National Identity
- Official name
- Republic of Costa Rica
- Official name (in Spanish)
- República de Costa Rica
- Name etymology
the name means "rich coast" in Spanish; Christopher COLUMBUS named it in 1502, referring to the region's abundant vegetation and water
Sources:- Political constitution of the Republic of Costa Rica ↗ - Costa Rican Legal Information System
- The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- National emblem
- National flag
Translated from Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica The national flag is tricolour, formed of five horizontal stripes: the first and the fifth are blue [...] the second and the fourth white [...] and a red stripe in the centre, twice as wide as the others
Unofficial translation by WorldometerTranslated from Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica the first and the fifth are blue, which represent the sky of our country, the second and the fourth white, which represent peace, and a red stripe in the centre, twice as wide as the others, which represents the blood of those who fell for freedom.
Unofficial translation by WorldometerTranslated from the National Printing Office of Costa Rica History tells that the design of the current flag was inspired by the flag of France, proposed by Doña Pacífica Fernández Oreamuno, wife of the Head of State at that time, Doctor José María Castro Madriz, on 29 September 1848.
Unofficial translation by WorldometerSources:- rree.go.cr ↗ - Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica
- imprentanacional.go.cr ↗ - the National Printing Office of Costa Rica
- National anthem
- Himno Nacional de Costa Rica1:50
- Title (in Spanish)
- Himno Nacional de Costa Rica
- Title (in English, translated)
- Costa Rican National Anthem
- Unofficial title (in Spanish)
- Noble patria, tu hermosa bandera
- Unofficial title (in English, translated)
- Noble homeland, your beautiful flag
- Lyrics
Noble patria tu hermosa bandera Expresión de tu vida nos da: Bajo el límpido azul de tu cielo Blanca y pura descansa la paz.
En la lucha tenaz de fecunda labor Que enrojece del hombre la faz, Conquistaron tus hijos, labriegos sencillos, Eterno prestigio, estima y honor, Eterno prestigio, estima y honor.
¡Salve oh tierra gentil, salve oh madre de amor! Cuando alguno pretenda tu gloria manchar, Verás a tu pueblo, valiente y viril La tosca herramienta en arma trocar.
¡Salve oh patria! tu pródigo suelo Dulce abrigo y sustento nos da; Bajo el límpido azul de tu cielo ¡Vivan siempre el trabajo y la paz!
Source: - Citizens
- Costa Ricans
- Official name:Political constitution of the Republic of Costa Rica ↗ - Costa Rican Legal Information System
- Official name, Citizens:The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- National flag:rree.go.cr ↗ - Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica
- National flag:imprentanacional.go.cr ↗ - the National Printing Office of Costa Rica
- National anthem:nationalanthems.info ↗
Geography
- Location
- Total area
- 51,100 km²
- Land area
- 51,060 km²
- Water area
- 40 km²
- Land borders
- 661 km(2 countries)
- Coastline
- 1,290 km
- Terrain
Coastal plains separated by rugged mountains including over 100 volcanic cones, of which several are major active volcanoes - Mean elevation
- 746 m
- Highest point
- 3,819 mCerro Chirripo
- Lowest point
- 0 mPacific Ocean
- Climate
Tropical and subtropical dry season (December to April); rainy season (May to November); cooler in highlands - Avg. temperature
- 23.1 °C
- Avg. daily range
- 20.4 to 26.7 °C
- Annual precipitation
- 3,369 mm
Temperature °CMeanDaily rangePrecipitation mmMonthly climate normals Month Avg. high, °C Mean, °C Avg. low, °C Precipitation, mm January 25.9 22.3 19.3 120 February 26.5 22.7 19.5 81 March 27.3 23.3 19.9 78 April 28 23.9 20.7 125 May 27.4 23.8 21.2 375 June 27 23.5 21.2 389 July 26.7 23.2 20.9 364 August 26.9 23.3 20.8 383 September 26.9 23.1 20.7 402 October 26.4 22.9 20.6 469 November 26 22.6 20.3 377 December 25.9 22.4 19.8 206 Country-wide averages over 1991–2020.
