🇳🇱 Netherlands vs 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Side by side on the data that actually changes your life: prices, taxes, climate, air, safety. Every number has a source and a date.
Climate (capital)
Open-Meteo historical weather
Jan 4° · Jul 19° · Amsterdam
Jan 20° · Jul 21° · San José
Air quality (capital)
WAQI, capital station
AQI 29 · Good
AQI 20 · Good
Prices vs EU average
Eurostat price level index, EU27 = 100
+16% (2025)
—
Big Mac price
The Economist Big Mac index
$7.05
$6.04
Taxes on salary
OECD tax wedge, single average worker
~36% of labour cost (2025)
~28% of labour cost (2025)
Special tax regimes
Official tax authorities, verified 2026-06
30% ruling (expat ruling)
Territorial taxation
Inflation
World Bank
3.3% / yr (2025)
-0.1% / yr (2025)
Internet (median fixed)
Ookla Speedtest Global Index
~200 Mbps
—
English proficiency
EF English Proficiency Index
very high
—
Messenger apps
OONI network measurements, 6-month window
All measured apps work
All measured apps work
Safety advisory
U.S. State Department travel advisory
Level 2 · Exercise Increased Caution
—
Foreign-born residents
World Bank migrant stock
16.2% of population (2024)
12.2% of population (2024)
Life expectancy
WHO
81 yrs
79 yrs
Currency
ISO 4217
EUR
CRC
Timezone (capital)
Open-Meteo
UTC+2
UTC-6
Climate, inflation and life expectancy verified 2026-07-07. Prices, taxes and air quality verified 2026-07-07. Sources shown per row.
Special tax regimes, verified
Regimes change often and many sites still advertise closed ones. We link the official source for each.
🇳🇱 Netherlands
~30% of salary tax-free · up to 5 years
Verified 2026-06 · Belastingdienst
🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Foreign-source income untaxed
Verified 2026-06 · Ministerio de Hacienda
Numbers are half the story
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