Population in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Population was 5.11 million people in 2023. ▲ Rising
Population in Costa Rica, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
The most recent figure for population in Costa Rica is 5.11 million people, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and up 8.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population in Costa Rica peaked at 5.11 million people in 2023 and was at its lowest, 926,761 people, in 1950.
Costa Rica ranks 125th of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1.09 million people | 926,761 people | 1.28 million people | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.56 million people | 1.33 million people | 1.79 million people | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.07 million people | 1.84 million people | 2.33 million people | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.71 million people | 2.39 million people | 3.04 million people | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.49 million people | 3.12 million people | 3.86 million people | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.23 million people | 3.94 million people | 4.50 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.79 million people | 4.56 million people | 5.00 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.07 million people | 5.03 million people | 5.11 million people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
- 123 New Zealand 5.17 million people compare
- 124 Central African Republic 5.15 million people compare
- 126 Oman 5.05 million people compare
- 127 Mauritania 5.02 million people compare
- 128 Kuwait 4.84 million people compare
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 population in Costa Rica?
- Population in Costa Rica was 5.11 million people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest population recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 5.11 million people in 2023.
- What is the lowest population recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 926,761 people in 1950.
- How does Costa Rica rank for population?
- Costa Rica ranks 125th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is population rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Population. 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 population, measured on 1 July of the year shown.