Sources:- The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- Climate Change Knowledge Portal (ERA5 reanalysis) ↗ - World Bank
- Weather
- Loading
- Land use2023
- Arable3.3%Perm. crops7.4%Pasture22.5%Forest58.4%Other8.4%
- Arable land
- 167,133 hectares (3.3%)
- Permanent crops
- 377,214 hectares (7.4%)
- Permanent meadows & pastures
- 1,147,985 hectares (22.5%)
- Forest
- 2,982,604 hectares (58.4%)
- Other land
- 431,063 hectares (8.4%)
Source: - Natural hazards2026
- Earthquakes9.1Very high#14/191Tsunamis8.3Very high#11/191Epidemics5.2High#86/191Coastal floods4.1Medium#87/191River floods2.4Very low#137/191Tropical cyclones1.4Very low#56/191Drought1.0Very low#152/191
Scores out of 10, ranks out of 191 countries.
Source:- INFORM Risk Index ↗ - European Commission Joint Research Centre
- Location, Land borders, Coastline, Terrain, Mean elevation, Highest point, Lowest point, Climate:The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- Climate:Climate Change Knowledge Portal (ERA5 reanalysis) ↗ - World Bank
- Land use:FAOSTAT Land Use domain ↗ - FAO
- Natural hazards:INFORM Risk Index ↗ - European Commission Joint Research Centre
Demographics
- Population change2026
- +0.42% per year+21,839 people/yearWorld Rank149thof 237
- Birth rate
- 9.7 per 1,000 population
- Death rate
- 5.8 per 1,000 population
- Net migration rate
- +0.2 per 1,000 population
- 2026
- 35.7 yearsWorld Rank100thof 237
- Age structure2026
- 0-14 years17.8%15-64 years68.9%65 years +13.3%
- Share aged 65 and over
- 13.3%
- Share aged under 18
- 22.0%
- Total dependency ratio
- 45
- Youth dependency ratio
- 26
- Elderly dependency ratio
- 19
- Sex ratio
- 0.98 male / female
MaleAgeFemalePopulation by age group, % of total population Age Male Female 80+ 1.1% 1.7% 70-79 2.7% 3.2% 60-69 4.7% 5.3% 50-59 5.5% 6.0% 40-49 7.1% 7.3% 30-39 8.0% 7.8% 20-29 7.5% 7.2% 10-19 7.0% 6.7% 0-9 5.6% 5.4% - 2026
- 0.79 below the replacement level for Costa Rica ()1.31 births per womanreplacement 2.10123World Rank211thof 237
- 0.63 daughters per woman0.37 below replacement, long-run each generation smaller than the lastreplacement 1.000.511.5
- 2026
- +3.9 per 1,000 populationfor every 1,000 people, 3.9 more births than deaths a year
- 2026
- +0.2 per 1,000 population
- Urbanization2026
- 80.1% live in 4,146,550 urban residents
- Largest urban areas2020
- San José, Heredia, Cartago, AlajuelaRankUrban AreaPopulation (2020 unofficial estimate)1San José1,453,5002Heredia367,9003Cartago232,3004Alajuela196,9005Puntarenas87,5006San Isidro de El General66,3007Limón65,3008Liberia59,1009San Rafael de Alajuela57,50010San Ramón de los Palmares40,600Source:
- National Institute of Statistics and Censuses, Costa Rica (2020 unofficial estimate), via City Population by Thomas Brinkhoff ↗
- Population distribution
- Roughly half of the nation's population resides in urban areas; the capital of San Jose is the largest city and home to approximately one fifth of the population.
