Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Marshall Islands instead of Costa Rica, you would:
Health
live 13.9 years less
In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Marshall Islands, that number is 67 years (65 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024.
be 28.3% more likely to be obese
In Costa Rica, 32.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Marshall Islands, that number is 42.0% of people as of 2024.
see 54.7% less spent on your healthcare
Costa Rica spends $1,928 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Marshall Islands spends $874 as of 2023.
have 27.2% less access to essential health services
Costa Rica scores 81 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Marshall Islands scores 59 as of 2021.
Economy
make 57.5% less money
Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $19,970 as of 2025, while in Marshall Islands, the GDP per capita is $8,489 as of 2025.
Life
have 2.0 times more children
In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Marshall Islands, there are 20.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 6.5 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 Marshall Islands, 155.0 women do as of 2023.
be 2.5 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 Marshall Islands, on the other hand, 22.7 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 24.4% less likely to have internet access
In Costa Rica, approximately 87.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Marshall Islands, about 65.9% do as of 2024.
be 12.4% 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 Marshall Islands, that number is 87% of people on average (86% in urban areas, and 94% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 45.0% more on education
Costa Rica spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Marshall Islands spends 7.7% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 95.2% more on healthcare
Costa Rica spends 6.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Marshall Islands, that number is 13.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 71.3% less coastline
Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In Marshall Islands, that number is 370 km.
Safety
be 23.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In Costa Rica, road accidents kill 15.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Marshall Islands, they kill 11.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 89.9% less home broadband
Costa Rica has 23.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Marshall Islands has 2.4 as of 2022.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Costa Rica vs. Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands: At a glance
How big is Marshall Islands compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.