In this report we ask, can I retire early in Costa Rica on $1500 per month?
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We have been touring around Panama for a few months looking for the best place to retire cheap in paradise. I left the USA in 2007. I have lived in or visited 67 countries so far. We were thinking about heading north from Panama and crossing the border into Costa Rica to continue our research.
But our initial research seems to indicate that Costa Rica has become very expensive. So we are wondering, could it be too expensive for anyone planning to retire on a modest pension. So I have a question for you.
Can I retire early in Costa Rica on $1500 per month?
I was last in Costa Rica in January of 2012. In 2012, some of my favorite places in Costa Rica were Playa de Coco, Playa de Tamarinda, Montezuma, Escazu, and some of the villages around Mount Arenal.
But when I search for accommodations in those areas now, the prices seem even higher than they were 10 years ago. Some appear to be more expensive than many parts of the USA. Of course, these are furnished apartments on Airbnb that include utilities, so these short-term stays are much more expensive than long-term leases, often more than double.
We all know that most short-term Airbnb landlords make a nice profit on accommodations, so these elevated prices do not represent what I would have to pay if I were to negotiate long-term rents on an unfurnished apartment, furnish my own place, and then pay my own utilities.
So I could easily deduct the 20 to 50% profit these landlords are making on Airbnb prices to get an estimate of rents if I were to move there and rent another apartment long-term. Additionally, most of the places listed on Airbnb are Americanized places with dishwashers, microwaves, toasters, coffee makers, fancy furniture, and decorations.
They are not the simple kinds of places that many moderate-income retirees would be willing to rent in if they moved to Costa Rica full time. For example, all I would require is a simple one-bedroom apartment with a refrigerator and gas stove and basic furniture. I would be happy in less westernized more typically Costa Rican apartments.
But even with those adjustments, it looks like 1 bedroom apartment rents in many of these desirable areas I am familiar with have pushed Costa Rica out of the modest range for most retirees.
So, now I am wondering, has Costa Rica become so expensive that it is not just at the higher end of Latin American prices, but is now as expensive as some of the more culturally rich Mediterranean villages in places like Greece, Spain, and even small Italian towns, just as an example.
If so, the exodus from Costa Rica that we are all reading about online every day is likely to accelerate as more ex-pats in Costa Rica become aware of this. We are in Panama now and many of the ex-pats we meet here came from Costa Rica. As one said to me, Costa Rica is beautiful, but it doesn’t live up to everything being said about it online when compared to other retirement destinations around the world.
If you are from the USA, you are likely aware that certain organizations constantly rank Costa Rica as one of the best places to retire in the world. So I am wondering if the extremely successful marketing of Costa Rica has made it so fat, that it can no longer compete with more interesting culturally rich destinations in Eastern Europe, SE Asia, South America, Mexico, and smaller unknown cities within 30 minutes of the Mediterranean Sea?
So I have a proposition for you! I have never done this before. If you are living in Costa Rica on $1500 per month or less, preferably $1200 per month, and you are willing to come on my YouTube channel as a guest star and explain how you are able to live on $1500 per month in Costa Rica, I would be willing to pay you $100, if, and only if, we publish your guest star interview video on our channel.
I do interviews all the time on my channel. I just don’t normally pay people to do these interviews. I am only willing to pay one or two people this time because I want to find a few honest examples of people who are retired in Costa Rica on $1500 per month.
Then I will be able to confirm whether or not Costa Rica is worth a second look for my audience. I will put a link below this video so you can send me an email. In the email, or in the comments below this video, please share the following with us.
What part of Costa Rica are you living in, beach, mountains, central plains? What are your rents, utilities, and groceries? Do you drive a car or ride public transportation? What other expenses do you have? What are some of your favorite tricks to stay on budget in Costa Rica? If you are interested in sharing your story on my channel, click the “contact me” link in the notes below this video.
You Can’t Live in Costa Rica for $1500 per month?
Whenever I do low cost of living reports around the world, someone will leave a comment something like, “You can’t live here on so little money.” But the people saying this often have retirement incomes of double or triple. So they can’t even imagine how it could be done. But I think it is useful to note that locals often live on even less than frugal ex-pats.
So if many locals are able to live on $1500 per month, why couldn’t a very frugal ex-pat be able to live on $1500 a month? For example, today on this webpage, you will see how local Costa Ricans on moderate incomes are living on salaries of $6 million to $16 million CRC, which is about $10,000 to $20,000 per year.