- Ethnic groups2011
- White or Mestizo83.6%Mulatto6.7%Indigenous2.4%Black or African descent1.1%Other1.1%None2.9%Unspecified2.2%
- Religions2021
- Roman Catholic47.5%Evangelical and Pentecostal19.8%Jehovah's Witness1.4%Other Protestant1.2%Other3.1%None27.0%
- Languages
- Spanish (Español)
- Population, Population change, Median age, Age structure, Total fertility rate, Net reproduction rate, Natural change, Net migration rate:UN World Population Prospects ↗
- Urbanization:UN World Urbanization Prospects ↗
- Largest cities:National Institute of Statistics and Censuses, Costa Rica (2020 unofficial estimate), via City Population by Thomas Brinkhoff ↗
- Population distribution, Ethnic groups, Religions:The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
Government & Administration
- Form of state
- RepublicThe President of the Republic is elected by popular vote on a joint slate with the Vice-Presidents for four years, with a second round if no slate exceeds forty per cent (Arts. 134, 138).
- System of government
- PresidentialThe President exercises executive power with the ministers, whom he appoints and removes freely; the Legislative Assembly may censure ministers by two thirds, with no stated consequence, and the text gives no power to dissolve it (Arts. 130, 139, 121, 107).Source:
- Constitución Política de la República de Costa Rica de 7 de noviembre de 1949 (y sus reformas) ↗, Arts. 130, 139, 121, 107
- Territorial organisation
- Unitary
- Official websites
- Capital
- San José1.5 million people(2025)
- National holidays
- 9 days in 2026
- ThuJan 1New Year's Day
- ThuApr 2Maundy Thursday
- FriApr 3Good Friday
- SatApr 11Juan Santamaría Day
- FriMay 1International Labor Day
- SatJul 25Annexation of the Party of Nicoya to Costa Rica
- SatAug 15Mother's Day
- TueSep 15Independence Day
- FriDec 25Christmas Day
Nationwide public holidays only, excluding regional, bank and government-only days.
- Time
- CSTCentral Standard TimeUTC−6
- Currency
- Costa Rican Colón (CRC)
- Entry requirements
- Official visa and entry information (in Spanish)
- Calling code
- +506
- Internet TLD
- .cr
- ISO 3166-1 codes
- CR, CRI
- Infrastructure
- Passengers carried
- 1,971,057 by the country's airlines(2023)
- Heliports
- 8
- Aircraft departures
- 15,698 by the country's airlines(2023)
- Air freight
- 7.2 million tonne-km(2023)
- Aircraft registration prefix
- TI
Sources:- The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Passenger rail
- INCOFER (in Spanish)
- 2025
- 56 / 100World Rank46thof 182Confidence interval
Corruption index score by year Year Score Lower bound Upper bound 2012 54 43 66 2013 53 46 60 2014 54 47 61 2015 55 51 59 2016 58 53 63 2017 59 54 64 2018 56 50 62 2019 56 49.5 62.5 2020 57 52.8 61.2 2021 58 54 62 2022 54 48.8 59.2 2023 55 50.2 59.8 2024 58 53 63 2025 56 51.4 60.6 Source:- Corruption Perceptions Index 2025 ↗ - Transparency International, CC BY 4.0
- Form of state, System of government, Territorial organisation:Constitución Política de la República de Costa Rica de 7 de noviembre de 1949 (y sus reformas) ↗ - Supreme Electoral Tribunal of Costa Rica
- National holidays:Open World Holidays Framework (vacanza/holidays) ↗
- Infrastructure:The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- Infrastructure:World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Corruption Perceptions Index:Corruption Perceptions Index 2025 ↗ - Transparency International, CC BY 4.0
Economy
- High income
- GDP growth (real)2026
- +3.3% per yearWorld Rank90thof 195
- GDP per capita (PPP)2026
- GDP per capita (nominal)
