Gender Inequality Index in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Gender Inequality Index was 0.217 in 2023. ▼ Falling
Gender Inequality Index in Costa Rica, 2000–2023
Source: UNDP, Human Development Report (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 0.217 for gender inequality index in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.8% on the previous year and down 25.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, gender inequality index in Costa Rica peaked at 0.443 in 2000 and was at its lowest, 0.209, in 2022.
That places Costa Rica 115th out of 169 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Gender Inequality Index in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 0.443 | — |
| 2001 | 0.408 | -7.9% |
| 2002 | 0.367 | -10.0% |
| 2003 | 0.365 | -0.5% |
| 2004 | 0.355 | -2.7% |
| 2005 | 0.344 | -3.1% |
| 2006 | 0.332 | -3.5% |
| 2007 | 0.334 | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 0.331 | -0.9% |
| 2009 | 0.325 | -1.8% |
| 2010 | 0.315 | -3.1% |
| 2011 | 0.307 | -2.5% |
| 2012 | 0.301 | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 0.293 | -2.7% |
| 2014 | 0.303 | +3.4% |
| 2015 | 0.282 | -6.9% |
| 2016 | 0.278 | -1.4% |
| 2017 | 0.273 | -1.8% |
| 2018 | 0.249 | -8.8% |
| 2019 | 0.234 | -6.0% |
| 2020 | 0.231 | -1.3% |
| 2021 | 0.216 | -6.5% |
| 2022 | 0.209 | -3.2% |
| 2023 | 0.217 | +3.8% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 0.217 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.081, 2.7× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 0.217 is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 0.362, 60% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 0.3604 | 0.325 | 0.443 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.2835 | 0.234 | 0.315 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.2182 | 0.209 | 0.231 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More poverty & inequality data for Costa Rica
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 10 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 1.33 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 3,807 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate -14.41 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 24.93 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 24.9% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is gender inequality index in Costa Rica?
- Gender inequality index in Costa Rica was 0.217 in 2023, according to UNDP, Human Development Report (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest gender inequality index recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 0.443 in 2000.
- What is the lowest gender inequality index recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.209 in 2022.
- How does Costa Rica rank for gender inequality index?
- Costa Rica ranks 115th out of 169 countries with data for 2023.
- Is gender inequality index rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 25.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from UNDP, Human Development Report (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Gender Inequality Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
This index captures gender-based disadvantage in reproductive health, empowerment and the labor market; ranges from 0 (full equality) to 1 (maximum inequality), representing the share of potential human development lost because of gender gaps.