How much
does it Cost to Live in Costa
Rica?
Despite having one of the highest
standards of living in Latin America, purchasing power is considerably greater in Costa Rica than in the United States or Canada.
In their 2006 Cost of Living Survey, Mercer Human Resources compares costs of goods and services and rates San José among the least expensive cities in the world and the least expensive in Central America. San Jose’s Cost of Living index is 58.1 and it ranks 134th of 144 international cities ranked by Mercer. In the U.S New York ranks 100.0, Los Angles 86.7, Chicago is 84.1 and Miami is ranked 83.8. Panama City was ranked at 68.3 and San Paulo Brazil is at 66.3. San Jose is slightly behind Quito, Ecuador at 54.6 and Caracas Venezuela at 54.4 in the Americas in terms of affordability. Contrasted with the Government stability, the rights afforded to foreigners, and relative safety Costa Rica offers compared to Nicaragua, Venezuela and other Latin countries the choice is clear.
In most areas housing costs less than it does in the U. S. and hired help is a bargain. Utilities (telephone service, electricity, and water) are cheaper than in North America. You never need to heat or cool your home or apartment if living in the Central Valley and other areas since Costa Rica’s climate is so temperate. In most beach areas many people require air conditioning for comfort. In addition property taxes are very low; on a $150,000 house you would pay only a few hundred dollars per year in property taxes ($375) and when you resell your property there are no capital gains taxes in Costa Rica.
Real Estate Costs
As anywhere in the world property prices vary greatly from area to area, beach and city and surrounding suburbs of course are significantly higher than rural properties. You can normally find properties most would be happy in ranging from $85,000 for a small condo into the millions for fabulous beach front and rural estates. Of course personal needs and taste play a large role in what you will pay for your property.
Construction is much less costly than usually found in North America. The majority of construction in Costa Rica is block and concrete which lend to very durable and sound proof structures. A good quality finished house currently would cost about $60-125 per sq. ft to build here. Of course the finishing’s you choose can affect that cost significantly. The contractor is responsible for defects in construction for 5 years.
Building your own home can save you as much as 20-60% over buying an existing home. Talk to us about our network of architects and builders, we can remove the risk involved in building in Costa Rica.
Utility Costs
Utilities are still very inexpensive in Costa Rica. For an average family of 4 the monthly bills will normally be about:
- Water: $18 per month
- Electricity: $ 50 (without air
conditioning or heating a pool)
- High speed Internet: $50 per month- Unlimited home user plan
- Digital Cable TV: $40
Includes 4 HBO stations and NBC,CBS most other English
stations (about 100 stations)
- Local Phone Service: $7.00 per
month
- Long distance call to U.S:
.45c a minute
- Long distance call to U.S
using Internet Phone- 500 minutes $25.00
- Cellular Phone Service runs $8.25 monthly and includes 60 minutes each extra minute costs 6 cents
You need a residency permit or a Costa Rica Corporation to be able to apply for any phone line, even a cell phone, but many Costa Ricans will help with that requirement. Almost all homes come with at least one phone line already working. Cell phones are available through special arrangements with local Costa Ricans. Though the cell phones themselves are cheaper in the U.S., a local invoice must be shown to get the cell phone connected, so buy it locally. Costa Rica recently converted to the GSM system, so don’t buy any other type of phone. International roaming is just being offered by the cell phone company so can use your cell phone when out of the country, but it is expensive
Internet service is available by dial up everywhere in the country. Most communities in the central valley can get a high speed connections of 256k to 1MB. DSL service is currently being rolled out in the central valley and should be more widely available soon. Other options are available to businesses at significant costs.
Automotive Costs
Autos carry a high import tax in Costa Rica. This is one area that is significantly more costly than in the U.S. Generally the cost of a car will run about 59%-80% more than in the U.S.because of the Costa Rican Goverments taxes on all vehicles. This is one of the few areas that is strictly enforced in Costa Rica. You can save a little by importing your own car; ask us about our import services we can save you money, time and headaches by arranging for the import, customs and licensing of your auto. Also talk to us about the best vehicles to bring to Costa Rica. While some argue that it’s better to buy a car here, unless you are buying brand new, that is just not the case. Costa Rica’s roads are very poor and a car takes a terrific beating. Bringing a car that has only touched the pristine roads of the U.S. will save you some dollars and headaches and gives you a car that will last longer. Gasoline is currently running about $3.85per gallon
SUV’s are a very popular option in Costa Rica. They are much better on the poor roads here and give you the opportunity to really explore your new home.
In general, parts are more expensive here and sometimes take time to get. On the other hand, labor is cheaper. So a trip to the mechanic might cost a little less than what you'd pay in the U.S.