- $21,282 (62nd in the world)
Source:- 2025
- Services69.2% of GDPIndustry19.9% of GDPAgriculture3.4% of GDPManufacturing13.6%part of industry
- Households
- +64%
- Government
- +14%
- Investment
- +15.8%
- Exports
- +38.8%
- Imports
- −32.6%
The shape of the economyGDP by end useSource:- World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Inflation2026
- −0.8%down 0.7 percentage points0.7pp from 2025
- Labor force2024
- 2.4 million (47% of population)World Rank122ndof 187
- Labor force participation2024
- 57.7% of people aged 15+
- Unemployment2024
- 6.9%
- Youth unemployment2024
- 20.5% ages 15 to 24
- Labor productivity2024
- $28.8 per hour worked at PPP
- Labor cost2018latest available
- CRC 2,705.00 per hour$4.69 (USD), $7.44 (PPP)
- Budget balance2026
- 3.7% of GDP deficit
- Current account
- 1.5% of GDP, $1.7 billion deficit
Source: - Debt2024
- Government debt60.2% of GDPHousehold debt26.8% of GDPCompany debt28.8% of GDPInterest on debt4.8% of GDPCentral government debt59.8% of GDP
- Trade2025
- Goods$23.5 billion56.5%
- Services$18.1 billion43.5%
- Total exports
- $41.6 billion
- Change from 2024
- up 10.3 percent on the previous year10.3%
Sources:- World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- 2024
- +0.34World Rank61stof 145
- Projected GDP growth
- +2.1% a year over the next 10 years
Source:- Atlas of Economic Complexity ↗ - Harvard Growth Lab
- Agricultural products2024
- Pineapples, Bananas, Oil palm fruit, and 4 more
- 1Pineapples84.2×
- 2Bananas15×
- 3Oil palm fruit2.3×
- 4Oranges2.2×
- 5Sugar cane1.7×
- 6Raw milk of cattle1.3×
- 7Meat of chickens (fresh or chilled)0.9×
ProductSource:- FAOSTAT ↗ - Food and Agriculture Organization
- Gold reserves2025
- NoneNo gold in official reserves
- Industries
- medical equipment, food processing, textiles and clothing, construction materials, fertilizer, plastic products
- Income level, GDP by sector, Trade, Gold reserves:World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- GDP (nominal), GDP growth (real), GDP per capita (PPP), Inflation, Budget balance:IMF World Economic Outlook ↗
- Labor force, Labor force participation, Unemployment, Youth unemployment, Labor productivity, Labor cost:ILOSTAT ↗ - International Labour Organization
- Debt:IMF Global Debt Database ↗
- Debt:IMF Public Finances in Modern History ↗
- Trade, Industries:The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- Economic Complexity Index:Atlas of Economic Complexity ↗ - Harvard Growth Lab
- Agricultural products:FAOSTAT ↗ - Food and Agriculture Organization
Cost of Living
- Cost of living index
- Loading
- Monthly costs (excluding rent)
- Loading
- Rent
- Loading
- Buying an apartment
- Loading
- Average gross salary2025
- CRC 606,508 per month$1,205 (USD), $1,928 (PPP)
- Median
- CRC 450,000 per month($894)
- Men
- CRC 602,754 per month($1,197)
- Women
- CRC 611,716 per month($1,215)
Source:- ILOSTAT ↗ - International Labour Organization
- 2024
- CRC 358,609 per month, gross$696 (USD), $1,093 (PPP)
- Average gross salary, Minimum wage:ILOSTAT ↗ - International Labour Organization
Society
- 2023
- 0.833Very highWorld Rank62ndof 193Costa RicaWorld
Human Development Index by year Year Costa Rica World 1990 0.677 0.608 1991 0.682 0.611 1992 0.691 0.614 1993 0.696 0.617 1994 0.701 0.620 1995 0.706 0.625 1996 0.707 0.631 1997 0.712 0.636 1998 0.714 0.641 1999 0.717 0.646 2000 0.720 0.651 2001 0.726 0.657 2002 0.730 0.662 2003 0.736 0.669 2004 0.741 0.675 2005 0.748 0.681 2006 0.755 0.688 2007 0.760 0.694 2008 0.769 0.698 2009 0.773 0.701 2010 0.776 0.707 2011 0.783 0.713 2012 0.789 0.717 2013 0.795 0.721 2014 0.802 0.726 2015 0.803 0.731 2016 0.805 0.735 2017 0.809 0.739 2018 0.813 0.741 2019 0.821 0.745 2020 0.819 0.742 2021 0.817 0.742 2022 0.823 0.752 2023 0.833 0.756 Source:- Human Development Report ↗ - United Nations Development Programme
