12 tips for Living Cheaply in Costa Rica
1. Living Cheap by Renting or Buying Where Property is Cheaper
The bottom line is where you decide to live can have a impact on your cost of living in Costa Rica. So, do your due diligence and explore areas that fit your budget and lifestyle.
2. Take Advantage of the Many FREE Things to do in Costa Rica
There many things to do in Costa Rica that free. To find them look at the on-line English newspapers. Also, look at the expat groups and Facebook for activities.
3. Living Cheap by Shopping for Groceries at stores Other than the Auto Mercado and other high-end stores shopping at stores like Palí.
Stores like Pricesmart offer discounts on bulk items.
The huge roofed Mercado Central in downtown San José also has very affordable food. Nearby by stores also have very low prices. Most good-sized towns in Costa Rica have indoor markets.
Weekend outdoor farmers markets offer fruit and vegetables at much lower prices than traditional supermarkets. Many large supermarkets owned by Chinese also have some bargains.
Look in the Spanish newspapers for discounts and sales on food.
Many grocery chains offer discount days which are advertised in local newspapers.
4. Sign Up for Programs that allow you to accumulate points
Many grocery store chains give expats the opportunity to accumulate points with each purchase. Once you have a certain number of points you can exchange them for products.
5. Use Buses or Uber for Transportation
It is quite possible to live without a car in Costa Rica. Add car insurance, high gas prices, yearly automobile taxes (marchamo) and you will spend a lot of money Automobiles are expensive here because of import taxes. Public transportation is both excellent and affordable in Costa Rica.
6. Choose a neighborhood where you can walk everywhere.
First, and foremost you can improve your health.
Look for an area that has grocery stores, malls, parks and businesses.
7. Shop at discount drugstores and purchase generics.
In Costa Rica medication is typically purchased at pharmacies (farmacias), which are easy to find. And it seems like they can be found every few blocks in some neighborhoods. Also, many pharmacies offer domicilio (delivery) services for free or a low price.
In addition, pharmacies can be found in many shopping malls as well as many of the large supermarkets..
La Bomba and Farmavalue discount chains have the lowest prices.
8. Shop at discount store like el Pequeño Mundo instead of expensive malls.
There are areas in downtown San José, Heredia and Alajuela where Costa Ricans shop because of the bargains. I know many an expat who purchases most everything in these places.
9. Buy used American clothing
There are stores like the Paca Loca where high quality used clothing from the U.S. may be purchased at rock bottom prices.
10. Use Free Wi-Fi and WhatsApp
Free Wi-Fi is available at many places inCosta Rica, even in many public parks. The Majority of malls have free Wi-Fi and many restaurants and cafés have free Wi-Fi.
Also, most people living in Costa Rica use WhatsApp to call and send messages, which is free when you use. Also, with this app you can make calls, send photos and have group chats.
11. Use a Prepaid Cell Phone to save money
Costa Rica has two cell phone options: a prepaid (prepago) plan where you pay for minutes in advance and a postpaid (postpago) plan that is a monthly plan.
In general, a prepaid plan is typically cheaper unless you make a lot of calls or need a lot of data..
Postpaid monthly plans are more expensive.
Surprisingly easy easy to get prepaid (prepago) mobile services established in Costa Rica. And you can recharge cell phones in so many places.
12. Eat the Plato del Día Lunch Specials
The plato del día normally includes a soup or salad, a main course of meat, chicken or fish plus sides of salad, rice and/or rice and a drink.
The Bottom Line: Affordable living in Costa Rica
There are many ways to live affordably in Costa Rica by following our tips above.
It’s possible to live a wide range of lifestyles in the city that will iaffect your cost of living in Costa Rica. But following some of our tips above can help reduce your cost of living in Costa Rica regardless of the lifestyle you live.
