Photo: Henry Zbyszynski from Capitola California, USA · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale
Topic 03 of 18 · Country Index 2026
Costa Rica: Work & Labour
Can people find work, and on what terms?
Costa Rica is placed joint 92nd of 182 countries on work & labour in the Country Index 2026, from 4 of its 4 key statistics. Readings behind it: Employment-to-Population Ratio 53.71 (2025); Labour Income Share 55.39 (2025).
Work & Labour
joint92nd
of 182 countries placed
Placed from 4 of 4 key statistics
01The evidence
The 4 key statistics that decide it
Only these place Costa Rica on work & labour — one vote each. Every value is the publisher’s own, read at the edition the Country Index 2026 used; the grey ticks are every other country it was compared with, lowest on the left.
Key 1 of 4
Employment-to-Population Ratio
International Labour Organization (ILO)
Why it is a key: How much of the working-age population is actually in work — the half of the picture unemployment hides, because people who stop looking stop being counted.
2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY 4.0
53.71
Employed share of the population aged 15+ (%)
Higher is better
Costa Rica: 53.71. Across the 182 countries in this edition, values run from 21.21 (São Tomé and Príncipe) to 86.9 (Qatar); the world median is 57.72.
- World median
- 57.72
- Best in Central America
- 62.74 Nicaragua
- Land neighbours
- Nicaragua 62.74 · Panama 60.76
Each grey tick is one of 182 countries in the 2025 edition.
Key 3 of 4
Unemployment Rate
International Labour Organization (ILO)
Why it is a key: The share of people looking for work who cannot find it.
2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY 4.0
6.843
Unemployment (% of labour force)
Lower is better
Costa Rica: 6.843. Across the 182 countries in this edition, values run from 0.13 (Qatar) to 34.2 (Eswatini); the world median is 5.084.
- World median
- 5.084
- Best in Central America
- 2.604 Guatemala
- Land neighbours
- Nicaragua 5.04 · Panama 8.36
Each grey tick is one of 182 countries in the 2025 edition.
Key 4 of 4
Vulnerable Employment
International Labour Organization (ILO)
Why it is a key: How much work is own-account or unpaid family labour, carrying no contract and no protection.
2025 edition · data for 2025 · CC BY 4.0
23.36
Vulnerable employment (% of total employment)
Lower is better
Costa Rica: 23.36. Across the 182 countries in this edition, values run from 0.456 (Qatar) to 90.22 (Chad); the world median is 28.67.
- World median
- 28.67
- Best in Central America
- 23.36 Costa Rica
- Land neighbours
- Nicaragua 38.86 · Panama 37.87
Each grey tick is one of 182 countries in the 2025 edition.
02Over time
Which way Costa Rica is moving
Each key’s published value, edition by edition, beside the world median. The Country Index 2026 is the first edition of the standing, so the standing itself has no history to chart yet.
Employment-to-Population Ratio
Employed share of the population aged 15+ (%) · higher is better
Costa RicaWorld median
Costa Rica fell from 55.88 in 2000 to 53.71 in 2025; the world median went from 55.86 to 57.72.
Every year’s figures
Year Costa Rica World median 2025 53.71 57.720 2024 53.69 57.694 2023 52.10 58.158 2022 54.53 57.688 2021 52.42 56.066 2020 50.67 55.691 2019 57.32 57.871 2018 56.61 56.911 2017 55.22 56.738 2016 54.86 56.845 2015 57.52 56.788 2014 58.73 56.774 2013 58.43 56.229 2012 58.47 56.289 2011 54.85 56.297 2010 54.97 56.212 2009 55.75 56.255 2008 57.90 57.308 2007 58.63 56.933 2006 57.05 56.685 2005 57.17 56.129 2004 55.07 55.465 2003 56.05 55.630 2002 55.94 55.843 2001 56.59 56.018 2000 55.88 55.861 Labour Income Share
Labour income share of GDP (%) · higher is better
Costa RicaWorld median
Costa Rica rose from 54.46 in 2004 to 55.39 in 2025; the world median went from 46.01 to 46.23.
