Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median was 20.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% 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
Costa Rica recorded 20.0% for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in 2025.
That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and up 7.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Costa Rica peaked at 25.1% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 18.3%, in 2010.
That places Costa Rica 10th out of 120 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 39 years of available data.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 25.1% | — |
| 1986 | 19.6% | -21.7% |
| 1989 | 21.2% | +7.9% |
| 1990 | 21.0% | -1.0% |
| 1991 | 22.2% | +6.1% |
| 1992 | 20.5% | -7.8% |
| 1993 | 20.1% | -1.9% |
| 1994 | 19.7% | -2.3% |
| 1995 | 20.1% | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 20.4% | +1.5% |
| 1997 | 20.1% | -1.5% |
| 1998 | 19.6% | -2.8% |
| 1999 | 20.2% | +3.3% |
| 2000 | 20.7% | +2.5% |
| 2001 | 20.9% | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 20.7% | -0.8% |
| 2003 | 21.6% | +4.0% |
| 2004 | 20.0% | -7.0% |
| 2005 | 19.6% | -2.3% |
| 2006 | 19.3% | -1.5% |
| 2007 | 18.5% | -4.1% |
| 2008 | 18.6% | +0.6% |
| 2009 | 20.2% | +8.3% |
| 2010 | 18.3% | -9.2% |
| 2011 | 20.3% | +11.0% |
| 2012 | 19.8% | -2.5% |
| 2013 | 19.6% | -0.8% |
| 2014 | 19.7% | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 18.6% | -5.7% |
| 2016 | 19.5% | +4.7% |
| 2017 | 18.7% | -4.1% |
| 2018 | 19.3% | +3.3% |
| 2019 | 19.1% | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 20.3% | +6.1% |
| 2021 | 19.6% | -3.5% |
| 2022 | 18.7% | -4.5% |
| 2023 | 19.5% | +4.4% |
| 2024 | 19.9% | +1.7% |
| 2025 | 20.0% | +0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 21.9% | 19.6% | 25.1% | 3 |
| 1990s | 20.4% | 19.6% | 22.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 20.0% | 18.5% | 21.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 19.3% | 18.3% | 20.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.7% | 18.7% | 20.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
- 7 Ghana 20.6% compare
- 8 Botswana 20.4% compare
- 9 South Africa 20.4% compare
- 11 Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of 19.9% compare
- 12 Guatemala 19.1% compare
- 13 United States of America 18.9% 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 50% of the median in Costa Rica?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Costa Rica was 20.0% 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 50% of the median recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 25.1% in 1981.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.3% in 2010.
- How does Costa Rica rank for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median?
- Costa Rica ranks 10th out of 120 countries with data for 2025.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.7%. 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 50% 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 50% of the median.