Cost of living comparison
compared to
Costa Rica vs. Portugal Cost of Living Summary
Costa Rica is 7.3% more expensive than Portugal overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.1% less in Costa Rica
- Groceries
-
pay 35.1% more in Costa Rica
- Transportation
-
pay 10.0% more in Costa Rica
- Housing
-
pay 14.7% less in Costa Rica
- Childcare
-
pay 4.0% less in Costa Rica
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 19.7% more in Costa Rica
The cost of groceries, entertainment and sports, and transportation in Costa Rica are more expensive than in Portugal. Expenses including housing, childcare, restaurants, and clothing are lower in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica vs. Portugal Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Costa Rica instead of Portugal, you would:
pay 2.1% less for restaurants
|
Portugal
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$13.13
€11.40
|
$9.77
CRC4,884.76
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.44
€8.19
|
$9.53
CRC4,766.28
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.93
€1.67
|
$2.00
CRC1,000.81
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.40
€1.21
|
$1.57
CRC785.81
|
|
Portugal vs. Costa Rica - Cost of restaurants
pay 35.1% more for groceries
|
Portugal
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.52
€1.32
|
$2.54
CRC1,269.90
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.73
€4.98
|
$4.50
CRC2,250.55
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.12
€3.58
|
$7.52
CRC3,761.42
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.14
€2.72
|
$2.80
CRC1,397.57
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.42
€2.97
|
$3.83
CRC1,913.49
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.06
€0.92
|
$1.78
CRC891.81
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.68
€0.59
|
$0.62
CRC307.46
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.84
€0.73
|
$1.65
CRC823.62
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.17
€1.01
|
$1.24
CRC620.94
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.74
€0.64
|
$1.28
CRC638.82
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.90
€0.78
|
$1.10
CRC550.20
|
|
Portugal vs. Costa Rica - Cost of groceries
pay 10.0% more for transportation
|
Portugal
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.46
€6.48
|
$5.47
CRC2,734.56
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$39.12
€33.96
|
$54.59
CRC27,290.73
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,916.24
€30,310.54
|
$36,444.91
CRC18,220,071.91
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$12.78
€11.09
|
$15.68
CRC7,838.40
|
|
Portugal vs. Costa Rica - Cost of transportation
pay 14.7% less for housing
|
Portugal
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$41.01
€35.60
|
$49.17
CRC24,583.84
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$954.63
€828.71
|
$805.28
CRC402,585.90
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$787.92
€683.99
|
$555.89
CRC277,907.28
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$95.92
€83.26
|
$63.57
CRC31,780.76
|
|
Portugal vs. Costa Rica - Cost of housing
pay 4.0% less for childcare
|
Portugal
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$512.86
€445.21
|
$517.09
CRC258,508.95
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$10,479.69
€9,097.34
|
$9,552.94
CRC4,775,846.13
|
|
Portugal vs. Costa Rica - Cost of childcare
pay 19.7% more for entertainment and sports
|
Portugal
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.56
€2.22
|
$2.59
CRC1,293.06
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.05
€1.78
|
$3.84
CRC1,919.13
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$6.30
€5.47
|
$4.70
CRC2,349.42
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.69
€38.80
|
$58.68
CRC29,335.95
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$8.76
€7.60
|
$9.11
CRC4,552.88
|
|
Portugal vs. Costa Rica - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
Portugal
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$82.22
€71.38
|
$58.22
CRC29,104.31
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$39.56
€34.34
|
$44.70
CRC22,348.22
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$89.53
€77.72
|
$112.79
CRC56,388.26
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$103.44
€89.80
|
$93.41
CRC46,697.34
|
Portugal vs. Costa Rica - 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: November 2025
Change currency:
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Costa Rica or Portugal. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.