Relative poverty: Share of population below 60% of the median in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Relative poverty: Share of population below 60% of the median was 26.4% in 2025. ▬ Flat
Relative poverty: Share of population below 60% 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 60% of the median in Costa Rica stood at 26.4%.
That represents a change of down 3.7% on the previous year and up 3.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median in Costa Rica peaked at 30.5% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 25.1%, in 2008.
That places Costa Rica 11th out of 120 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 60% of the median in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 30.5% | — |
| 1986 | 25.2% | -17.2% |
| 1989 | 27.6% | +9.4% |
| 1990 | 26.3% | -4.6% |
| 1991 | 27.9% | +6.0% |
| 1992 | 26.0% | -6.7% |
| 1993 | 26.6% | +2.2% |
| 1994 | 26.3% | -1.1% |
| 1995 | 26.3% | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 26.8% | +1.8% |
| 1997 | 26.9% | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 25.8% | -4.0% |
| 1999 | 26.5% | +2.8% |
| 2000 | 26.9% | +1.5% |
| 2001 | 27.6% | +2.4% |
| 2002 | 27.2% | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 27.3% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 27.0% | -1.0% |
| 2005 | 26.1% | -3.2% |
| 2006 | 26.1% | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 25.4% | -2.7% |
| 2008 | 25.1% | -1.0% |
| 2009 | 27.2% | +8.2% |
| 2010 | 25.6% | -5.9% |
| 2011 | 27.3% | +6.5% |
| 2012 | 26.8% | -1.8% |
| 2013 | 26.0% | -2.7% |
| 2014 | 26.5% | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 25.5% | -3.7% |
| 2016 | 26.4% | +3.5% |
| 2017 | 25.6% | -3.1% |
| 2018 | 26.0% | +1.5% |
| 2019 | 26.0% | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 27.0% | +3.8% |
| 2021 | 26.6% | -1.4% |
| 2022 | 25.5% | -4.2% |
| 2023 | 26.3% | +3.3% |
| 2024 | 27.4% | +4.0% |
| 2025 | 26.4% | -3.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 27.8% | 25.2% | 30.5% | 3 |
| 1990s | 26.5% | 25.8% | 27.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 26.6% | 25.1% | 27.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.2% | 25.5% | 27.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.5% | 25.5% | 27.4% | 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 relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median in Costa Rica?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median in Costa Rica was 26.4% 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 60% of the median recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 30.5% in 1981.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.1% in 2008.
- How does Costa Rica rank for relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median?
- Costa Rica ranks 11th out of 120 countries with data for 2025.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- 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 60% 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 60% of the median.