Stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) was 10.65 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
10.65
Change on year
up 5.0%
World rank
12th
of 27 countries
All-time high
10.65
in 2024
All-time low
6.34
in 2007
Years of data
25
2000–2024
Stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) in Costa Rica, 2000–2024
Source: UNICEF.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 10.65 for stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 5.0% on the previous year and up 49.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) in Costa Rica peaked at 10.65 in 2024 and was at its lowest, 6.34, in 2007.
Costa Rica ranks 12th of 27 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 7.07 | — |
| 2001 | 6.95 | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 6.82 | -1.9% |
| 2003 | 6.68 | -2.0% |
| 2004 | 6.53 | -2.2% |
| 2005 | 6.42 | -1.7% |
| 2006 | 6.36 | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 6.34 | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 6.34 | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 6.36 | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 6.4 | +0.8% |
| 2011 | 6.51 | +1.7% |
| 2012 | 6.67 | +2.3% |
| 2013 | 6.86 | +3.0% |
| 2014 | 7.11 | +3.6% |
| 2015 | 7.43 | +4.5% |
| 2016 | 7.7 | +3.6% |
| 2017 | 7.93 | +3.0% |
| 2018 | 8.15 | +2.7% |
| 2019 | 8.37 | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 8.65 | +3.3% |
| 2021 | 9.1 | +5.2% |
| 2022 | 9.67 | +6.3% |
| 2023 | 10.14 | +4.8% |
| 2024 | 10.65 | +5.0% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 10.65 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 9.43, 1.1× the median. (27 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 10.65 is above the median for high income countries, which is 6.81, 1.6× the median. (8 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 6.59 | 6.34 | 7.07 | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.31 | 6.4 | 8.37 | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.64 | 8.65 | 10.65 | 5 |
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 stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) in Costa Rica?
- Stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) in Costa Rica was 10.65 in 2024, according to UNICEF.
- What is the highest stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 10.65 in 2024.
- What is the lowest stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.34 in 2007.
- How does Costa Rica rank for stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the)?
- Costa Rica ranks 12th out of 27 countries with data for 2024.
- Is stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the) rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 49.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from UNICEF, published as part of Stunting prevalence (height-for-age <-2 standard deviations from the median of the WHO Child Growth Standards) among children under 5 years of age (JME modeled estimate) - SDG 2.2.1. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under UNICEF Terms of Use (attribution required).