That moderate local annual salary translates to about $800 to $1600 per month before taxes. So how could it be completely impossible to live on $1500 USD per month when many Costa Ricans on moderate salaries are supporting small families on around $800 to $1600 per month?
So what they really mean when they say you can’t live on $1500 per month, is that they can’t live on $1500 month. That is fine. It also means that they have pensions of more than $1500 per month if they are living on more. So they probably just mean they are unwilling to live moderately because they have more money. There is nothing wrong with that. But not everyone has more than $1500 USD per month.
Most moderate-income retirees in more expensive countries just stay in their home country. There is nothing wrong with that either. But many of these home countries have even higher costs of living. So some retirees have decided to try living in places with lower costs of living.
So, if someone only has $1500 per month pension, should they just stay in their home country even though it is more expensive? Maybe Costa Rica is too expensive for them, but we have lived on less than $1000 per month in several countries, as you will learn on VagabondBuddha.com. Subscribe to watch us move around the world.
What is the average Social Security in the USA?
The average social security check for retired workers in the USA is about $1553 per month. Add to this the fact that “21% of married couples and 45% of single persons rely on Social Security for 90% or more of their income.” This is why many people are trying to live on less.
That means there are millions of Americans trying to live on less than $1500 per month in the USA. So how could it be impossible to live in cheaper countries on $1500 per month when millions of people are already doing it in one of the most expensive countries in the world?
Now I am not saying that Costa Rica is where you should retire cheap in paradise. In fact, despite being ranked as the number one place in the world for retirees many years in a row by one of my competitors, I don’t ever see Costa Rica being rated in the top 10 in the world. I just don’t see it.
It is certainly a place of striking beauty, amazing and varied climates from sea level to high mountains, beautiful hiking and protected national parks, many western restaurants and places to recreate, and beaches both on the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean.
And, you will certainly be satisfied if your wallet is fatter and you are a surfer that enjoys being in beach communities full of Americans willing to help you learn everything about living the Vida Loca. But number one in the world. That is a bit of a stretch in my humble opinion.
If you consider yourself a cultural explorer, and you love experiencing ancient cultures with thousand-year-old ruins, traditional arts, and clothing, museums, performing arts, and ancient colonial-era cities, all while maintaining a budget well below $2000 USD per month, Costa Rica may not hold the top spot for your retirement dreams.
But I have not been to Costa Rica for nine years, so maybe I am have misunderstood why so many ex-pats have decided to move to Costa Rica and call it home. If you have time, I would really appreciate knowing some of your favorite spots in Costa Rica where you can get away from the hustle and bustle of the popular beach communities? Can you help us understand?
Do You Know any Communities Like this in Costa Rica?
Here are some of the factors that make a place feel like home to us. Have you been anywhere in Costa Rica that feels like this?
We like walkable cities. We would like to be within walking distance of fresh fruits and vegetable markets even if it is only open a day or two per week. We prefer to buy our fruits and vegetables from a farmer family rather than a chain grocery store.
We like to be within walking distance of coffee shops, restaurants, bars, and small businesses in a central walkable area rather than near large shopping malls that require vehicles to visit. Ideally, we like older towns populated mostly by locals that have a central park with people of all ages enjoying their family and friends. Those are great for people watching.
Often these sorts of walkable areas will have businesses that seem to be catering mostly to locals but may also have some restaurants and other businesses that are geared toward ex-pats.
Do you know of any affordable towns that are more local in flavor? Where the prices have been less influenced by the influx of international incomes pushing up prices? Where do the restaurants serve food intended to attract Costa Ricans mostly? Where ex-pats seem interested in learning the local culture rather than wholly focused on importing their culture? If you could share such information in the notes below this YouTube video or email them to us at the below ‘Contact Us’ link, it would be greatly appreciated.
Also, if you have a business or YouTube Channel in Costa Rica and would like to collaborate on our discovery of the virtues of Costa Rica, please let us know.
Make sure to visit VagabondBuddha.com to see our catalog of over 80+ retire cheap in paradise reports all over the world. And grab a free copy of my ebook, “How I Fired My Boss and Traveled the World for 14+ Years.”
This is Dan of Vagabond Awake, the Youtube Channel for VagabondBuddha.com. The world is your home. What time will you be home for dinner?