Birth rate in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Birth rate was 10.18 births per 1,000 people in 2023. ▼ Falling
Birth rate in Costa Rica, 1950–2023
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in births per 1,000 people.
Analysis
In 2023, birth rate in Costa Rica stood at 10.18 births per 1,000 people. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.
The figure is down 1.4% on the previous year and down 31.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, birth rate in Costa Rica peaked at 46.01 births per 1,000 people in 1958 and was at its lowest, 10.18 births per 1,000 people, in 2023.
That places Costa Rica 167th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 45.67 births per 1,000 people | 44.89 births per 1,000 people | 46.01 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1960s | 40.16 births per 1,000 people | 33.77 births per 1,000 people | 45.47 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1970s | 30.53 births per 1,000 people | 29.79 births per 1,000 people | 32.59 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1980s | 29.75 births per 1,000 people | 27.46 births per 1,000 people | 30.52 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1990s | 23.36 births per 1,000 people | 20.74 births per 1,000 people | 26.65 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2000s | 17.62 births per 1,000 people | 16.43 births per 1,000 people | 20.24 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.52 births per 1,000 people | 12.66 births per 1,000 people | 15.76 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 10.6 births per 1,000 people | 10.18 births per 1,000 people | 11.37 births per 1,000 people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More population data for Costa Rica
- Population growth rate, by level of development -1.0% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 123,827 people (2100)
- Population density 73.96 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth -1.0% (2100)
- Total fertility rate vs. wanted fertility rate 1.32 births per woman (2024)
- Refugees by country of asylum 31,632 people (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. unmet need for contraception 1.32 births per woman (2024)
- Total fertility rate vs. contraceptive prevalence 1.32 births per woman (2024)
- Natural population growth rate 0.5% (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 1.33 live births per woman (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is birth rate in Costa Rica?
- Birth rate in Costa Rica was 10.18 births per 1,000 people in 2023, according to Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest birth rate recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 46.01 births per 1,000 people in 1958.
- What is the lowest birth rate recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.18 births per 1,000 people in 2023.
- How does Costa Rica rank for birth rate?
- Costa Rica ranks 167th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is birth rate rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 31.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Birth rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The total number of births per 1,000 people in a given year.