Life expectancy (Our World) in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Life expectancy (Our World) was 80.8 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
80.8
Change on year
up 1.9%
World rank
51st
of 236 countries
All-time high
80.8
in 2023
All-time low
30.21
in 1875
Years of data
80
1875–2023
Life expectancy in Costa Rica, 1875–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 80.8 for life expectancy in 2023. That is the highest value across all 80 years on record.
The figure is up 1.9% on the previous year and up 0.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy in Costa Rica peaked at 80.8 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 30.21, in 1875.
Costa Rica ranks 51st of 236 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 80 years of available data.
Life expectancy (Our World) in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1875 | 30.21 | — |
| 1900 | 32 | +5.9% |
| 1910 | 33 | +3.1% |
| 1920 | 37 | +12.1% |
| 1930 | 42 | +13.5% |
| 1940 | 49 | +16.7% |
| 1950 | 57.46 | +17.3% |
| 1951 | 57.82 | +0.6% |
| 1952 | 58.11 | +0.5% |
| 1953 | 59.06 | +1.6% |
| 1954 | 59.85 | +1.3% |
| 1955 | 60.45 | +1.0% |
| 1956 | 61.2 | +1.2% |
| 1957 | 61.58 | +0.6% |
| 1958 | 62.26 | +1.1% |
| 1959 | 62.91 | +1.0% |
| 1960 | 63.46 | +0.9% |
| 1961 | 63.86 | +0.6% |
| 1962 | 64.23 | +0.6% |
| 1963 | 64.33 | +0.1% |
| 1964 | 64.49 | +0.3% |
| 1965 | 64.76 | +0.4% |
| 1966 | 65.1 | +0.5% |
| 1967 | 65.55 | +0.7% |
| 1968 | 65.78 | +0.3% |
| 1969 | 66.36 | +0.9% |
| 1970 | 66.79 | +0.6% |
| 1971 | 67.41 | +0.9% |
| 1972 | 68.01 | +0.9% |
| 1973 | 68.73 | +1.1% |
| 1974 | 69.45 | +1.0% |
| 1975 | 70.25 | +1.2% |
| 1976 | 70.95 | +1.0% |
| 1977 | 71.52 | +0.8% |
| 1978 | 72.03 | +0.7% |
| 1979 | 72.54 | +0.7% |
| 1980 | 73.03 | +0.7% |
| 1981 | 73.44 | +0.6% |
| 1982 | 73.86 | +0.6% |
| 1983 | 74.25 | +0.5% |
| 1984 | 74.58 | +0.5% |
| 1985 | 74.76 | +0.2% |
| 1986 | 74.95 | +0.2% |
| 1987 | 75.22 | +0.4% |
| 1988 | 75.55 | +0.4% |
| 1989 | 75.85 | +0.4% |
| 1990 | 76.09 | +0.3% |
| 1991 | 76.24 | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 76.38 | +0.2% |
| 1993 | 76.32 | -0.1% |
| 1994 | 76.33 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 76.44 | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 76.43 | -0.0% |
| 1997 | 76.6 | +0.2% |
| 1998 | 76.87 | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 77.06 | +0.2% |
| 2000 | 77.32 | +0.3% |
| 2001 | 77.61 | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 77.94 | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 78.21 | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 78.51 | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 78.88 | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 79.05 | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 79.1 | +0.1% |
| 2008 | 79.18 | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 79.37 | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 79.35 | -0.0% |
| 2011 | 79.62 | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 79.92 | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 80.19 | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 80.23 | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 80.41 | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 79.99 | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 79.99 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 80.09 | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 80.3 | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 79.73 | -0.7% |
| 2021 | 78.05 | -2.1% |
| 2022 | 79.32 | +1.6% |
| 2023 | 80.8 | +1.9% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 80.8 is below the median for high income countries, which is 81, 100% of the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 80.8 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 75.34, 1.1× the median. (42 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 30.21 | 30.21 | 30.21 | 1 |
| 1900s | 32 | 32 | 32 | 1 |
| 1910s | 33 | 33 | 33 | 1 |
| 1920s | 37 | 37 | 37 | 1 |
| 1930s | 42 | 42 | 42 | 1 |
| 1940s | 49 | 49 | 49 | 1 |
| 1950s | 60.07 | 57.46 | 62.91 | 10 |
| 1960s | 64.79 | 63.46 | 66.36 | 10 |
| 1970s | 69.77 | 66.79 | 72.54 | 10 |
| 1980s | 74.55 | 73.03 | 75.85 | 10 |
| 1990s | 76.48 | 76.09 | 77.06 | 10 |
| 2000s | 78.52 | 77.32 | 79.37 | 10 |
| 2010s | 80.01 | 79.35 | 80.41 | 10 |
| 2020s | 79.47 | 78.05 | 80.8 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More health data for Costa Rica
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -2.78 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.4617 % change on previous year (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 35 (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate -3.42 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0248 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate -3.37 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per capita 0.0259 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy in Costa Rica?
- Life expectancy in Costa Rica was 80.8 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest life expectancy recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 80.8 in 2023.
- What is the lowest life expectancy recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 30.21 in 1875.
- How does Costa Rica rank for life expectancy?
- Costa Rica ranks 51st out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is life expectancy rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Life expectancy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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