvia, it causes 40.0 as of 2019.
emit 2.2 times more CO2
Costa Rica emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Latvia emits 3.6 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Costa Rica vs. Latvia
Latvia: At a glance
How big is Latvia compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.