Nitrogen fertilizer use in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Nitrogen fertilizer use was 87,863 tonnes in 2023. ▲ Rising
Nitrogen fertilizer use in Costa Rica, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
In 2023, nitrogen fertilizer use in Costa Rica stood at 87,863 tonnes.
That represents a change of up 25.3% on the previous year and down 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, nitrogen fertilizer use in Costa Rica peaked at 104,000 tonnes in 1998 and was at its lowest, 6,226 tonnes, in 1961.
That places Costa Rica 74th out of 202 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Nitrogen fertilizer use in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 6,226 tonnes | — |
| 1962 | 8,831 tonnes | +41.8% |
| 1963 | 21,000 tonnes | +137.8% |
| 1964 | 24,000 tonnes | +14.3% |
| 1965 | 10,000 tonnes | -58.3% |
| 1966 | 16,700 tonnes | +67.0% |
| 1967 | 15,700 tonnes | -6.0% |
| 1968 | 29,000 tonnes | +84.7% |
| 1969 | 39,980 tonnes | +37.9% |
| 1970 | 37,365 tonnes | -6.5% |
| 1971 | 26,800 tonnes | -28.3% |
| 1972 | 25,900 tonnes | -3.4% |
| 1973 | 34,000 tonnes | +31.3% |
| 1974 | 33,900 tonnes | -0.3% |
| 1975 | 31,100 tonnes | -8.3% |
| 1976 | 28,488 tonnes | -8.4% |
| 1977 | 40,543 tonnes | +42.3% |
| 1978 | 40,880 tonnes | +0.8% |
| 1979 | 39,400 tonnes | -3.6% |
| 1980 | 40,500 tonnes | +2.8% |
| 1981 | 45,200 tonnes | +11.6% |
| 1982 | 49,000 tonnes | +8.4% |
| 1983 | 54,000 tonnes | +10.2% |
| 1984 | 50,600 tonnes | -6.3% |
| 1985 | 49,000 tonnes | -3.2% |
| 1986 | 52,000 tonnes | +6.1% |
| 1987 | 55,000 tonnes | +5.8% |
| 1988 | 58,970 tonnes | +7.2% |
| 1989 | 63,000 tonnes | +6.8% |
| 1990 | 55,600 tonnes | -11.7% |
| 1991 | 62,400 tonnes | +12.2% |
| 1992 | 65,000 tonnes | +4.2% |
| 1993 | 60,000 tonnes | -7.7% |
| 1994 | 70,000 tonnes | +16.7% |
| 1995 | 70,000 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 89,000 tonnes | +27.1% |
| 1997 | 100,000 tonnes | +12.4% |
| 1998 | 104,000 tonnes | +4.0% |
| 1999 | 80,000 tonnes | -23.1% |
| 2000 | 68,000 tonnes | -15.0% |
| 2001 | 53,223 tonnes | -21.7% |
| 2002 | 54,917 tonnes | +3.2% |
| 2003 | 77,399 tonnes | +40.9% |
| 2004 | 63,074 tonnes | -18.5% |
| 2005 | 68,020 tonnes | +7.8% |
| 2006 | 71,534 tonnes | +5.2% |
| 2007 | 74,155 tonnes | +3.7% |
| 2008 | 81,538 tonnes | +10.0% |
| 2009 | 45,374 tonnes | -44.4% |
| 2010 | 61,205 tonnes | +34.9% |
| 2011 | 94,607 tonnes | +54.6% |
| 2012 | 87,872 tonnes | -7.1% |
| 2013 | 89,978 tonnes | +2.4% |
| 2014 | 77,922 tonnes | -13.4% |
| 2015 | 85,178 tonnes | +9.3% |
| 2016 | 98,943 tonnes | +16.2% |
| 2017 | 90,742 tonnes | -8.3% |
| 2018 | 96,212 tonnes | +6.0% |
| 2019 | 93,281 tonnes | -3.0% |
| 2020 | 94,724 tonnes | +1.5% |
| 2021 | 81,386 tonnes | -14.1% |
| 2022 | 70,111 tonnes | -13.9% |
| 2023 | 87,863 tonnes | +25.3% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 87,863 tonnes is above the median for high income countries, which is 83,582 tonnes, 1.1× the median. (68 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 87,863 tonnes is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 19,640 tonnes, 4.5× the median. (35 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Nitrogen fertilizer use in Costa Rica changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | +137.8% | 8,831 tonnes | 21,000 tonnes |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 19,049 tonnes | 6,226 tonnes | 39,980 tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 33,838 tonnes | 25,900 tonnes | 40,880 tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 51,727 tonnes | 40,500 tonnes | 63,000 tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 75,600 tonnes | 55,600 tonnes | 104,000 tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 65,723 tonnes | 45,374 tonnes | 81,538 tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 87,594 tonnes | 61,205 tonnes | 98,943 tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 83,521 tonnes | 70,111 tonnes | 94,724 tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More agriculture & rural data for Costa Rica
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 4.56 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0337 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 672.15 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -1.57 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.2027 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 3.4% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 3.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.1% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is nitrogen fertilizer use in Costa Rica?
- Nitrogen fertilizer use in Costa Rica was 87,863 tonnes in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest nitrogen fertilizer use recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 104,000 tonnes in 1998.
- What is the lowest nitrogen fertilizer use recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 6,226 tonnes in 1961.
- How does Costa Rica rank for nitrogen fertilizer use?
- Costa Rica ranks 74th out of 202 countries with data for 2023.
- Is nitrogen fertilizer use rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Nitrogen fertilizer use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Measures total nitrogen inputs, including synthetic fertilizers alongside organic inputs from manure and crop fixation. Measured in tonnes of nitrogen.