Cost of living comparison
compared to
Costa Rica vs. Samoa Cost of Living Summary
Costa Rica is 55.8% more expensive than Samoa overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 23.9% less in Costa Rica
- Groceries
-
pay 2.2 times more in Costa Rica
- Transportation
-
pay 16.8% less in Costa Rica
- Housing
-
pay 3.0 times more in Costa Rica
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 3.2% less in Costa Rica
The cost of housing and groceries in Costa Rica are more expensive than in Samoa. Expenses including restaurants, transportation, and entertainment and sports are lower in Costa Rica. Notably, housing and groceries are significantly more expensive in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica vs. Samoa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Costa Rica instead of Samoa, you would:
pay 23.9% less for restaurants
|
Samoa
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$53.35
WST150.23
|
$9.77
CRC4,857.39
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.95
WST39.30
|
$9.53
CRC4,739.57
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.07
WST5.84
|
$2.00
CRC995.21
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.30
WST3.65
|
$1.57
CRC781.41
|
|
Samoa vs. Costa Rica - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.2 times more for groceries
|
Samoa
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.81
WST2.28
|
$2.54
CRC1,262.79
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$0.45
WST1.26
|
$4.50
CRC2,237.94
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.80
WST19.14
|
$7.52
CRC3,740.34
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.22
WST11.90
|
$2.80
CRC1,389.74
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.63
WST4.59
|
$3.83
CRC1,902.77
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.28
WST6.42
|
$1.78
CRC886.81
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.81
WST2.29
|
$0.62
CRC305.74
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.81
WST2.29
|
$1.65
CRC819.01
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.96
WST5.51
|
$1.24
CRC617.46
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.63
WST4.59
|
$1.28
CRC635.24
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.49
WST1.38
|
$1.10
CRC547.12
|
|
Samoa vs. Costa Rica - Cost of groceries
pay 16.8% less for transportation
|
Samoa
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.08
WST11.49
|
$5.47
CRC2,719.23
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? |
$54.59
CRC27,137.81
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | ?? |
$36,444.91
CRC18,117,972.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$48.49
WST136.55
|
$15.68
CRC7,794.48
|
|
Samoa vs. Costa Rica - Cost of transportation
pay 3.0 times more for housing
|
Samoa
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$35.92
WST101.15
|
$49.17
CRC24,446.08
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | ?? |
$805.28
CRC400,329.95
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center | ?? |
$555.89
CRC276,349.98
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$13.73
WST38.67
|
$63.57
CRC31,602.67
|
|
Samoa vs. Costa Rica - Cost of housing
pay (unknown) more for childcare
|
Samoa
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | ?? |
$517.09
CRC257,060.35
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | ?? |
$9,552.94
CRC4,749,083.93
|
Samoa vs. Costa Rica - Cost of childcare
pay 3.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
Samoa
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.31
WST12.14
|
$2.59
CRC1,285.81
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.50
WST7.05
|
$3.84
CRC1,908.38
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$6.11
WST17.20
|
$4.70
CRC2,336.25
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym | ?? |
$58.68
CRC29,171.56
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | ?? |
$9.11
CRC4,527.37
|
|
Samoa vs. Costa Rica - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
Samoa
|
Costa Rica
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
?? |
$58.22
CRC28,941.22
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
?? |
$44.70
CRC22,222.99
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
?? |
$112.79
CRC56,072.28
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) | ?? |
$93.41
CRC46,435.67
|
Samoa 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: December 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 Samoa. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.