Costa Rica vs Ireland: Employee compensation as share of government spending
Costa Rica
26.8%
in 2023
Ireland
26.6%
in 2022
Costa Rica rank
72nd
Ireland rank
74th
Employee compensation as share of government spending over time
- Costa Rica
- Ireland
How they compare
Costa Rica currently reports 26.8% against 26.6% in Ireland, a difference of 0.2%.
Across all 49 years both countries report, Costa Rica has been ahead every year.
Costa Rica ranks 72nd and Ireland ranks 74th of 155 countries.
Costa Rica has averaged higher in every one of the 6 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Costa Rica | Ireland | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 52.8% | 14.6% | 38.2% | Costa Rica |
| 1980s | 43.3% | 13.1% | 30.2% | Costa Rica |
| 1990s | 39.8% | 15.5% | 24.4% | Costa Rica |
| 2000s | 42.0% | 20.8% | 21.2% | Costa Rica |
| 2010s | 44.7% | 24.5% | 20.2% | Costa Rica |
| 2020s | 29.2% | 25.0% | 4.2% | Costa Rica |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher employee compensation as share of government spending, Costa Rica or Ireland?
- Costa Rica, at 26.8% against 26.6% in Ireland as of 2023.
- What is the difference in employee compensation as share of government spending between Costa Rica and Ireland?
- 0.2%, with Costa Rica ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and Ireland?
- 49 years are reported by both, from 1973 to 2022.
- How do Costa Rica and Ireland rank globally for employee compensation as share of government spending?
- Costa Rica ranks 72nd and Ireland ranks 74th of 155 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Employee compensation as share of government spending. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Employee compensation includes wages, in-kind payments, and government contributions to social insurance schemes such as social security and pensions.