Cost of living comparison
compared to
Costa Rica vs. Puerto Rico Cost of Living Summary
Costa Rica is 3.5% more expensive than Puerto Rico overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 0.9% more in Costa Rica
- Groceries
-
pay 16.1% less in Costa Rica
- Transportation
-
pay 45.0% more in Costa Rica
- Housing
-
pay 24.7% less in Costa Rica
- Childcare
-
pay 6.0% more in Costa Rica
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 0.1% less in Costa Rica
- Clothing
-
pay 13.6% more in Costa Rica
The cost of transportation, clothing, childcare, and restaurants in Costa Rica are more expensive than in Puerto Rico. Expenses including housing, groceries, and entertainment and sports are lower in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica vs. Puerto Rico Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Costa Rica instead of Puerto Rico, you would:
pay 0.9% more for restaurants
|
Puerto Rico
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$15.10
|
$9.77
CRC4,857.39
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.01
|
$9.53
CRC4,739.57
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.58
|
$2.00
CRC995.21
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.35
|
$1.57
CRC781.41
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Costa Rica - Cost of restaurants
pay 16.1% less for groceries
|
Puerto Rico
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.18
|
$2.54
CRC1,262.79
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.16
|
$4.50
CRC2,237.94
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.11
|
$7.52
CRC3,740.34
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.34
|
$2.80
CRC1,389.74
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.76
|
$3.83
CRC1,902.77
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.50
|
$1.78
CRC886.81
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.06
|
$0.62
CRC305.74
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.54
|
$1.65
CRC819.01
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.84
|
$1.24
CRC617.46
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.65
|
$1.28
CRC635.24
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.04
|
$1.10
CRC547.12
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Costa Rica - Cost of groceries
pay 45.0% more for transportation
|
Puerto Rico
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.65
|
$5.47
CRC2,719.23
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$35.20
|
$54.59
CRC27,137.81
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,700.00
|
$36,444.91
CRC18,117,972.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$9.22
|
$15.68
CRC7,794.48
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Costa Rica - Cost of transportation
pay 24.7% less for housing
|
Puerto Rico
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.46
|
$49.17
CRC24,446.08
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$800.93
|
$805.28
CRC400,329.95
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$580.00
|
$555.89
CRC276,349.98
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$242.07
|
$63.57
CRC31,602.67
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Costa Rica - Cost of housing
pay 6.0% more for childcare
|
Puerto Rico
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$453.00
|
$517.09
CRC257,060.35
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,760.00
|
$9,552.94
CRC4,749,083.93
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Costa Rica - Cost of childcare
pay 0.1% less for entertainment and sports
|
Puerto Rico
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.73
|
$2.59
CRC1,285.81
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.38
|
$3.84
CRC1,908.38
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.21
|
$4.70
CRC2,336.25
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.37
|
$58.68
CRC29,171.56
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.90
|
$9.11
CRC4,527.37
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Costa Rica - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 13.6% more for clothing
|
Puerto Rico
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$42.97
|
$58.22
CRC28,941.22
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$54.22
|
$44.70
CRC22,222.99
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$81.06
|
$112.79
CRC56,072.28
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$96.00
|
$93.41
CRC46,435.67
|
|
Puerto Rico 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 Puerto Rico. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.