Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Costa Rica instead of Singapore, you would:
Health
live 6.7 years less
In Singapore, the average life expectancy is 86 years (84 years for men, 89 years for women) as of 2022. In Costa Rica, that number is 80 years (77 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2022.
be 4.2 times more likely to be obese
In Singapore, 6.1% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Costa Rica, that number is 25.7% of people as of 2016.
Economy
pay a 31.8% lower top tax rate
Singapore has a top tax rate of 22.0% as of 2016. In Costa Rica, the top tax rate is 15.0% as of 2016.
make 79.8% less money
Singapore has a GDP per capita of $127,500 as of 2023, while in Costa Rica, the GDP per capita is $25,800 as of 2023.
be 2.4 times more likely to be unemployed
In Singapore, 3.5% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Costa Rica, that number is 8.3% as of 2023.
Life
have 22.7% more children
In Singapore, there are approximately 8.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Costa Rica, there are 10.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 3.1 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Singapore, approximately 7.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Costa Rica, 22.0 women do as of 2020.
be 5.4 times more likely to die during infancy
In Singapore, approximately 1.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Costa Rica, on the other hand, 8.4 children do as of 2022.
Expenditures
spend 2.4 times more on education
Singapore spends 2.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Costa Rica spends 6.7% of total GDP on education as of 2020.
spend 29.5% more on healthcare
Singapore spends 6.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Costa Rica, that number is 7.9% of GDP as of 2020.
Geography
see 6.7 times more coastline
Singapore has a total of 193 km of coastline. In Costa Rica, that number is 1,290 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore, Directorate General of Taxation of Costa Rica.
Costa Rica: At a glance
How big is Costa Rica compared to Singapore? See an in-depth size comparison.