Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Costa Rica instead of Ireland, you would:
Health
live 2.0 years less
In Ireland, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Costa Rica, that number is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.
be 17.3% more likely to be obese
In Ireland, 27.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Costa Rica, that number is 32.7% of people as of 2024.
see 78.0% less spent on your healthcare
Ireland spends $8,772 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Costa Rica spends $1,928 as of 2023.
have 30.7% fewer doctors per person
Ireland has 38.8 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Costa Rica has 26.9 as of 2022.
Economy
be 47.7% more likely to be unemployed
In Ireland, 4.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Costa Rica, that number is 6.8% as of 2025.
make 84.8% less money
Ireland has a GDP per capita of $131,592 as of 2025, while in Costa Rica, the GDP per capita is $19,970 as of 2025.
Life
be 6.0 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Ireland, approximately 4.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Costa Rica, 24.0 women do as of 2023.
be 2.7 times more likely to die during infancy
In Ireland, approximately 3.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Costa Rica, on the other hand, 9.1 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 10.3% less likely to have internet access
In Ireland, approximately 97.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Costa Rica, about 87.2% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 83.1% more on education
Ireland spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Costa Rica spends 5.3% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 10.9% less coastline
Ireland has a total of 1,448 km of coastline. In Costa Rica, that number is 1,290 km.
Safety
be 27.3 times more likely to be murdered
Ireland has a homicide rate of 0.7 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Costa Rica, that number is 17.8 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 5.5 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Ireland, road accidents kill 2.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Costa Rica, they kill 15.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 27.0% less strain on fresh water
Ireland withdraws 8% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Costa Rica withdraws 6% as of 2022.
find 27.9% less home broadband
Ireland has 32.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Costa Rica has 23.3 as of 2024.
use 63.8% less electricity
Ireland uses 6,298 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Costa Rica uses 2,282 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
emit 73.0% less CO2
Ireland emits 6.0 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Costa Rica emits 1.6 tonnes as of 2024.
be 15.4% more likely to die from air pollution
In Ireland, air pollution causes 13.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Costa Rica, it causes 15.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Ireland vs. Costa Rica
Costa Rica: At a glance
How big is Costa Rica compared to Ireland? See an in-depth size comparison.