Cost of living comparison
compared to
Virgin Islands vs. Costa Rica Cost of Living Summary
Virgin Islands is 93.3% more expensive than Costa Rica overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 70.0% more in Virgin Islands
- Groceries
-
pay 2.7 times more in Virgin Islands
- Transportation
-
pay 54.0% more in Virgin Islands
- Housing
-
pay 2.6 times more in Virgin Islands
- Childcare
-
pay 2.1 times more in Virgin Islands
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 71.1% more in Virgin Islands
- Clothing
-
pay 27.9% more in Virgin Islands
The cost of groceries, housing, childcare, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and transportation in Virgin Islands are more expensive than in Costa Rica. Notably, groceries, housing, and childcare are significantly more expensive in Virgin Islands.
Virgin Islands vs. Costa Rica Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Virgin Islands instead of Costa Rica, you would:
pay 70.0% more for restaurants
|
Costa Rica
|
Virgin Islands
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$9.77
CRC4,772.77
|
$25.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.53
CRC4,657.00
|
$10.48
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
CRC977.87
|
$3.10
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.57
CRC767.80
|
$2.42
|
|
Costa Rica vs. Virgin Islands - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.7 times more for groceries
|
Costa Rica
|
Virgin Islands
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.54
CRC1,240.79
|
$6.43
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.50
CRC2,198.95
|
$8.40
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.52
CRC3,675.18
|
$9.85
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.80
CRC1,365.53
|
$7.46
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.83
CRC1,869.62
|
$11.78
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.78
CRC871.36
|
$4.66
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.62
CRC300.41
|
$2.67
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.65
CRC804.74
|
$3.50
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.24
CRC606.70
|
$4.69
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.28
CRC624.18
|
$1.28
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.10
CRC537.59
|
$2.53
|
|
Costa Rica vs. Virgin Islands - Cost of groceries
pay 54.0% more for transportation
|
Costa Rica
|
Virgin Islands
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.47
CRC2,671.86
|
$5.28
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$54.59
CRC26,665.03
|
$60.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,444.91
CRC17,802,336.11
|
$45,000.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.68
CRC7,658.69
|
$44.85
|
|
Costa Rica vs. Virgin Islands - Cost of transportation
pay 2.6 times more for housing
|
Costa Rica
|
Virgin Islands
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$49.17
CRC24,020.20
|
$98.46
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$805.28
CRC393,355.72
|
$1,513.89
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$555.89
CRC271,535.63
|
$1,216.50
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$63.57
CRC31,052.11
|
$272.68
|
|
Costa Rica vs. Virgin Islands - Cost of housing
pay 2.1 times more for childcare
|
Costa Rica
|
Virgin Islands
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$517.09
CRC252,582.05
|
$1,287.50
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,552.94
CRC4,666,349.20
|
$15,433.33
|
|
Costa Rica vs. Virgin Islands - Cost of childcare
pay 71.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Costa Rica
|
Virgin Islands
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.59
CRC1,263.41
|
$6.50
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.84
CRC1,875.13
|
$6.93
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.70
CRC2,295.55
|
$4.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$58.68
CRC28,663.36
|
$118.33
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.11
CRC4,448.49
|
$11.50
|
|
Costa Rica vs. Virgin Islands - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 27.9% more for clothing
|
Costa Rica
|
Virgin Islands
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$58.22
CRC28,437.03
|
$71.67
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.70
CRC21,835.84
|
$62.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$112.79
CRC55,095.43
|
$146.25
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$93.41
CRC45,626.70
|
$111.67
|
|
Costa Rica vs. Virgin Islands - 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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