Quality of life comparison

compared to

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

Health

be 11.7% less likely to be obese

In Costa Rica, 25.7% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Haiti, that number is 22.7% of people as of 2016.

be 4.8 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 Haiti, that number is 1.9% of people as of 2020.

live 13.7 years less

In Costa Rica, the average life expectancy is 80 years (77 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2022. In Haiti, that number is 66 years (63 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 88.8% less money

Costa Rica has a GDP per capita of $25,800 as of 2023, while in Haiti, the GDP per capita is $2,900 as of 2023.

be 76.1% more likely to be unemployed

In Costa Rica, 8.3% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Haiti, that number is 14.6% as of 2023.

be 2.3 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In Costa Rica, 25.5% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Haiti, however, that number is 58.5% as of 2012.

Life

have 96.3% more children

In Costa Rica, there are approximately 10.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Haiti, there are 21.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 15.9 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 Haiti, 350.0 women do as of 2020.

be 37.0% less likely to be literate

In Costa Rica, the literacy rate is 98.0% as of 2021. In Haiti, it is 61.7% as of 2016.

be 4.8 times 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 Haiti, on the other hand, 40.0 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 50.7% less likely to have access to electricity

In Costa Rica, approximately 100% of the population has electricity access as of 2022. In Haiti, 49% of the population do as of 2022.

be 53.0% less likely to have internet access

In Costa Rica, approximately 83.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Haiti, about 39.0% do as of 2021.

be 23.5% less likely to have access to improved drinking water

In Costa Rica, approximately 100% of people have improved drinking water access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Haiti, that number is 76% of people on average (92% in urban areas, and 56% in rural areas) as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 79.1% less on education

Costa Rica spends 6.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Haiti spends 1.4% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 58.2% less on healthcare

Costa Rica spends 7.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Haiti, that number is 3.3% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 37.3% more coastline

Costa Rica has a total of 1,290 km of coastline. In Haiti, that number is 1,771 km.

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

Haiti: At a glance

Haiti is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 27,560 sq km. The native Taino - who inhabited the island of Hispaniola when it was discovered by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1492 - were virtually annihilated by Spanish settlers within 25 years. In the early 17th century, the French established a presence on Hispaniola. In 1697, Spain ceded to the French the western third of the island, which later became Haiti. The French colony, based on forestry and sugar-related industries, became one of the wealthiest in the Caribbean but only through the heavy importation of African slaves and considerable environmental degradation. In the late 18th century, Haiti's nearly half million slaves revolted under Toussaint L'OUVERTURE. After a prolonged struggle, Haiti became the first post-colonial black-led nation in the world, declaring its independence in 1804. Currently the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, Haiti has experienced political instability for most of its history. After an armed rebellion led to the forced resignation and exile of President Jean-Bertrand ARISTIDE in February 2004, an interim government took office to organize new elections under the auspices of the United Nations. Continued instability and technical delays prompted repeated postponements, but Haiti inaugurated a democratically elected president and parliament in May of 2006. This was followed by contested elections in 2010 that resulted in the election of Haiti's current President, Michel MARTELLY. A massive magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti in January 2010 with an epicenter about 25 km (15 mi) west of the capital, Port-au-Prince. Estimates are that over 300,000 people were killed and some 1.5 million left homeless. The earthquake was assessed as the worst in this region over the last 200 years.
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How big is Haiti compared to Costa Rica? See an in-depth size comparison.

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