Every year’s figures
Year Costa Rica World median 2025 55.4 46.230 2024 55.3 46.060 2023 54.3 45.900 2022 53.4 45.615 2021 54.0 45.433 2020 55.8 47.267 2019 56.1 46.277 2018 54.7 46.187 2017 53.9 46.467 2016 55.7 46.798 2015 57.0 46.876 2014 57.3 47.281 2013 58.5 46.887 2012 57.4 46.231 2011 56.9 45.679 2010 56.3 46.024 2009 55.6 47.071 2008 52.8 45.312 2007 51.7 45.246 2006 52.6 45.670 2005 52.7 46.265 2004 54.5 46.012 Unemployment Rate
Unemployment (% of labour force) · lower is better
Costa RicaWorld median
Costa Rica rose from 5.08 in 2000 to 6.843 in 2025; the world median went from 6.918 to 5.084.
Every year’s figures
Year Costa Rica World median 2025 6.84 5.08 2024 6.94 5.15 2023 8.33 5.21 2022 11.33 5.34 2021 15.14 6.04 2020 16.43 6.38 2019 10.81 5.36 2018 9.01 5.35 2017 7.73 5.59 2016 8.09 5.90 2015 8.42 6.41 2014 8.50 6.58 2013 8.22 6.71 2012 9.11 6.79 2011 9.52 6.90 2010 7.17 7.04 2009 7.82 6.67 2008 4.93 5.79 2007 4.56 6.00 2006 5.93 6.50 2005 6.75 7.09 2004 6.45 6.80 2003 6.65 6.95 2002 6.40 6.91 2001 6.05 6.96 2000 5.08 6.92 Vulnerable Employment
Vulnerable employment (% of total employment) · lower is better
Costa RicaWorld median
Costa Rica fell from 28.22 in 2000 to 23.36 in 2025; the world median went from 35.67 to 28.67.
Every year’s figures
Year Costa Rica World median 2025 23.36 28.67 2024 23.60 29.04 2023 23.77 29.33 2022 24.88 29.67 2021 25.42 30.01 2020 25.80 30.54 2019 25.28 29.98 2018 24.63 30.15 2017 24.49 29.93 2016 24.84 29.91 2015 26.53 30.26 2014 26.63 30.47 2013 27.24 31.14 2012 24.98 31.00 2011 23.68 31.41 2010 23.83 32.37 2009 24.52 32.59 2008 24.59 31.76 2007 24.65 33.47 2006 26.52 34.27 2005 26.02 34.66 2004 28.16 35.51 2003 26.88 35.90 2002 28.73 35.96 2001 28.06 35.27 2000 28.22 35.67
03In context
Costa Rica beside its neighbours
A position reads best beside the countries around it. Every position below is a place among all 182 countries on work & labour, never a place within the region.
Costa Rica and the countries it borders
The standing is each country’s place among all 182 placed on the topic; the other columns are the publishers’ own values, read at the edition the standing used.
| Country | Standing | Employment-to-Population RatioEmployed share of the population aged 15+ (%) | Labour Income ShareLabour income share of GDP (%) | Unemployment RateUnemployment (% of labour force) | Vulnerable EmploymentVulnerable employment (% of total employment) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Nicaragua | =78th | 62.74 | 47.15 | 5.04 | 38.86 |
| Costa Rica | =92nd | 53.71 | 55.39 | 6.843 | 23.36 |
 Panama | =146th | 60.76 | 35.59 | 8.36 | 37.87 |
“—” means the publisher gives no reading for that country in that edition. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed.
Across Central America
Every country in the sub-region, by its place among all 182.
Placed either side on work & labour
The countries immediately above and below Costa Rica in the topic’s list.
04Context, no vote
Where Costa Rica is ahead of the world, and behind
17 more statistics filed under work & labour, published in full and deliberately given no vote in the standing. Select a row for the publisher, the rank and the links.
Ahead of the world median7
Statistics on which Costa Rica does better than the middle country measured.
Female Share of Senior and Middle ManagementILO · 2024 · world median 35.8650.0735.86▲ Improved since 2017
Costa Rica: 50.07 · world median 35.86 · Women in senior and middle management (% of managers). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 7.226 to 56.69; higher is better.
Position 6th of 86 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Working Poverty RateILO · 2025 · world median 4.8850.14.885▲ Improved since 2015
Costa Rica: 0.1 · world median 4.885 · Employed people living in extreme poverty (%). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.007 to 86.02; lower is better.
Firms with a Female Top ManagerWorld Bank Group · 2025 · world median 19.1625.2619.16No earlier reading
Costa Rica: 25.26 · world median 19.16 · Firms with a female top manager (%). World Bank Group, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 1.429 to 62.9; higher is better.