Household Help
One of the great things about living in Costa Rica is that you can afford to have a maid and/or a gardener for very little money. By law, you must pay your live-in maid $200 per month, plus food and lodging. In return she must only work 12 hours per day (up to 16 hours if you pay overtime). You must give her 1 hour off each day, to coincide with a meal time. You also must give her 1 half day off per week, a half day off on holidays and 15 days of paid vacation per year. You should also enroll her in the Costa Rica Social Security system, so you would deduct 9% of her salary for this tax, but you must also pay 11% to the "Caja". If a live in maid is not your desire you can easily find daily help which will run $1.25 to $2.00 per hour. Remember, live in help adds another level of security to your home when you are traveling.
Groceries
Groceries will cost about 50%-70% of what you spend in the U.S. But of course a lot depends on what products you buy, the same as anywhere else. Some products have price controls under what is called the "basic food basket". Products imported from the U.S tend to have higher prices than local or imports from other Latin American countries. The good news is the more fresh fruits, vegetables, eggs, meat and poultry you eat the lower your grocery bill will be.
Here are some examples of prices from July
of 2005
- Mozzarella Cheese $4.50Lb
- French's Yellow Mustard
14oz-$1.79
- ACT II Extreme Butter
Microwave popcorn - $.58
- Kellogg’s’ Corn Flakes - box
$2.60
- 1 can Refried Beans - $1.79
- Roma Spaghetti – $2.10 Lb
- Enriched Rice 2.2lbs- $.98
- Hellmann’s Mayonnaise
14oz - $1.85
- Natilla (sour cream)
11oz - $.60
- 20 Bayer Aspirin tablets -
$1.07
- 2 liters milk Dos Pinos -
$1.03
- 12 pack Imperial beer
(national beer) - $9.00
- 4.4 lbs onions - $1.04
- Head of broccoli -$1.18Lb
- Whole Fresh Pineapple- $.89
- Bananas - $.05 each
- Apples Gala - $1.12lb
- Papaya whole 4lbs - $1.85
- Head of American Lettuce- $.42
- Fresh squeezed Orange Juice 1
liter- $1.12
- Fresh baked loaf of French
bread- $1.49
- 18 Large eggs- $1.42
- Butter – $2.09 pound
- Med Shrimp- $7.84 Lb
- Pork chops – $2.39lb
- Beef Tenderloin – $3.80 lb
- Whole Chicken - $.89 lb
- Ground Beef (Round) $1.44 lb
- T- Bone Steak $1.89 lb/ $4.16
kilo
- Johnsonville breakfast Sausage
Frozen $4.62lb
- Coffee $ 2.58 Lb
- 1.3 Gallons Sauvitel liquid
laundry detergent 50 loads- $6.95
- 2.5 liters Coke- $1.67
- 1 Bottle Casillero del Diablo
Cabernet Sauvignon wine $9.99
- Explore the Wines available in Costa Rica as there many very fine yet inexpensive Chilean and Argentinean Wines to be found here.
Entertainment
- First Run Movie in English
(Spanish Sub titles) $3.50
- Join the English speaking
bridge club-Free
- Join the Little Theater Group
help put on or perform in an
- English production
- Join the Republican or
Democrat abroad groups
- Join the New Friendship and
Connection Club to meet new friends.
- Join the gringo gin rummy club
or one of the many other clubs for English speakers
- Attend a free Sunday National
Band Concert
- Dinner for two at a fine
dining restaurant $60 includes bottle of wine. (often
less)
- Membership to Cariari Country
Club $ 10,500 golf /tennis /swimming.
- Unlimited Daily Golf at Valle
Del Sol Public 18 hole course w/ electric cart $45
- Video Rentals DVD 5 for 5 days
$10.00 inc new releases (Hollywood Video)
- Tennis court rental from $4.00
to 10.00 per hour or join a tennis club
- McDonalds 1/4 pounder with
cheese combo $3.45
- Week night at Hotel
& Casino Costa Rica Morazon - $ 40 + tax
- White-Water rafting day trip
$65 per person
- Hotel Tamarindo Diria in
Tamarindo beach - $99 double per night including
breakfast/low season
- Blue Plate Special Downtown
inc drink - $2.50 typical Tico soda
- Super Deluxe Cheeseburger at Gringo hangout in Jacó - $6
Taxes
The Costa Rican government goes to great lengths to encourage investment within its borders. Taxes earned in Costa Rica are low relative to the U.S. and with a good accountant they can be kept to a minimum. It offers up a host of incentives to investors such as no capital gains taxes on real estate, low business taxes, and very low property taxes. As a result, many companies have chosen Costa Rica as an investment site. Companies such as Siemens and Intel are leading the way in the implementation of the infrastructure needed to make Costa Rica the “Silicon Valley of the Americas,”, computer giant Intel has made the central valley of San Jose its new chip making headquarters. Intel's investment in Costa Rica represents the largest ever made in a developing country and the results have been tremendous thus far.
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