Gross capital formation in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Gross capital formation was 15.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Gross capital formation in Costa Rica, 1960–2025
Source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 15.8% for gross capital formation in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.5% on the previous year and down 16.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, gross capital formation in Costa Rica peaked at 29.0% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 15.5%, in 2020.
That places Costa Rica 160th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Gross capital formation in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 17.5% | — |
| 1961 | 18.9% | +7.9% |
| 1962 | 19.5% | +3.0% |
| 1963 | 18.8% | -3.4% |
| 1964 | 16.0% | -14.9% |
| 1965 | 19.5% | +21.9% |
| 1966 | 19.1% | -2.3% |
| 1967 | 19.4% | +1.6% |
| 1968 | 18.0% | -6.9% |
| 1969 | 20.0% | +11.1% |
| 1970 | 20.5% | +2.5% |
| 1971 | 24.3% | +18.5% |
| 1972 | 22.0% | -9.5% |
| 1973 | 24.0% | +8.9% |
| 1974 | 26.7% | +11.4% |
| 1975 | 21.6% | -19.1% |
| 1976 | 23.7% | +9.3% |
| 1977 | 24.3% | +2.6% |
| 1978 | 23.5% | -3.3% |
| 1979 | 25.3% | +7.9% |
| 1980 | 26.6% | +5.0% |
| 1981 | 29.0% | +9.2% |
| 1982 | 24.7% | -15.0% |
| 1983 | 24.2% | -2.0% |
| 1984 | 22.7% | -6.1% |
| 1985 | 25.9% | +14.1% |
| 1986 | 25.2% | -2.6% |
| 1987 | 27.1% | +7.6% |
| 1988 | 24.5% | -9.8% |
| 1989 | 26.6% | +8.7% |
| 1990 | 27.3% | +2.8% |
| 1991 | 18.4% | -32.7% |
| 1992 | 20.4% | +11.0% |
| 1993 | 21.0% | +2.9% |
| 1994 | 20.8% | -1.2% |
| 1995 | 19.5% | -5.9% |
| 1996 | 17.8% | -9.2% |
| 1997 | 20.1% | +13.0% |
| 1998 | 22.7% | +13.0% |
| 1999 | 21.1% | -7.0% |
| 2000 | 20.7% | -1.9% |
| 2001 | 20.1% | -2.8% |
| 2002 | 19.9% | -1.1% |
| 2003 | 19.0% | -4.6% |
| 2004 | 18.9% | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 19.0% | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 21.1% | +11.2% |
| 2007 | 23.3% | +10.4% |
| 2008 | 24.6% | +5.7% |
| 2009 | 18.5% | -25.0% |
| 2010 | 19.8% | +7.5% |
| 2011 | 20.0% | +1.1% |
| 2012 | 19.9% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 19.6% | -1.3% |
| 2014 | 19.2% | -1.9% |
| 2015 | 18.9% | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 18.9% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 18.1% | -4.4% |
| 2018 | 18.2% | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 15.7% | -13.6% |
| 2020 | 15.5% | -1.0% |
| 2021 | 17.8% | +14.4% |
| 2022 | 18.4% | +3.5% |
| 2023 | 15.8% | -13.8% |
| 2024 | 16.2% | +2.2% |
| 2025 | 15.8% | -2.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 18.7% | 16.0% | 20.0% | 10 |
| 1970s | 23.6% | 20.5% | 26.7% | 10 |
| 1980s | 25.6% | 22.7% | 29.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 20.9% | 17.8% | 27.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 20.5% | 18.5% | 24.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 18.8% | 15.7% | 20.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.6% | 15.5% | 18.4% | 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)
- Total reserves minus gold (current US$), annual growth rate 20.52 % change on previous year (2025)
- Total reserves minus gold (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.166 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Total reserves minus gold (current US$), per capita 3,316 current US$ per person (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current US$) 5.83 % change on previous year (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current US$), per 0.1401 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current US$), per 2,798 current US$ per person (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current LCU) 3.44 % change on previous year (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current LCU), per 70.55 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is gross capital formation in Costa Rica?
- Gross capital formation in Costa Rica was 15.8% in 2025, according to Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks.
- What is the highest gross capital formation recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 29.0% in 1981.
- What is the lowest gross capital formation recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.5% in 2020.
- How does Costa Rica rank for gross capital formation?
- Costa Rica ranks 160th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is gross capital formation rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks, published as part of Gross capital formation (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Gross capital formation includes acquisitions less disposals of produced assets for purposes of fixed capital formation, inventories or valuables. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.