A common gripe heard among North American expats and tourists in Costa Rica is their disappointment at not being able to exert their purchasing power in a Third World Country.

The constant nagging about how expensive Costa Rica appears to be often results in a less-than-pleasant quality of life experience, particularly for expats on a fixed income and tourists whose shoestring budgets would make backpackers worry.

Inevitably, cost of living comparisons arise: some of these comparisons are dubious, such as “Ramen soup costs $0.50 at AutoMercado. I can get 10 for a dollar at the Publix supermarket in Okahumpka, FL.” Other comparisons are more reasonable: “Gasoline is so much cheaper in Edmonton; I guess that is an advantage of an  oil-producing nation.”

Economists who research microeconomics on a global level often present data in cost-of-living comparison tables, which they admit may not be the most accurate representation due to the high variance of salary schemes, currency valuations and lifestyles. For example, a legislator in Costa Rica will likely earn more than her counterpart at the Arkansas General Assembly, but it is important to remember that lawmakers in the Razorback State also get per diem pay and are likely to be engaged in external business activities that they can advance through their public office.

Two of the most popular economic indices related to cost of living or purchasing power were recently updated for mid-2016, and neither of them list Costa Rica as the most expensive in the world or even in the Americas.

The Economist’s Big Mac Index is a global burger-based exchange-rate chart that:

is based on the theory of purchasing-power parity (PPP), the notion that global exchange rates should eventually adjust to make the price of identical baskets of goods the same in each country.

The Economist states that a Big Mac costs 2,250 colones in Costa Rica, which is about $4.12. That would make a visit to McDonald’s more expensive than in the United States, but cheaper than in the European Union, Brazil, Denmark, Canada, Australia, Israel, Switzerland, Sweden, etc. In Latin America and the Caribbean, Costa Rica is home to the most expensive Big Macs after Bermuda and the Bahamas. Big Macs are cheaper in Uruguay, Chile, Argentina, Peru, Mexico, and even Venezuela.

Numbeo’s Cost of Living Index is relative to New York City (NYC). Which means that for New York City, each index should be 100(%). This index excludes rent is a relative indicator of consumer goods price, including groceries, restaurants, transportation and utilities. This doesn’t include accommodation expenses such as rent or mortgage.

According to Numbeo, the most expensive country place in the world is not Costa Rica; it is Hamilton, Bermuda followed by Zurich in Switzerland. San Jose, Costa Rica is listed 190 spots lower than Hamilton, just below Palma de Mallorca in Spain and just above Buenos Aires, Argentina. In the Americas, Hamilton and New York City are the most expensive; Costa Rica is listed at the 100 spot, below Panama City and just above Buenos Aires.

The most affordable places cities listed by Numbeo in the Americas are Cali in Colombia and Guadalajara in Mexico. Numbeo does not track Nicaragua.