Income share held by highest 10% in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Income share held by highest 10% was 34.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Income share held by highest 10% in Costa Rica, 1981–2025
Source: World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ.
Analysis
In 2025, income share held by highest 10% in Costa Rica stood at 34.3%.
That represents a change of up 0.3% on the previous year and down 6.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, income share held by highest 10% in Costa Rica peaked at 40.4% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 23.1%, in 1986.
Costa Rica ranks 13th of 123 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 39 years of available data.
Income share held by highest 10% in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 33.7% | — |
| 1986 | 23.1% | -31.5% |
| 1989 | 33.2% | +43.7% |
| 1990 | 33.0% | -0.6% |
| 1991 | 34.3% | +3.9% |
| 1992 | 33.7% | -1.7% |
| 1993 | 33.7% | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 35.2% | +4.5% |
| 1995 | 33.8% | -4.0% |
| 1996 | 34.3% | +1.5% |
| 1997 | 33.8% | -1.5% |
| 1998 | 34.0% | +0.6% |
| 1999 | 35.9% | +5.6% |
| 2000 | 35.7% | -0.6% |
| 2001 | 39.7% | +11.2% |
| 2002 | 40.4% | +1.8% |
| 2003 | 37.0% | -8.4% |
| 2004 | 36.6% | -1.1% |
| 2005 | 35.9% | -1.9% |
| 2006 | 38.3% | +6.7% |
| 2007 | 38.9% | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 37.7% | -3.1% |
| 2009 | 39.4% | +4.5% |
| 2010 | 36.8% | -6.6% |
| 2011 | 36.9% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 36.6% | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 37.0% | +1.1% |
| 2014 | 36.9% | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 36.8% | -0.3% |
| 2016 | 37.3% | +1.4% |
| 2017 | 37.0% | -0.8% |
| 2018 | 36.3% | -1.9% |
| 2019 | 36.7% | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 37.0% | +0.8% |
| 2021 | 37.2% | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 35.7% | -4.0% |
| 2023 | 35.1% | -1.7% |
| 2024 | 34.2% | -2.6% |
| 2025 | 34.3% | +0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 30.0% | 23.1% | 33.7% | 3 |
| 1990s | 34.2% | 33.0% | 35.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 38.0% | 35.7% | 40.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 36.8% | 36.3% | 37.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 35.6% | 34.2% | 37.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More poverty & inequality data for Costa Rica
- Data deprivation poverty surveys per decade 10 (2025)
- Fertility rate vs the share living in extreme poverty 1.33 (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty 3,807 (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 revenues vs income inequality 24.93 (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, annual growth rate -1.01 % change on previous year (2023)
- Gender inequality index from the human development report 0.217 (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is income share held by highest 10% in Costa Rica?
- Income share held by highest 10% in Costa Rica was 34.3% in 2025, according to World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ.
- What is the highest income share held by highest 10% recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 40.4% in 2002.
- What is the lowest income share held by highest 10% recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 23.1% in 1986.
- How does Costa Rica rank for income share held by highest 10%?
- Costa Rica ranks 13th out of 123 countries with data for 2025.
- Is income share held by highest 10% rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ, published as part of Income share held by highest 10%. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 39 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Percentage share of income or consumption is the share that accrues to subgroups of population indicated by deciles or quintiles.