Income share held by highest 20% in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Income share held by highest 20% was 50.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Income share held by highest 20% 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
The most recent figure for income share held by highest 20% in Costa Rica is 50.9%, measured in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% on the previous year and down 5.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, income share held by highest 20% in Costa Rica peaked at 56.7% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 39.6%, in 1986.
That places Costa Rica 10th out of 123 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 39 years of available data.
Income share held by highest 20% in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 51.4% | — |
| 1986 | 39.6% | -23.0% |
| 1989 | 49.9% | +26.0% |
| 1990 | 49.6% | -0.6% |
| 1991 | 50.8% | +2.4% |
| 1992 | 50.3% | -1.0% |
| 1993 | 50.5% | +0.4% |
| 1994 | 51.5% | +2.0% |
| 1995 | 50.3% | -2.3% |
| 1996 | 51.1% | +1.6% |
| 1997 | 50.6% | -1.0% |
| 1998 | 50.8% | +0.4% |
| 1999 | 52.6% | +3.5% |
| 2000 | 52.1% | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 56.2% | +7.9% |
| 2002 | 56.7% | +0.9% |
| 2003 | 54.0% | -4.8% |
| 2004 | 53.4% | -1.1% |
| 2005 | 52.8% | -1.1% |
| 2006 | 54.7% | +3.6% |
| 2007 | 55.0% | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 54.1% | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 55.9% | +3.3% |
| 2010 | 53.6% | -4.1% |
| 2011 | 53.9% | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 53.6% | -0.6% |
| 2013 | 54.2% | +1.1% |
| 2014 | 53.9% | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 53.9% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 54.0% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 54.0% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 53.3% | -1.3% |
| 2019 | 53.7% | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 54.4% | +1.3% |
| 2021 | 54.1% | -0.6% |
| 2022 | 52.7% | -2.6% |
| 2023 | 52.1% | -1.1% |
| 2024 | 51.1% | -1.9% |
| 2025 | 50.9% | -0.4% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 50.9% is above the median for high income countries, which is 39.9%, 1.3× the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 50.9% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 49.7%, 1.0× the median. (20 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Income share held by highest 20% in Costa Rica changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | +26.0% | 39.6% | 49.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 47.0% | 39.6% | 51.4% | 3 |
| 1990s | 50.8% | 49.6% | 52.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 54.5% | 52.1% | 56.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 53.8% | 53.3% | 54.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 52.6% | 50.9% | 54.4% | 6 |
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 income share held by highest 20% in Costa Rica?
- Income share held by highest 20% in Costa Rica was 50.9% 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 20% recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 56.7% in 2002.
- What is the lowest income share held by highest 20% recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 39.6% in 1986.
- How does Costa Rica rank for income share held by highest 20%?
- Costa Rica ranks 10th out of 123 countries with data for 2025.
- Is income share held by highest 20% rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.6%. 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 20%. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Percentage share of income or consumption is the share that accrues to subgroups of population indicated by deciles or quintiles. Percentage shares by quintile may not sum to 100 because of rounding.