- 2025
- 45.5
- Mean years of schooling2023
- 8.8 years
- Expected for a child today
- 16.3 years
Source:- Human Development Report ↗ - United Nations Development Programme
- Literacy2011latest available
- 97.4% of adults
- Education expenditure2023
- 5.3% of GDP
- Share of government spending
- 20.4%
Source:- World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Internet users2024
- 87.2% of the population
- Households with Internet access
- 81.1%
Source:- ITU DataHub ↗ - International Telecommunication Union
- Mobile subscriptions2024
- 7 million
- Fixed telephone lines
- 610,457
- Fixed broadband
- 23.3 subscriptions per 100 people
Counts subscriptions, not people.
Source:- ITU DataHub ↗ - International Telecommunication Union
- Credit-card ownership2024
- 16% of adults
- Debit-card ownership
- 63%
- Account at a bank or mobile-money provider
- 71%
- Made or received a digital payment
- 60%
Source:- Global Findex Database ↗ - World Bank
- Refugees hosted2025
- 32,238 people
- Asylum seekers
- 195,441
- Stateless persons
- 391
- Internally displaced persons
- 58(2024)All due to disasters
- Refugees from Costa Rica abroad
- 286
Sources:- Refugee Data Finder ↗ - UN Refugee Agency
- Global Internal Displacement Database ↗ - Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre
- Inbound tourists2024
- Official tourism site2.9 million arrivalsdown 7% against 20197% below 2019World Rank56thof 139
- Per resident
- 5.7 arrivals per 10 residents
- Same-day visitors
- 301,163 arrivals
- $5.6 billion
- Spending per arrival
- $1,924
- 2.7% tourism direct GDP(2021, latest available)
- Residents' trips abroad
- 1.4 million overnight trips
- $2.1 billion
Overnight arrivals by year2010 to 2024A tourist stays at least one night. Arrivals count trips, not people.
Source:- UN Tourism Data Dashboard ↗ - UN Tourism
- UNESCO World Heritage Sites
- 4 sites1 cultural3 natural
Site Type Guanacaste Conservation Area Natural Cocos Island National Park Natural Precolumbian Stone Spheres Cultural La Amistad International Park Natural Source:- The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- Human Development Index, Mean years of schooling:Human Development Report ↗ - United Nations Development Programme
- Income inequality (Gini), Education expenditure:World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Literacy:UIS Data Browser ↗ - UNESCO Institute for Statistics
- Internet users, Mobile subscriptions:ITU DataHub ↗ - International Telecommunication Union
- Credit-card ownership:Global Findex Database ↗ - World Bank
- Refugees hosted:Refugee Data Finder ↗ - UN Refugee Agency
- Refugees hosted:Global Internal Displacement Database ↗ - Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre
- Inbound tourists:UN Tourism Data Dashboard ↗ - UN Tourism
- UNESCO World Heritage Sites:The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
Crime & Safety
- Travel advisory (US)
- Loading
- Active humanitarian crisisAug 2026
- Medium4.6 out of 10International displacement
Crisis Since Sep 2024 Severity Country overallAll crises below combined 4.6Medium Displacement from Nicaragua to Costa RicaInternational displacement 4.0Low Displacement from Venezuela to Costa RicaInternational displacement 3.1Low Data reliability as rated by INFORM: High. Last updated Aug 31, 2026.
