Foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of GDP in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of GDP was 5.4% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
5.4%
Change on year
down 2.8%
World rank
40th
of 198 countries
All-time high
8.3%
in 2007
All-time low
1.1%
in 1979
Years of data
56
1970–2025
Foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of GDP in Costa Rica, 1970–2025
Source: IMF International Financial Statistics and Balance of Payments; World Bank International Debt Statistics and GDP estimates; and OECD GDP estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of gdp in Costa Rica stood at 5.4%.
The figure is down 2.8% on the previous year and up 3.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of gdp in Costa Rica peaked at 8.3% in 2007 and was at its lowest, 1.1%, in 1979.
Costa Rica ranks 40th of 198 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
Foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of GDP in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 2.7% | — |
| 1971 | 2.1% | -23.3% |
| 1972 | 2.1% | +1.7% |
| 1973 | 2.5% | +18.1% |
| 1974 | 2.8% | +12.7% |
| 1975 | 3.5% | +26.7% |
| 1976 | 2.6% | -27.0% |
| 1977 | 2.0% | -20.8% |
| 1978 | 1.4% | -32.2% |
| 1979 | 1.1% | -21.9% |
| 1980 | 1.1% | +1.0% |
| 1981 | 2.7% | +143.7% |
| 1982 | 1.1% | -58.2% |
| 1983 | 1.9% | +74.0% |
| 1984 | 1.5% | -20.8% |
| 1985 | 1.8% | +16.8% |
| 1986 | 1.4% | -22.6% |
| 1987 | 1.8% | +28.3% |
| 1988 | 2.6% | +49.5% |
| 1989 | 1.9% | -27.1% |
| 1990 | 2.8% | +47.5% |
| 1991 | 2.5% | -13.1% |
| 1992 | 2.6% | +6.5% |
| 1993 | 2.6% | -2.1% |
| 1994 | 2.8% | +10.0% |
| 1995 | 2.9% | +2.6% |
| 1996 | 3.7% | +25.6% |
| 1997 | 3.2% | -11.2% |
| 1998 | 4.5% | +38.4% |
| 1999 | 4.3% | -3.2% |
| 2000 | 4.8% | +10.9% |
| 2001 | 3.9% | -19.2% |
| 2002 | 4.4% | +12.1% |
| 2003 | 4.5% | +2.8% |
| 2004 | 5.8% | +29.9% |
| 2005 | 7.6% | +31.0% |
| 2006 | 7.9% | +3.9% |
| 2007 | 8.3% | +5.2% |
| 2008 | 7.9% | -5.1% |
| 2009 | 5.3% | -33.6% |
| 2010 | 5.1% | -3.6% |
| 2011 | 6.4% | +26.2% |
| 2012 | 5.7% | -10.7% |
| 2013 | 6.3% | +10.2% |
| 2014 | 6.2% | -0.9% |
| 2015 | 5.2% | -16.0% |
| 2016 | 4.5% | -15.0% |
| 2017 | 4.8% | +8.5% |
| 2018 | 4.8% | -0.3% |
| 2019 | 4.2% | -12.8% |
| 2020 | 3.3% | -20.3% |
| 2021 | 5.5% | +63.6% |
| 2022 | 7.3% | +34.0% |
| 2023 | 6.1% | -17.5% |
| 2024 | 5.6% | -7.7% |
| 2025 | 5.4% | -2.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.3% | 1.1% | 3.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.8% | 1.1% | 2.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.2% | 2.5% | 4.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.0% | 3.9% | 8.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.3% | 4.2% | 6.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.5% | 3.3% | 7.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More economy & growth data for Costa Rica
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 2.74 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 3.3 Percent per annum (2029)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), annual growth rate 7.66 % change on previous year (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), per unit of GDP 195.61 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), per capita 3.91 million current LCU per person (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 8.64 % change on previous year (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.3216 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), per capita 6,423 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Gross fixed capital formation (current US$), annual growth rate 6.13 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross fixed capital formation (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.1625 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of gdp in Costa Rica?
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of gdp in Costa Rica was 5.4% in 2025, according to IMF International Financial Statistics and Balance of Payments; World Bank International Debt Statistics and GDP estimates; and OECD GDP estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of gdp recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 8.3% in 2007.
- What is the lowest foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of gdp recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.1% in 1979.
- How does Costa Rica rank for foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of gdp?
- Costa Rica ranks 40th out of 198 countries with data for 2025.
- Is foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of gdp rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from IMF International Financial Statistics and Balance of Payments; World Bank International Debt Statistics and GDP estimates; and OECD GDP estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Foreign direct investment, net inflows as share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Net inflows of foreign direct investment from foreign investors to the reporting economy.