Rural population in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Rural population was 1.04 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
1.04 million
Change on year
down 1.6%
World rank
126th
of 218 countries
All-time high
1.64 million
in 1995
All-time low
874,753
in 1960
Years of data
66
1960–2025
Rural population in Costa Rica, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 1.04 million for rural population in 2025.
That represents a change of down 1.6% on the previous year and down 13.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Costa Rica peaked at 1.64 million in 1995 and was at its lowest, 874,753, in 1960.
That places Costa Rica 126th out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 874,753 | — |
| 1961 | 906,362 | +3.6% |
| 1962 | 938,450 | +3.5% |
| 1963 | 970,610 | +3.4% |
| 1964 | 1.00 million | +3.1% |
| 1965 | 1.03 million | +2.7% |
| 1966 | 1.05 million | +2.3% |
| 1967 | 1.07 million | +2.0% |
| 1968 | 1.09 million | +1.7% |
| 1969 | 1.11 million | +1.6% |
| 1970 | 1.13 million | +1.5% |
| 1971 | 1.14 million | +1.5% |
| 1972 | 1.16 million | +1.6% |
| 1973 | 1.18 million | +1.7% |
| 1974 | 1.20 million | +1.9% |
| 1975 | 1.23 million | +2.0% |
| 1976 | 1.25 million | +2.1% |
| 1977 | 1.28 million | +2.1% |
| 1978 | 1.31 million | +2.2% |
| 1979 | 1.34 million | +2.2% |
| 1980 | 1.37 million | +2.2% |
| 1981 | 1.40 million | +2.2% |
| 1982 | 1.43 million | +2.2% |
| 1983 | 1.46 million | +2.1% |
| 1984 | 1.48 million | +2.0% |
| 1985 | 1.51 million | +1.8% |
| 1986 | 1.54 million | +1.6% |
| 1987 | 1.56 million | +1.4% |
| 1988 | 1.58 million | +1.2% |
| 1989 | 1.59 million | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 1.61 million | +0.8% |
| 1991 | 1.62 million | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 1.63 million | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 1.63 million | +0.4% |
| 1994 | 1.64 million | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 1.64 million | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 1.64 million | -0.0% |
| 1997 | 1.64 million | -0.2% |
| 1998 | 1.63 million | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 1.62 million | -0.5% |
| 2000 | 1.61 million | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 1.60 million | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 1.58 million | -1.2% |
| 2003 | 1.55 million | -1.5% |
| 2004 | 1.53 million | -1.8% |
| 2005 | 1.50 million | -2.0% |
| 2006 | 1.46 million | -2.3% |
| 2007 | 1.42 million | -2.5% |
| 2008 | 1.39 million | -2.8% |
| 2009 | 1.34 million | -3.0% |
| 2010 | 1.30 million | -3.4% |
| 2011 | 1.25 million | -3.6% |
| 2012 | 1.24 million | -0.9% |
| 2013 | 1.23 million | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 1.22 million | -1.0% |
| 2015 | 1.20 million | -1.0% |
| 2016 | 1.19 million | -1.1% |
| 2017 | 1.18 million | -1.2% |
| 2018 | 1.16 million | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 1.15 million | -1.3% |
| 2020 | 1.13 million | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 1.11 million | -1.6% |
| 2022 | 1.10 million | -1.6% |
| 2023 | 1.08 million | -1.6% |
| 2024 | 1.06 million | -1.6% |
| 2025 | 1.04 million | -1.6% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 1.04 million is above the median for high income countries, which is 456,529, 2.3× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 1.04 million is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 622,054, 1.7× the median. (42 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.00 million | 874,753 | 1.11 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.22 million | 1.13 million | 1.34 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.49 million | 1.37 million | 1.59 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.63 million | 1.61 million | 1.64 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.50 million | 1.34 million | 1.61 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.21 million | 1.15 million | 1.30 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.09 million | 1.04 million | 1.13 million | 6 |
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 rural population in Costa Rica?
- Rural population in Costa Rica was 1.04 million in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 1.64 million in 1995.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 874,753 in 1960.
- How does Costa Rica rank for rural population?
- Costa Rica ranks 126th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population. Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverages.