Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Malaysia instead of Costa Rica, you would:
Health
be 28.7% less likely to be obese
In Costa Rica, 32.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Malaysia, that number is 23.3% of people as of 2024.
be 29.9% less likely to die by suicide
Costa Rica has a suicide rate of 8.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Malaysia, it is 5.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 4.2 years less
In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Malaysia, that number is 77 years (74 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.
see 25.2% less spent on your healthcare
Costa Rica spends $1,928 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Malaysia spends $1,441 as of 2023.
have 12.9% fewer doctors per person
Costa Rica has 26.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Malaysia has 23.4 as of 2023.
Economy
be 45.0% less likely to be unemployed
In Costa Rica, 6.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Malaysia, that number is 3.8% as of 2025.
be 70.2% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Costa Rica, 17.1% live below the poverty line as of 2025. In Malaysia, however, that number is 5.1% as of 2023.
make 34.3% less money
Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $19,970 as of 2025, while in Malaysia, the GDP per capita is $13,125 as of 2025.
Life
be 23.1% 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 Malaysia, on the other hand, 7.0 children do as of 2024.
have 23.7% more children
In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Malaysia, there are 12.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 12.4% more likely to have internet access
In Costa Rica, approximately 87.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Malaysia, about 98.0% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 33.9% less on education
Costa Rica spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Malaysia spends 3.5% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 42.4% less on healthcare
Costa Rica spends 6.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Malaysia, that number is 4.0% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 3.6 times more coastline
Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In Malaysia, that number is 4,675 km.
Safety
be 95.9% less likely to be murdered
Costa Rica has a homicide rate of 17.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Malaysia, that number is 0.7 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 10.3% less likely to die in a road accident
In Costa Rica, road accidents kill 15.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Malaysia, they kill 13.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 41.5% less strain on fresh water
Costa Rica withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Malaysia withdraws 3% as of 2022.
use 2.2 times more electricity
Costa Rica uses 2,282 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Malaysia uses 5,084 kWh as of 2023.
find 41.8% less home broadband
Costa Rica has 23.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Malaysia has 13.6 as of 2024.
Environment
be 4.2 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 Malaysia, it causes 63.0 as of 2019.
emit 5.1 times more CO2
Costa Rica emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Malaysia emits 8.3 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. Malaysia
Malaysia: At a glance
How big is Malaysia compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.