Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median was 12.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median in Costa Rica, 1981–2025
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median in Costa Rica stood at 12.6%.
The figure is down 1.3% on the previous year and down 1.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median in Costa Rica peaked at 19.3% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 11.9%, in 2022.
That places Costa Rica 13th out of 120 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 39 years of available data.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 19.3% | — |
| 1986 | 14.5% | -25.0% |
| 1989 | 15.3% | +5.7% |
| 1990 | 15.4% | +0.8% |
| 1991 | 16.5% | +6.8% |
| 1992 | 14.5% | -12.0% |
| 1993 | 14.9% | +2.4% |
| 1994 | 14.6% | -1.9% |
| 1995 | 14.4% | -1.2% |
| 1996 | 15.3% | +6.3% |
| 1997 | 14.1% | -8.2% |
| 1998 | 13.0% | -7.7% |
| 1999 | 14.1% | +8.5% |
| 2000 | 14.9% | +5.6% |
| 2001 | 15.2% | +2.4% |
| 2002 | 14.9% | -1.8% |
| 2003 | 15.1% | +1.4% |
| 2004 | 14.3% | -5.7% |
| 2005 | 13.2% | -7.7% |
| 2006 | 13.1% | -0.6% |
| 2007 | 12.1% | -7.9% |
| 2008 | 12.0% | -0.2% |
| 2009 | 13.3% | +10.4% |
| 2010 | 12.1% | -8.9% |
| 2011 | 13.6% | +11.9% |
| 2012 | 13.3% | -2.1% |
| 2013 | 13.5% | +1.9% |
| 2014 | 13.3% | -1.6% |
| 2015 | 12.7% | -4.4% |
| 2016 | 13.0% | +2.3% |
| 2017 | 12.1% | -7.3% |
| 2018 | 13.1% | +8.7% |
| 2019 | 12.0% | -8.4% |
| 2020 | 13.6% | +12.8% |
| 2021 | 12.3% | -9.4% |
| 2022 | 11.9% | -3.2% |
| 2023 | 12.9% | +8.6% |
| 2024 | 12.7% | -1.3% |
| 2025 | 12.6% | -1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 16.4% | 14.5% | 19.3% | 3 |
| 1990s | 14.7% | 13.0% | 16.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 13.8% | 12.0% | 15.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.9% | 12.0% | 13.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.7% | 11.9% | 13.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
- 10 North Macedonia 13.1% compare
- 11 Guatemala 12.9% compare
- 12 Botswana 12.8% compare
- 14 United States of America 12.1% compare
- 15 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 11.4% compare
- 16 Ecuador 11.4% compare
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 relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median in Costa Rica?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median in Costa Rica was 12.6% in 2025, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 19.3% in 1981.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.9% in 2022.
- How does Costa Rica rank for relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median?
- Costa Rica ranks 13th out of 120 countries with data for 2025.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Percentage of population living in households with an income or consumption below 40% of the median.