Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Tunisia instead of Costa Rica, you would:
Health
be 20.2% less likely to be obese
In Costa Rica, 32.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Tunisia, that number is 26.1% of people as of 2024.
be 77.2% less likely to die by suicide
Costa Rica has a suicide rate of 8.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Tunisia, it is 1.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 4.3 years less
In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Tunisia, that number is 77 years (74 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2024.
see 42.3% less spent on your healthcare
Costa Rica spends $1,928 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Tunisia spends $1,113 as of 2023.
have 51.1% fewer doctors per person
Costa Rica has 26.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Tunisia has 13.2 as of 2021.
have 17.3% less access to essential health services
Costa Rica scores 81 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Tunisia scores 67 as of 2021.
Economy
be 2.2 times more likely to be unemployed
In Costa Rica, 6.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Tunisia, that number is 15.1% as of 2025.
make 76.7% less money
Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $19,970 as of 2025, while in Tunisia, the GDP per capita is $4,657 as of 2025.
Life
have 33.8% more children
In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Tunisia, there are 13.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 50.0% 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 Tunisia, 36.0 women do as of 2023.
be 12.0% less likely to be literate
In Costa Rica, the literacy rate is 98.0% as of 2021. In Tunisia, it is 86.2% as of 2023.
Basic Needs
be 12.2% less likely to have internet access
In Costa Rica, approximately 87.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Tunisia, about 76.5% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 26.7% more on education
Costa Rica spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Tunisia spends 6.7% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 16.3% more on healthcare
Costa Rica spends 6.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Tunisia, that number is 8.0% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 11.0% less coastline
Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In Tunisia, that number is 1,148 km.
Safety
be 73.6% less likely to be murdered
Costa Rica has a homicide rate of 17.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Tunisia, that number is 4.7 per 100,000 as of 2020.
Infrastructure
find 35.7% less home broadband
Costa Rica has 23.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Tunisia has 15.0 as of 2024.
live with 16.7 times more strain on fresh water
Costa Rica withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Tunisia withdraws 98% as of 2022.
use 28.6% less electricity
Costa Rica uses 2,282 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Tunisia uses 1,629 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 3.7 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 Tunisia, it causes 55.0 as of 2019.
emit 60.7% more CO2
Costa Rica emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Tunisia emits 2.6 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Costa Rica vs. Tunisia
Tunisia: At a glance
How big is Tunisia compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.