Cost of living comparison
compared to
New Orleans vs. Costa Rica Cost of Living Summary
New Orleans is 52.7% more expensive than Costa Rica overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 68.4% more in New Orleans
- Groceries
-
pay 41.7% more in New Orleans
- Transportation
-
pay 15.9% less in New Orleans
- Housing
-
pay 2.1 times more in New Orleans
- Childcare
-
pay 2.0 times more in New Orleans
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 62.5% more in New Orleans
- Clothing
-
pay 6.5% less in New Orleans
The cost of housing, childcare, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and groceries in New Orleans are more expensive than in Costa Rica. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in New Orleans. Notably, housing and childcare are significantly more expensive in New Orleans.
New Orleans vs. Costa Rica Cost Breakdown
If you lived in New Orleans instead of Costa Rica, you would:
pay 68.4% more for restaurants
|
Costa Rica
|
New Orleans
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$9.77
CRC4,772.77
|
$26.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.53
CRC4,657.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
CRC977.87
|
$2.96
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.57
CRC767.80
|
$2.10
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Orleans - Cost of restaurants
pay 41.7% more for groceries
|
Costa Rica
|
New Orleans
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.54
CRC1,240.79
|
$4.10
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.50
CRC2,198.95
|
$7.67
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.52
CRC3,675.18
|
$5.27
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.80
CRC1,365.53
|
$4.54
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.83
CRC1,869.62
|
$4.97
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.78
CRC871.36
|
$2.31
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.62
CRC300.41
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.65
CRC804.74
|
$2.30
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.24
CRC606.70
|
$2.46
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.28
CRC624.18
|
$1.91
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.10
CRC537.59
|
$1.33
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Orleans - Cost of groceries
pay 15.9% less for transportation
|
Costa Rica
|
New Orleans
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.47
CRC2,671.86
|
$2.98
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$54.59
CRC26,665.03
|
$45.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,444.91
CRC17,802,336.11
|
$36,884.90
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.68
CRC7,658.69
|
$15.43
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Orleans - Cost of transportation
pay 2.1 times more for housing
|
Costa Rica
|
New Orleans
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$49.17
CRC24,020.20
|
$71.46
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$805.28
CRC393,355.72
|
$1,825.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$555.89
CRC271,535.63
|
$1,166.67
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$63.57
CRC31,052.11
|
$174.91
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Orleans - Cost of housing
pay 2.0 times more for childcare
|
Costa Rica
|
New Orleans
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$517.09
CRC252,582.05
|
$1,563.89
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,552.94
CRC4,666,349.20
|
$10,230.00
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Orleans - Cost of childcare
pay 62.5% more for entertainment and sports
|
Costa Rica
|
New Orleans
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.59
CRC1,263.41
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.84
CRC1,875.13
|
$5.61
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.70
CRC2,295.55
|
$8.75
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$58.68
CRC28,663.36
|
$62.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.11
CRC4,448.49
|
$13.00
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Orleans - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.5% less for clothing
|
Costa Rica
|
New Orleans
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$58.22
CRC28,437.03
|
$55.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.70
CRC21,835.84
|
$43.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$112.79
CRC55,095.43
|
$71.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$93.41
CRC45,626.70
|
$112.50
|
|
Costa Rica vs. New Orleans - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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