Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Vanuatu instead of Costa Rica, you would:
Health
be 31.0% less likely to be obese
In Costa Rica, 32.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Vanuatu, that number is 22.6% of people as of 2024.
live 9.3 years less
In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Vanuatu, that number is 72 years (70 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024.
see 92.7% less spent on your healthcare
Costa Rica spends $1,928 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Vanuatu spends $141 as of 2023.
have 93.9% fewer doctors per person
Costa Rica has 26.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Vanuatu has 1.6 as of 2019.
have 42.0% less access to essential health services
Costa Rica scores 81 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Vanuatu scores 47 as of 2021.
be 95.2% more likely to die by suicide
Costa Rica has a suicide rate of 8.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Vanuatu, it is 15.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 25.9% less likely to be unemployed
In Costa Rica, 6.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Vanuatu, that number is 5.1% as of 2025.
make 79.8% less money
Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $19,970 as of 2025, while in Vanuatu, the GDP per capita is $4,039 as of 2025.
Life
have 2.8 times more children
In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Vanuatu, there are 27.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 4.2 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 Vanuatu, 100.0 women do as of 2023.
be 10.2% less likely to be literate
In Costa Rica, the literacy rate is 98.0% as of 2021. In Vanuatu, it is 88.0% as of 2023.
be 58.2% 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 Vanuatu, on the other hand, 14.4 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 38.4% less likely to have access to electricity
In Costa Rica, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Vanuatu, that number is 62% of people on average (88% in urban areas, and 54% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 19.8% less likely to have internet access
In Costa Rica, approximately 87.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Vanuatu, about 69.9% do as of 2022.
be 12.7% 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 Vanuatu, that number is 87% of people on average (97% in urban areas, and 84% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 40.0% less on healthcare
Costa Rica spends 6.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Vanuatu, that number is 4.1% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 43.9% more on education
Costa Rica spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Vanuatu spends 7.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
Geography
see 96.0% more coastline
Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In Vanuatu, that number is 2,528 km.
Safety
be 98.1% less likely to be murdered
Costa Rica has a homicide rate of 17.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Vanuatu, that number is 0.3 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 19.4% less likely to die in a road accident
In Costa Rica, road accidents kill 15.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Vanuatu, they kill 12.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 95.0% less home broadband
Costa Rica has 23.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Vanuatu has 1.2 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 46.6% less CO2
Costa Rica emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Vanuatu emits 0.9 tonnes as of 2024.
be 3.8 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 Vanuatu, it causes 57.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), The World Factbook (2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Costa Rica vs. Vanuatu
Vanuatu: At a glance
How big is Vanuatu compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.