Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas was 1.33 million people in 2020. ▲ Rising
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Costa Rica, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 1.33 million people for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is up 8.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Costa Rica peaked at 1.33 million people in 2020 and was at its lowest, 545,216 people, in 1950.
That places Costa Rica 122nd out of 236 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 545,216 people | — |
| 1955 | 606,645 people | +11.3% |
| 1960 | 673,991 people | +11.1% |
| 1965 | 738,776 people | +9.6% |
| 1970 | 792,214 people | +7.2% |
| 1975 | 839,932 people | +6.0% |
| 1980 | 905,056 people | +7.8% |
| 1985 | 978,566 people | +8.1% |
| 1990 | 1.03 million people | +4.9% |
| 1995 | 1.07 million people | +4.5% |
| 2000 | 1.11 million people | +3.3% |
| 2005 | 1.16 million people | +5.1% |
| 2010 | 1.22 million people | +5.0% |
| 2015 | 1.28 million people | +4.8% |
| 2020 | 1.33 million people | +3.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 575,930 people | 545,216 people | 606,645 people | 2 |
| 1960s | 706,384 people | 673,991 people | 738,776 people | 2 |
| 1970s | 816,073 people | 792,214 people | 839,932 people | 2 |
| 1980s | 941,811 people | 905,056 people | 978,566 people | 2 |
| 1990s | 1.05 million people | 1.03 million people | 1.07 million people | 2 |
| 2000s | 1.14 million people | 1.11 million people | 1.16 million people | 2 |
| 2010s | 1.25 million people | 1.22 million people | 1.28 million people | 2 |
| 2020s | 1.33 million people | 1.33 million people | 1.33 million people | 1 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More population data for Costa Rica
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.6681 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.9965 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -0.2884 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.9965 % change on previous year (2100)
- 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)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.7399 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.5224 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Costa Rica?
- Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Costa Rica was 1.33 million people in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 1.33 million people in 2020.
- What is the lowest number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 545,216 people in 1950.
- How does Costa Rica rank for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Costa Rica ranks 122nd out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Estimated number of people living in rural areas. Rural areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.