ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment-to-population ratio by in Costa Rica

Costa Rica: ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment-to-population ratio by was 21.06 % in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
21.06 %
Change on year
down 10.0%
World rank
33rd
of 78 countries
All-time high
36.78 %
in 2018
All-time low
21.06 %
in 2025
Years of data
15
2011–2025

ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment-to-population ratio by in Costa Rica, 2011–2025

0102030402011201820252011: 29.5 %2012: 35.4 %2013: 36.3 %2014: 35.4 %2015: 36.2 %2016: 32.1 %2017: 31.9 %2018: 36.8 %2019: 35 %2020: 28.9 %2021: 31.4 %2022: 32 %2023: 25.6 %2024: 23.4 %2025: 21.1 %

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.

Analysis

Costa Rica recorded 21.06 % for ilostat - labour force survey — employment-to-population ratio by in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.

The figure is down 10.0% on the previous year and down 41.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, ilostat - labour force survey — employment-to-population ratio by in Costa Rica peaked at 36.78 % in 2018 and was at its lowest, 21.06 %, in 2025.

That places Costa Rica 33rd out of 78 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.

ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment-to-population ratio by in Costa Rica, year by year

Annual values for ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment-to-population ratio by age, 65+, rural areas — Value in Costa Rica, 2011 to 2025.
Year % Change
2011 29.47 %
2012 35.37 % +20.0%
2013 36.28 % +2.6%
2014 35.43 % -2.3%
2015 36.21 % +2.2%
2016 32.13 % -11.3%
2017 31.91 % -0.7%
2018 36.78 % +15.3%
2019 35.02 % -4.8%
2020 28.87 % -17.6%
2021 31.37 % +8.7%
2022 31.97 % +1.9%
2023 25.63 % -19.8%
2024 23.39 % -8.7%
2025 21.06 % -10.0%

Costa Rica compared with similar countries

  • Costa Rica's 21.06 % is above the median for high income countries, which is 10.64 %, 2.0× the median. (37 countries reporting)
  • Costa Rica's 21.06 % is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 34.79 %, 61% of the median. (11 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 34.29 % 29.47 % 36.78 % 9
2020s 27.05 % 21.06 % 31.97 % 6

Countries ranked near Costa Rica

  1. 30 Iceland 25.7 % compare
  2. 31 Chile 23.14 % compare
  3. 32 Sri Lanka 22.31 % compare
  4. 34 Serbia 20.78 % compare
  5. 35 Ireland 17.37 % compare
  6. 36 Estonia 16.48 % compare

See the full ranking of 85 places →

More economy & growth data for Costa Rica

All data for Costa Rica →

Frequently asked questions

What is ilostat - labour force survey — employment-to-population ratio by in Costa Rica?
Ilostat - labour force survey — employment-to-population ratio by in Costa Rica was 21.06 % in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest ilostat - labour force survey — employment-to-population ratio by recorded in Costa Rica?
The highest recorded value was 36.78 % in 2018.
What is the lowest ilostat - labour force survey — employment-to-population ratio by recorded in Costa Rica?
The lowest recorded value was 21.06 % in 2025.
How does Costa Rica rank for ilostat - labour force survey — employment-to-population ratio by?
Costa Rica ranks 33rd out of 78 countries with data for 2025.
Is ilostat - labour force survey — employment-to-population ratio by rising or falling in Costa Rica?
Over the last ten years it is down 41.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment-to-population ratio by age, 65+, rural areas — Value. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment-to-population ratio by in Costa Rica. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 15 September 2026, from https://economy.statizoid.com/stat/ilostat-labour-force-survey-employment-to-population-ratio-by-age-65-rural-areas-value/costa-rica/

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About this data

Indicator
ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment-to-population ratio by age, 65+, rural areas — Value
Unit
%
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
85 places, 1,510 data points, 1987–2025
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT Employment indicators domain focuses on indicators related to employment in agrifood systems and rural areas. The update is performed yearly, using data from the International Labour Organization (ILO) database that contains a rich set of indicators from a wide range of topics related to labour statistics. The indicators published in FAOSTAT are derived from the labour force statistics (LFS) and rural and urban labour markets (RURURB) databases of the ILOSTAT database.