Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Belize instead of Costa Rica, you would:

Health

be 3.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Costa Rica, 0.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Belize, that number is 1.2% of people as of 2020.

live 3.8 years less

In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 80 years (77 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2022. In Belize, that number is 76 years (74 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 50.4% less money

Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $25,800 as of 2023, while in Belize, the GDP per capita is $12,800 as of 2023.

be 60.8% more likely to live below the poverty line

In Costa Rica, 25.5% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Belize, however, that number is 41.0% as of 2013.

Life

have 63.9% more children

In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Belize, there are 17.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 5.9 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Costa Rica, approximately 22.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Belize, 130.0 women do as of 2020.

be 32.9% more likely to die during infancy

In Costa Rica, approximately 8.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Belize, on the other hand, 11.2 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 25.3% less likely to have internet access

In Costa Rica, approximately 83.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Belize, about 62.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 12.7% less on healthcare

Costa Rica spends 7.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Belize, that number is 6.9% of GDP as of 2020.

spend 29.9% more on education

Costa Rica spends 6.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Belize spends 8.7% of total GDP on education as of 2021.

Geography

see 70.1% less coastline

Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In Belize, that number is 386 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.

Belize: At a glance

Belize is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 22,806 sq km. Belize was the site of several Mayan city states until their decline at the end of the first millennium A.D. The British and Spanish disputed the region in the 17th and 18th centuries; it formally became the colony of British Honduras in 1854. Territorial disputes between the UK and Guatemala delayed the independence of Belize until 1981. Guatemala refused to recognize the new nation until 1992 and the two countries are involved in an ongoing border dispute. Tourism has become the mainstay of the economy. Current concerns include the country's heavy foreign debt burden, high unemployment, growing involvement in the Mexican and South American drug trade, high crime rates, and one of the highest HIV/AIDS prevalence rates in Central America.
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How big is Belize compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.

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