Source:- INFORM Severity Index ↗ - European Commission Joint Research Centre
- Homicide rate2024
- High by global standards17.1 per 100,000 peopleWorld Rank12thof 115
- Crime rates
- 7 offence categories
Offence Per 100,000 Count Year Homicide (victims) 17.1 878 2024 Serious assault 142.1 7,253 2023 Sexual violence 181.8 9,284 2023 Kidnapping 0.3 14 2023 Burglary 791.1 40,202 2022 Theft 530.1 26,940 2022 Vehicle theft 88.6 4,225 2014 A low figure can also mean weak recording.
Source:- UNODC Data Portal ↗ - UN Office on Drugs and Crime
- Prison population2023
- 312.7 per 100,000 people
- Persons held
- 15,963
Source:- UNODC Data Portal ↗ - UN Office on Drugs and Crime
- Active humanitarian crisis:INFORM Severity Index ↗ - European Commission Joint Research Centre
- Homicide rate, Crime rates, Prison population:UNODC Data Portal ↗ - UN Office on Drugs and Crime
Health
- Life expectancy2026
- 81.4 years
- Health expenditure2023
- 6.9% of GDP$1,163 per person
- Physicians2022
- 2.69 per 1,000 population
- Hospital beds2022
- 1.1 per 1,000 population
- Infant mortality2026
- 6.0 per 1,000 live births
- Maternal mortality2023
- 24 per 100,000 live births
- Alcohol consumption2022
- 3.8 litres of pure alcohol per adult per year
- Tobacco use2022
- 8.4% of adults
- Men
- 12.5%
- Women
- 4.4%
Source:- Global Health Observatory ↗ - World Health Organization
- Alcohol and Tobacco Spending2023
- 1.7% of household spendingWorld Rank78thof 105
- World median
- 3.1%
Source:- The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- Road traffic deaths2019
- 14.8 per 100,000 population
- Life expectancy, Infant mortality:UN World Population Prospects ↗
- Health expenditure, Physicians, Hospital beds, Road traffic deaths:World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Maternal mortality:Maternal mortality estimates ↗ - UN Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-agency Group
- Alcohol consumption, Tobacco use:Global Health Observatory ↗ - World Health Organization
- Alcohol and Tobacco Spending:The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
Environment
- CO₂ emissions2024
- 8.38 Mt per yearup 3.4 percent on the previous year3.4% from 2023
- CO₂ per capita
- 1.6 t per personWorld Rank132ndof 207
- Share of global CO₂
- 0.02%
- Methane (CH₄)
- 6.38 Mt CO₂-eq
- Nitrous oxide (N₂O)
- 1.75 Mt CO₂-eq
- Fluorinated gases
- 0.57 Mt CO₂-eq
- All greenhouse gases
- 17.1 Mt CO₂-eq
Source:- Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) ↗ - European Commission, Joint Research Centre
- 2024
- 16.2 µg/m³ of PM2.51.1 years of life expectancy lost against the WHO guidelineMost polluted82ndof 236
- WHO guideline
- 5 µg/m³
Source:- Air Quality Life Index ↗ - Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago
- Environmental issues
- deforestation, largely from clearing land for cattle ranching and agriculture
- soil erosion
- coastal marine pollution
- fisheries protection
- solid waste management
- air pollution
Source:- The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- International agreements
- 19 of 20 landmark treaties in forceParty to 86 multilateral environmental agreements
Treaty Standing Joined Climate Paris Agreement in force 2016 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in force 1994 Kyoto Protocol in force 2005 Ozone layer Montreal Protocol in force 1991 Vienna Convention (Ozone Layer) in force 1991 Biodiversity Convention on Biological Diversity in force 1994 CITES in force 1975 Convention on Migratory Species (Bonn) in force 2007 Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety in force 2007 Nagoya Protocol signed 2011, not ratified Land and heritage Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in force 1992 World Heritage Convention in force 1977 UN Convention to Combat Desertification in force 1998 Chemicals and waste Basel Convention in force 1995 Rotterdam Convention (PIC) in force 2009 Stockholm Convention (POPs) in force 2007 Minamata Convention on Mercury in force 2017 Oceans UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in force 1994 High Seas Treaty (BBNJ) in force 2026 MARPOL 73/78 in force 2026 Source:- International Environmental Agreements Database ↗ - Université Laval
