Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Saint Lucia instead of Costa Rica, you would:
Health
have 57.6% more doctors per person
Costa Rica has 26.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Saint Lucia has 42.3 as of 2020.
be 34.6% less likely to die by suicide
Costa Rica has a suicide rate of 8.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Saint Lucia, it is 5.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 8.2 years less
In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Saint Lucia, that number is 73 years (69 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024.
see 36.3% less spent on your healthcare
Costa Rica spends $1,928 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Saint Lucia spends $1,228 as of 2023.
Economy
be 38.2% more likely to be unemployed
In Costa Rica, 6.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Saint Lucia, that number is 9.4% as of 2025.
make 26.2% less money
Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $19,970 as of 2025, while in Saint Lucia, the GDP per capita is $14,746 as of 2025.
Life
have 12.2% more children
In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Saint Lucia, there are 11.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 83.3% 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 Saint Lucia, 44.0 women do as of 2023.
be 73.6% 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 Saint Lucia, on the other hand, 15.8 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 21.8% less likely to have internet access
In Costa Rica, approximately 87.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Saint Lucia, about 68.2% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 27.5% less on education
Costa Rica spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Saint Lucia spends 3.9% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 31.1% less on healthcare
Costa Rica spends 6.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Saint Lucia, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 87.8% less coastline
Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In Saint Lucia, that number is 158 km.
Safety
be 42.6% less likely to die in a road accident
In Costa Rica, road accidents kill 15.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Saint Lucia, they kill 8.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 2.2 times more likely to be murdered
Costa Rica has a homicide rate of 17.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Saint Lucia, that number is 39.0 per 100,000 as of 2023.
Infrastructure
find 41.7% less home broadband
Costa Rica has 23.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Saint Lucia has 13.6 as of 2022.
live with 2.4 times more strain on fresh water
Costa Rica withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Saint Lucia withdraws 14% as of 2022.
Environment
be 33.3% more likely to die from air pollution
In Costa Rica, air pollution causes 15.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Saint Lucia, it causes 20.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Costa Rica vs. Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia: At a glance
How big is Saint Lucia compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.