Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Norway instead of Costa Rica, you would:
Health
live 2.2 years longer
In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Norway, that number is 83 years (82 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024.
be 38.3% less likely to be obese
In Costa Rica, 32.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Norway, that number is 20.2% of people as of 2024.
see 4.9 times more spent on your healthcare
Costa Rica spends $1,928 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Norway spends $9,523 as of 2023.
have 85.2% more doctors per person
Costa Rica has 26.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Norway has 49.8 as of 2023.
be 63.6% more likely to die by suicide
Costa Rica has a suicide rate of 8.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Norway, it is 13.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 32.2% less likely to be unemployed
In Costa Rica, 6.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Norway, that number is 4.6% as of 2025.
make 4.7 times more money
Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $19,970 as of 2025, while in Norway, the GDP per capita is $94,594 as of 2025.
Life
be 95.8% 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 Norway, 1.0 women do as of 2023.
be 78.0% 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 Norway, on the other hand, 2.0 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 13.6% more likely to have internet access
In Costa Rica, approximately 87.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Norway, about 99.0% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 37.3% more on healthcare
Costa Rica spends 6.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Norway, that number is 9.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 19.5 times more coastline
Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In Norway, that number is 25,148 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 Norway, that number is 0.7 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 90.3% less likely to die in a road accident
In Costa Rica, road accidents kill 15.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Norway, they kill 1.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 93.9% more home broadband
Costa Rica has 23.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Norway has 45.2 as of 2024.
live with 65.3% less strain on fresh water
Costa Rica withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Norway withdraws 2% as of 2022.
use 10.4 times more electricity
Costa Rica uses 2,282 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Norway uses 23,673 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
be 46.7% less likely to die from air pollution
In Costa Rica, air pollution causes 15.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Norway, it causes 8.0 as of 2019.
emit 4.4 times more CO2
Costa Rica emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Norway emits 7.2 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. Norway
Norway: At a glance
How big is Norway compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.