Tax revenue as share of GDP in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Tax revenue as share of GDP was 24.9% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
24.9%
Change on year
down 1.0%
World rank
64th
of 192 countries
All-time high
25.2%
in 2022
All-time low
17.6%
in 1991
Years of data
34
1990–2023
Tax revenue as share of GDP in Costa Rica, 1990–2023
Source: UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2023, tax revenue as share of gdp in Costa Rica stood at 24.9%.
That represents a change of down 1.0% on the previous year and up 8.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tax revenue as share of gdp in Costa Rica peaked at 25.2% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 17.6%, in 1991.
Costa Rica ranks 64th of 192 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Tax revenue as share of GDP in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 22.4% | — |
| 1991 | 17.6% | -21.5% |
| 1992 | 18.6% | +5.8% |
| 1993 | 18.8% | +1.0% |
| 1994 | 19.6% | +4.2% |
| 1995 | 18.9% | -3.4% |
| 1996 | 19.9% | +4.9% |
| 1997 | 20.2% | +1.5% |
| 1998 | 20.5% | +1.6% |
| 1999 | 21.2% | +3.6% |
| 2000 | 21.1% | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 21.8% | +3.0% |
| 2002 | 21.8% | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 21.8% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 21.3% | -2.4% |
| 2005 | 21.8% | +2.1% |
| 2006 | 22.0% | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 23.1% | +4.9% |
| 2008 | 23.7% | +2.4% |
| 2009 | 22.1% | -6.7% |
| 2010 | 22.1% | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 22.6% | +2.3% |
| 2012 | 22.6% | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 23.0% | +1.8% |
| 2014 | 22.6% | -1.6% |
| 2015 | 22.9% | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 23.5% | +2.3% |
| 2017 | 23.0% | -2.1% |
| 2018 | 23.2% | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 23.4% | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 22.6% | -3.6% |
| 2021 | 24.8% | +10.1% |
| 2022 | 25.2% | +1.4% |
| 2023 | 24.9% | -1.0% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 24.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 29.8%, 84% of the median. (65 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 24.9% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 19.6%, 1.3× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 19.8% | 17.6% | 22.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 22.1% | 21.1% | 23.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 22.9% | 22.1% | 23.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 24.4% | 22.6% | 25.2% | 4 |
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)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 466.29 million BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0045 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 90.49 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled 5.59 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 3.39 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0543 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 1,084 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 20.52 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tax revenue as share of gdp in Costa Rica?
- Tax revenue as share of gdp in Costa Rica was 24.9% in 2023, according to UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest tax revenue as share of gdp recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 25.2% in 2022.
- What is the lowest tax revenue as share of gdp recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.6% in 1991.
- How does Costa Rica rank for tax revenue as share of gdp?
- Costa Rica ranks 64th out of 192 countries with data for 2023.
- Is tax revenue as share of gdp 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 UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Tax revenue as share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Direct and indirect taxes as well as social contributions included.