Position 42nd of 179 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
GDP per Person EmployedWorld Bank Group · 2025 · world median 47,38464,82347,384▲ Improved since 2015
Costa Rica: 64,823 · world median 47,384 · GDP per person employed (constant 2021 international $). World Bank Group, 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 2,456 to 262,554; higher is better.
Position 62nd of 168 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Trade Union DensityILO · 2020 · world median 16.6820.5416.68No earlier reading
Costa Rica: 20.54 · world median 16.68 · Employees who are trade union members (%). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2020 edition, data for 2020.
Published values in that edition run from 0.2 to 91.42; higher is better.
Position 56th of 139 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Labour Productivity per Hour WorkedILO · 2025 · world median 22.1629.0622.16▲ Improved since 2015
Costa Rica: 29.06 · world median 22.16 · Output per hour worked (constant 2021 international $ at PPP). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.92 to 164.65; higher is better.
Position 74th of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Informal Employment RateILO · 2025 · world median 36.8336.1136.83No earlier reading
Costa Rica: 36.11 · world median 36.83 · Informal employment (% of total employment). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.857 to 94.44; lower is better.
Position 51st of 97 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Behind the world median4
Statistics on which Costa Rica does worse than the middle country measured.
Youth Not in Education, Employment or TrainingILO · 2024 · world median 14.3118.2814.31▼ Worsened since 2014
Costa Rica: 18.28 · world median 14.31 · Youth not in education, employment or training (%). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2024 edition, data for 2024.
Published values in that edition run from 3.975 to 65.73; lower is better.
Position 36th of 97 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Labour Force Participation RateILO · 2025 · world median 61.6657.6661.66▼ Worsened since 2015
Costa Rica: 57.66 · world median 61.66 · Population aged 15+ in the labour force (%). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 23.34 to 87.01; higher is better.
Position 121st of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Female Labour Force Participation RateILO · 2025 · world median 53.3646.0253.36▼ Worsened since 2015
Costa Rica: 46.02 · world median 53.36 · Women aged 15+ in the labour force (%). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 4.663 to 82.91; higher is better.
Position 134th of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = best. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Youth Unemployment RateILO · 2025 · world median 12.8319.9512.83▼ Worsened since 2015
Costa Rica: 19.95 · world median 12.83 · Unemployment, ages 15-24 (% of youth labour force). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.457 to 76.77; lower is better.
Position 48th of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, 1st = worst. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No better end6
These describe the shape of a country — more is not better or worse, only different — so they are never ahead or behind.
Average Weekly Hours WorkedILO · 2025 · world median 38.8941.9638.89Moved since 2015
Costa Rica: 41.96 · world median 38.89 · Average weekly hours actually worked per employed person. International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 23.64 to 54.7.
Position 53rd of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Employment in ServicesILO · 2025 · world median 59.5170.0359.51Moved since 2015
Costa Rica: 70.03 · world median 59.51 · Employment in services (% of total employment). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 11.56 to 92.17.
Position 59th of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Employment in IndustryILO · 2025 · world median 18.8818.4818.88No real change since 2015
Costa Rica: 18.48 · world median 18.88 · Employment in industry (% of total employment). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 3.103 to 39.44.
Position 98th of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Employment in AgricultureILO · 2025 · world median 14.3811.4914.38No real change since 2015
Costa Rica: 11.49 · world median 14.38 · Employment in agriculture (% of total employment). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.095 to 85.34.
Position 100th of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Public Sector EmploymentWorld Bank Group · 2022 · world median 15.0112.9815.01No earlier reading
Costa Rica: 12.98 · world median 15.01 · Public sector employment (% of total employment). World Bank Group, 2022 edition, data for 2022.
Published values in that edition run from 1.672 to 47.1.
Position 75th of 135 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
Self-Employment RateILO · 2025 · world median 31.8426.5931.84No real change since 2015
Costa Rica: 26.59 · world median 31.84 · Self-employed (% of total employment). International Labour Organization (ILO), 2025 edition, data for 2025.
Published values in that edition run from 0.832 to 91.56.
Position 108th of 182 — derived here by ordering the published values, counted from the highest value. The publisher ranks no country on this.
No current reading for Costa Rica
Fatal Occupational Injuries (last 2016). Listed rather than hidden, so the page can be checked against it.