- CO₂ emissions:Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) ↗ - European Commission, Joint Research Centre
- Air pollution:Air Quality Life Index ↗ - Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago
- Environmental issues:The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- International agreements:International Environmental Agreements Database ↗ - Université Laval
Food & Water
- No access to safe drinking water2022
- 2.2% of the population
- Renewable water2022
- 113 billion m³ per year
- Per person
- 22,236 m³ per year
- Dependency ratio
- 0% originates outside the country
- Annual water withdrawal
- 3.4 billion m³ per year
- Withdrawn for agriculture
- 61%
- Water stress
- 6% of available freshwater withdrawn
Source:- AQUASTAT ↗ - Food and Agriculture Organization
- Undernourishment2022
- 3% of the population200,000 people
- Obesity2024
- 32.7% of adults
- Men
- 25.6%
- Women
- 39.4%
Source:- Global Health Observatory ↗ - World Health Organization
- Underweight children2018
- 2.9% of children under five
- No access to safe drinking water, Renewable water:AQUASTAT ↗ - Food and Agriculture Organization
- Undernourishment:Food security indicators (FAOSTAT) ↗ - Food and Agriculture Organization
- Obesity:Global Health Observatory ↗ - World Health Organization
- Underweight children:World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
Energy
- Energy consumption2024
- Per capita
- 34.7 GJ per person
- Share of world total
- 0.03%
- Supply
- Deficitproduces 22% of what it consumes, 2024
Source:- International Energy Statistics ↗ - U.S. Energy Information Administration
- Electricity2024
- Net importer, net 0.2 TWh in 2024, 2.2% of consumption11 TWh generated per year
- Generation
- 11 TWh per year
- Consumption
- 10 TWh per year
- Imports
- 0.4 TWh per year
- Exports
- 0.1 TWh per year
- Net
- −0.2 TWh per year
Source:- International Energy Statistics ↗ - U.S. Energy Information Administration
- Oil, gas & coal
- No meaningful productionproduces under 2% of what it consumes, 2024
Oil imports and exports count crude oil only.
- Energy consumption, Electricity, Oil, gas & coal:International Energy Statistics ↗ - U.S. Energy Information Administration
Defense
- Military personnel2025
- approximately 10,000–15,000Ministry of Public Security personnel
- Space program2025
- Costa Rican Space Agency (ACE; established by legislation in 2021)
Has a small, recently established program focused on using space to develop the country’s economy and industry, including acquiring and using satellites; has built a remote sensing (RS) cube satellite; has relations with US space agencies and commercial space industries, as well as with the ESA and the Latin American and Caribbean Space Agency
- 2018
- First domestically produced remote sensing cube satellite (Irazú) for monitoring tropical forests and climate change launched by US and deployed from the International Space Station
- 2021
- Signed protocols for newly established Latin American and Caribbean Space Agency; opened US commercial company’s space radar facility for mapping and space situational awareness
- 2022
- Domestically produced scientific device (Proyecto Musa or Musa Project) launched on European rocket
- 2024
- Participated in first China-Latin America and the Caribbean Space Cooperation Forum
Key milestones
ACE is a non-state, public entity subject to guidelines issued by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Telecommunications of Costa Rica
Source:- The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- Nuclear weapons2026
- None - no nuclear arsenal
- Military personnel, Space program:The World Factbook: Costa Rica - CIA
- Nuclear weapons:Status of World Nuclear Forces ↗ - Federation of American Scientists
