Costa Rica vs United States: General government total expenditure (current LCU)
Costa Rica
9.29 trillion current LCU
in 2025
United States
11.57 trillion current LCU
in 2025
Costa Rica rank
34th
United States rank
32nd
General government total expenditure (current LCU) over time
- Costa Rica
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 11.57 trillion current LCU against 9.29 trillion current LCU in Costa Rica, a difference of 2.28 trillion current LCU.
That makes United States's figure about 1.2 times Costa Rica's.
The two have swapped places 6 times across 46 shared years of data; in 1980 it was United States ahead.
Costa Rica ranks 34th and United States ranks 32nd of 197 countries.
Across the 5 decades both report, Costa Rica averaged higher in 3 and United States in 2.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Costa Rica | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 44.36 billion current LCU | 0 current LCU | 44.36 billion current LCU | Costa Rica |
| 1990s | 492.97 billion current LCU | 0 current LCU | 492.97 billion current LCU | Costa Rica |
| 2000s | 2.40 trillion current LCU | 4.07 trillion current LCU | 1.67 trillion current LCU | United States |
| 2010s | 7.74 trillion current LCU | 6.53 trillion current LCU | 1.21 trillion current LCU | Costa Rica |
| 2020s | 9.74 trillion current LCU | 10.42 trillion current LCU | 679.28 billion current LCU | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher general government total expenditure, Costa Rica or United States?
- United States, at 11.57 trillion current LCU against 9.29 trillion current LCU in Costa Rica as of 2025.
- What is the difference in general government total expenditure between Costa Rica and United States?
- 2.28 trillion current LCU, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and United States?
- 46 years are reported by both, from 1980 to 2025.
- How do Costa Rica and United States rank globally for general government total expenditure?
- Costa Rica ranks 34th and United States ranks 32nd of 197 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as General government total expenditure (current LCU). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
February 2026 Data Release