05Country Index 2026
Work & Labour among Costa Rica’s 16 topics
Work & Labour is Costa Rica’s 13th best-placed topic of 16. Strongest first; each marker sits at the position divided by that topic’s field, so fields of different sizes compare fairly.
- Peace & Security2nd of 1773/4 keys
- Gender & Equality4th of 1834/4 keys
- Energy13th of 1933/3 keys
- Governance & Institutions32nd of 1944/4 keys
- Democracy & Civil Liberties38th of 1983/3 keys
- Digital & Technology58th of 1983/3 keys
- Economy & Innovationjoint 57th of 1764/4 keys
- Health & Wellbeing65th of 2004/4 keys
- Development & Human Capital70th of 1963/3 keys
- Environment & Sustainability71st of 1813/3 keys
- Mobility & Trade61st of 1473/3 keys
- Food & Agriculture80th of 1754/4 keys
- Work & Labourjoint 92nd of 1824/4 keys
- Risk & Resilience98th of 1923/3 keys
- Education & Knowledge101st of 1714/4 keys
- Poverty & Inequality116th of 1592/2 keys
06The top of the list
Who leads on work & labour
The three countries placed highest of 182, and the leaders Costa Rica can most readily be measured against.
1
IcelandNorthern Europe
1st of 182 · 4 of 4 keys
Photo: Hansueli Krapf · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
2
JapanEastern Asia
2nd of 182 · 4 of 4 keys
Photo: JurriaanH · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
3
South KoreaEastern Asia
3rd of 182 · 4 of 4 keys
Photo: Unknown author · CC BY-SA 2.0, greyscale
Placed highest nearby
Highest in Americas
United States14th4/4 keysHighest in Central America
El Salvador50th4/4 keysThis page
Costa Rica=92nd4/4 keys
Positions out of 182 placed on the topic. A country needs readings on enough keys to be placed, and the top of the list is often held on fewer of them.
07Analysis
Charts and analysis about Costa Rica and work & labour
On work & labour
Countries in Asia with the highest average salaries 2024
Thirteen Asian countries by gross average monthly wage, each carrying its WORLD rank rather than an Asian one — so the numbers skip, from 11th place to 45th.
On work & labour
Countries With The Highest Average Salaries in 2024
The ten highest-paying countries of 2024, their bars coloured by continent, and six more added for comparison — from Australia in 13th place to India in 85th.
On work & labour
Countries With The Lowest Average Salaries in 2024
The bottom ten of 196 countries, and six more added for comparison. Niger, Madagascar and Liberia are all published at US$47 a month and still carry three different ranks.
08Questions
Costa Rica on work & labour: questions answered
Every answer is built from the numbers on this page, so none can say something the page does not.
How does Costa Rica rank on work & labour?
Costa Rica is placed joint 92nd of 182 countries on Work & Labour in the Country Index 2026, from 4 of its 4 key statistics (Employment-to-Population Ratio, Labour Income Share, Unemployment Rate and Vulnerable Employment). The position is this site’s ordering of published statistics, not a rank any publisher printed.
What is the latest Employment-to-Population Ratio figure for Costa Rica?
53.71 in 2025 (employed share of the population aged 15+ (%)), according to International Labour Organization (ILO). The world median in the same edition was 57.72.
What is the latest Labour Income Share figure for Costa Rica?
55.39 in 2025 (labour income share of GDP (%)), according to International Labour Organization (ILO). The world median in the same edition was 46.23.
How does Costa Rica compare with Nicaragua on work & labour?
Nicaragua is placed joint 78th of 182, and Costa Rica joint 92nd. Employment-to-Population Ratio: Nicaragua 62.74, Costa Rica 53.71; Labour Income Share: Nicaragua 47.15, Costa Rica 55.39; Unemployment Rate: Nicaragua 5.04, Costa Rica 6.843; Vulnerable Employment: Nicaragua 38.86, Costa Rica 23.36.
How have Costa Rica’s work & labour figures changed?
Employment-to-Population Ratio fell from 55.88 in 2000 to 53.71 in 2025; Labour Income Share rose from 54.46 in 2004 to 55.39 in 2025; Unemployment Rate rose from 5.08 in 2000 to 6.843 in 2025; Vulnerable Employment fell from 28.22 in 2000 to 23.36 in 2025.
Which work & labour statistics are missing for Costa Rica?
