Costa Rica vs United States of America: Health spending as a share of total government spending
Costa Rica
24.9%
in 2023
United States of America
23.0%
in 2023
Costa Rica rank
2nd
United States of America rank
4th
Health spending as a share of total government spending over time
- Costa Rica
- United States of America
How they compare
Costa Rica currently reports 24.9% against 23.0% in United States of America, a difference of 1.9%.
That makes Costa Rica's figure about 1.1 times United States of America's.
Across all 24 years both countries report, Costa Rica has been ahead every year.
Costa Rica ranks 2nd and United States of America ranks 4th of 195 countries.
Costa Rica has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Costa Rica | United States of America | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 28.2% | 17.7% | 10.5% | Costa Rica |
| 2010s | 29.3% | 21.1% | 8.2% | Costa Rica |
| 2020s | 25.4% | 22.6% | 2.8% | Costa Rica |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher health spending as a share of total government spending, Costa Rica or United States of America?
- Costa Rica, at 24.9% against 23.0% in United States of America as of 2023.
- What is the difference in health spending as a share of total government spending between Costa Rica and United States of America?
- 1.9%, with Costa Rica ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and United States of America?
- 24 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2023.
- How do Costa Rica and United States of America rank globally for health spending as a share of total government spending?
- Costa Rica ranks 2nd and United States of America ranks 4th of 195 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Health spending as a share of total government spending. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Domestic general government health expenditure expressed as a percentage of total expenditure of the general government.