Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Italy and Costa Rica

Name: Costa Rica
Address: CR

For one person, living costs are similar in Italy and in Costa Rica: $1,804 and $1,779 a month, rent and utilities included.

89

Cost of Living Index in Italy
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Italy Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Costa Rica
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Costa Rica Living Index

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🇮🇹 Italy

$1,804

/mo nomad

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,779

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Italy and in Costa Rica

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Italy and in Costa Rica actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,804 per month in Italy vs $1,779 in Costa Rica, rent included.

Italy $1,804
Costa Rica $1,779

A couple spends around $2,778 per month in Italy vs $2,745 in Costa Rica, rent included.

Italy $2,778
Costa Rica $2,745

A family of three spends $3,752 per month in Italy vs $3,711 in Costa Rica, rent included.

Italy $3,752
Costa Rica $3,711

The regional cost range is wider in Italy ($1,035–$2,560) than in Costa Rica ($1,004–$2,127), so city choice matters more there.

The cost of living in Italy is about 1% higher than in Costa Rica on average.

Both Italy and Costa Rica are pricier than the global median – Italy by 34%, Costa Rica by 32%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.89 €17.70

$11.77 ₡5,278

68.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.0 €68.5

$55.1 ₡24.7K

39.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.00 €9.78

$10.88 ₡4,880

1.10%

Cappuccino

$1.99 €1.77

$4.50 ₡2,018

-55.78%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.96 €2.63

$2.37 ₡1,063

24.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$1.91 ₡858

-26.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.60 €4.98

$3.25 ₡1,457

72.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.67 €5.05

$4.40 ₡1,974

28.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 €1.43

$2.45 ₡1,098

-34.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.30 €2.05

$3.57 ₡1,599

-35.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.99 €2.66

$2.75 ₡1,235

8.73%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$4.03 ₡1,806

0.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.23 €15.33

$10.04 ₡4,504

71.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.68 €11.28

$10.40 ₡4,665

21.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.36 €18.11

$13.69 ₡6,140

48.72%

Apples (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$5.16 ₡2,313

-50.78%

Banana (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.69 ₡760

27.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.56 €2.28

$3.60 ₡1,613

-28.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.22 €2.86

$3.39 ₡1,519

-5.01%

Potato (1kg)

$1.92 €1.70

$3.36 ₡1,506

-42.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 €1.64

$3.18 ₡1,427

-42.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 €1.34

$1.12 ₡504

34.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$2.66 ₡1,195

-79.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.81 €6.06

$5.38 ₡2,415

26.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.03 €7.15

$16.05 ₡7,197

-49.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 €1.53

$2.71 ₡1,214

-36.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 €2.11

$3.30 ₡1,480

-28.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.88 €1.67

$1.13 ₡507

66.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.31 €38.52

$65.8 ₡29.5K

-34.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.57 €4.95

$2.28 ₡1,021

144.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 €1.45

$2.00 ₡895

-18.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.78 €30.04

$9.08 ₡4,074

272.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 €1.81

$1.54 ₡689

32.47%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$35.6K €31.7K

$32.5K ₡14.6M

9.72%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$35.4K €31.5K

$36.6K ₡16.4M

-3.32%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$222 €198

$95.7 ₡42.9K

132.34%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$11.43 €10.17

$30.83 ₡13.8K

-62.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.65 €27.26

$58.4 ₡26.2K

-47.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 €46.89

$65.6 ₡29.4K

-19.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.82 €21.19

$22.18 ₡9,948

7.39%

Cinema Ticket

$10.51 €9.35

$8.25 ₡3,701

27.39%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$541 €481

$743 ₡333.3K

-27.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.7K €10.4K

$12.7K ₡5.7M

-7.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.0 €80.0

$75.1 ₡33.7K

19.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.08 €34.76

$56.5 ₡25.3K

-30.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 €90.2

$131 ₡59.0K

-22.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 €117

$110 ₡49.2K

20.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 €716

$841 ₡376.9K

-4.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 €550

$655 ₡293.9K

-5.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,388 €1,235

$1,750 ₡784.7K

-20.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,050 €934

$1,177 ₡527.9K

-10.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,623 €3,223

$2,434 ₡1.1M

48.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,229 €1,983

$1,640 ₡735.7K

35.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,889 €1,680

$1,071 ₡480.5K

76.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

9.56

-62.76%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Italy: October 11, 2026

Last update for Costa Rica: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Italy

$619 34.3%

Costa Rica

$655 36.9% 5.9% $37

Groceries & Markets

Italy

$347 19.2%

Costa Rica

$383 21.5% 10.4% $36

Eating Out

Italy

$273 15.1%

Costa Rica

$223 12.5% 18.3% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Italy

$265 14.7%

Costa Rica

$185 10.4% 30.1% $80

Clothing & Footwear

Italy

$163 9%

Costa Rica

$168 9.4% 2.8% $4.6

Sport & Entertainment

Italy

$74 4.1%

Costa Rica

$82 4.6% 11.3% $8.3

Getting Around

Italy

$65 3.6%

Costa Rica

$83 4.6% 27.9% $18

Cost Breakdown

Average rent: $721 in Italy vs $830 in Costa Rica. For reference, capital cities sit at $1,222 in Rome and $927 in San Jose.

Average salary: $1,888 in Italy vs $1,089 in Costa Rica. The income gap affects purchasing power and how far your budget stretches in each country.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 15% higher in Costa Rica.

Dining out costs 35% more in Italy.

Public transport is 173% more expensive in Italy.

Salaries are 73% higher in Italy, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Italy.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Italy

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

🕒 Local time

09:22 9:22 AM

01:22 1:22 AM

8 h behind Italy

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,850,717

5,044,197

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Italy Costa Rica 9,810 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Italy
Costa Rica

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Italy vs Costa Rica: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Costa Rica is the cheaper option – living costs run roughly 1% lower on average.

Not necessarily. Overall, Italy costs about 1% more, but the gap varies by category, and some expenses can be lower in Italy. Compare the categories that matter most for your budget.

$2,000 buys a comfortable lifestyle in Costa Rica, but in Italy it only works with careful planning outside the capital. Same money, very different lives.

Costa Rica is the budget-friendly choice for expats – lower housing and daily costs. But cost isn't everything: visa policies, language, healthcare quality, and job markets all weigh in too.