No current reading is published for Costa Rica on Fatal Occupational Injuries. They are listed rather than hidden, so the evidence on the page can be checked against it.
09Keep reading
Explore further
Costa Rica, topic by topic
- Governance & Institutions32nd of 194
- Economy & Innovation=57th of 176
- Education & Knowledge101st of 171
- Health & Wellbeing65th of 200
- Development & Human Capital70th of 196
- Environment & Sustainability71st of 181
- Gender & Equality4th of 183
- Democracy & Civil Liberties38th of 198
- Peace & Security2nd of 177
- Risk & Resilience98th of 192
- Mobility & Trade61st of 147
- Food & Agriculture80th of 175
- Poverty & Inequality116th of 159
- Energy13th of 193
- Digital & Technology58th of 198
- The full Costa Rica profile
Nearby, on work & labour
The key statistics, for every country
10Method
Method, sources and how to cite
What this topic does not measure
Wages in money terms are not a key here, because pay figures are hard to compare fairly across countries with very different prices. Labour productivity, working hours, youth unemployment and the balance between farming, industry and services are published on this page as context. The size and growth of the wider economy belong to Economy & Innovation.
How the Work & Labour standing is decided, step by step
A standing is a place in a list, not a mark out of anything. This one is part of the Country Index 2026, and it is worked out like this.
- A few key indicators decide it; the rest are context. 4 indicators on this topic are keys and 18 are charted alongside them without a vote. That split is the point: if every statistic voted, importing five more of one kind would quietly change what the topic is about.
- Each key is read at one edition. All of them describe 2025.
- Every country’s published value is turned into a place within that one key’s own field, and then expressed as a share of that field — how far down this key’s list the country sits, rather than how many countries are above it. Keys where a higher published number is worse (terrorism, hunger, disaster risk) are turned round first, so the good end is always the same end.
- Dividing by the field first is the whole reason this works. A place carries the size of its list inside it: 22nd of 44 and 108th of 215 are the same showing, and averaging the numbers 22 and 108 says loudly that they are not. Fields on this site run from about 44 countries to about 215, so averaging raw places would reward a country for happening to be measured in small ones. Dividing each place by its own field removes the size and leaves only the showing.
- The shares are averaged, plainly. One key, one vote — no key is weighted above another, because any weighting would be this site’s opinion presented as a measurement. Countries are then put in order by that average, and the average itself is never published. It is our arithmetic with nothing anchoring it, so printing it would invite it to be read as a measurement somebody made. The position it produces, the band, and the keys it was built from are all published instead — every one of them checkable against the tables on this page.
- A country needs 2 of this topic’s 4 keys — half, rounded up, and never fewer than 2. A standing built from one reading, printed beside one built from four, is two different things sharing a column heading. 182 countries clear the bar here.
- A key has to earn its vote every edition. It must measure at least 120 countries (below that it starts measuring who was surveyed rather than the world), it must not have more than 10% of its field tied at either end, and it must not repeat another key in the same topic — Spearman correlation above 0.92 counts as repeating. A topic needs at least 2 surviving keys to place anyone at all; this one has 4.
- A standing is relative, and the grouping is ours. It says where a country places against the others measured alongside it, so it moves when they move. The publishers listed on this page did not agree to be read together, and each measures its subject its own way: the underlying numbers are theirs, the ordering on top is this site’s — the same method as the rest of the Country Index, applied to one subject instead of all of them.
The key statistics and their licences
- Employment-to-Population Ratio — International Labour Organization (ILO), CC BY 4.0
- Labour Income Share — International Labour Organization (ILO), CC BY 4.0
- Unemployment Rate — International Labour Organization (ILO), CC BY 4.0
- Vulnerable Employment — International Labour Organization (ILO), CC BY 4.0
The other 17 statistics on this page come from 2 publishers, each named beside its numbers, with every edition and licence on the datasets pages.
The standing itself is part of the Country Index 2026, published under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photographs
Costa Rica’s banner and the countries placed highest, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Costa Rica (banner) — Henry Zbyszynski from Capitola California, USA, CC BY 2.0
- Iceland — Hansueli Krapf, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Japan — JurriaanH, CC BY-SA 3.0
- South Korea — Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.0
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Costa Rica: Work & Labour — standing and statistics, Country Index 2026. https://nationsinquiry.com/countries/costa-rica/work