Out-of-pocket expenditure in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Out-of-pocket expenditure was 24.1% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Out-of-pocket expenditure in Costa Rica, 2000–2023
Source: Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO). Measured in % of current health expenditure.
Analysis
The most recent figure for out-of-pocket expenditure in Costa Rica is 24.1%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 7.5% on the previous year and up 3.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-pocket expenditure in Costa Rica peaked at 32.8% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 20.3%, in 2020.
That places Costa Rica 117th out of 193 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Out-of-pocket expenditure in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % of current health expenditure | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 31.6% | — |
| 2001 | 31.6% | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 30.7% | -3.0% |
| 2003 | 30.8% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 32.1% | +4.2% |
| 2005 | 32.8% | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 31.1% | -5.2% |
| 2007 | 30.9% | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 29.5% | -4.5% |
| 2009 | 26.4% | -10.5% |
| 2010 | 25.4% | -3.9% |
| 2011 | 25.8% | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 24.5% | -5.0% |
| 2013 | 23.2% | -5.2% |
| 2014 | 24.4% | +5.1% |
| 2015 | 22.6% | -7.4% |
| 2016 | 22.2% | -1.8% |
| 2017 | 21.3% | -4.3% |
| 2018 | 22.4% | +5.5% |
| 2019 | 22.3% | -0.4% |
| 2020 | 20.3% | -9.1% |
| 2021 | 20.5% | +1.1% |
| 2022 | 22.4% | +9.3% |
| 2023 | 24.1% | +7.5% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 24.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 16.8%, 1.4× the median. (64 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 24.1% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 29.3%, 82% of the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 30.7% | 26.4% | 32.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 23.4% | 21.3% | 25.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 21.8% | 20.3% | 24.1% | 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)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,632 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 35 deaths (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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-pocket expenditure in Costa Rica?
- Out-of-pocket expenditure in Costa Rica was 24.1% in 2023, according to Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO).
- What is the highest out-of-pocket expenditure recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 32.8% in 2005.
- What is the lowest out-of-pocket expenditure recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 20.3% in 2020.
- How does Costa Rica rank for out-of-pocket expenditure?
- Costa Rica ranks 117th out of 193 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-pocket expenditure rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO), published as part of Out-of-pocket expenditure (% of current health expenditure). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Share of out-of-pocket payments of total current health expenditures. Out-of-pocket payments are spending on health directly out-of-pocket by households.