Annual population and employment, national concept — Total employment in Costa Rica

Costa Rica: Annual population and employment, national concept — Total employment was 2,072 Persons in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
2,072 Persons
Change on year
down 2.4%
World rank
31st
of 36 countries
All-time high
2,132 Persons
in 2019
All-time low
927.08 Persons
in 1987
Years of data
37
1987–2023

Annual population and employment, national concept — Total employment in Costa Rica, 1987–2023

05001.0k1.5k2.0k1987200520231987: 927.1 Persons1988: 964.8 Persons1989: 1.0k Persons1990: 1.0k Persons1991: 1.0k Persons1992: 1.1k Persons1993: 1.1k Persons1994: 1.2k Persons1995: 1.2k Persons1996: 1.2k Persons1997: 1.3k Persons1998: 1.4k Persons1999: 1.4k Persons2000: 1.4k Persons2001: 1.5k Persons2002: 1.5k Persons2003: 1.6k Persons2004: 1.6k Persons2005: 1.7k Persons2006: 1.8k Persons2007: 1.9k Persons2008: 1.9k Persons2009: 1.9k Persons2010: 1.8k Persons2011: 1.8k Persons2012: 2.0k Persons2013: 2.0k Persons2014: 2.0k Persons2015: 2.0k Persons2016: 2.0k Persons2017: 2.0k Persons2018: 2.1k Persons2019: 2.1k Persons2020: 1.9k Persons2021: 2.0k Persons2022: 2.1k Persons2023: 2.1k Persons

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Persons.

Analysis

In 2023, annual population and employment, national concept — total employment in Costa Rica stood at 2,072 Persons.

That represents a change of down 2.4% on the previous year and up 4.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual population and employment, national concept — total employment in Costa Rica peaked at 2,132 Persons in 2019 and was at its lowest, 927.08 Persons, in 1987.

That places Costa Rica 31st out of 36 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 37 years of available data.

Annual population and employment, national concept — Total employment in Costa Rica, year by year

Annual values for Annual population and employment, national concept — Total employment in Costa Rica, 1987 to 2023.
Year Persons Change
1987 927.08 Persons
1988 964.75 Persons +4.1%
1989 1,010 Persons +4.7%
1990 1,032 Persons +2.2%
1991 1,031 Persons -0.1%
1992 1,073 Persons +4.1%
1993 1,134 Persons +5.7%
1994 1,187 Persons +4.6%
1995 1,224 Persons +3.2%
1996 1,214 Persons -0.8%
1997 1,311 Persons +8.0%
1998 1,395 Persons +6.4%
1999 1,412 Persons +1.3%
2000 1,446 Persons +2.4%
2001 1,527 Persons +5.6%
2002 1,550 Persons +1.5%
2003 1,599 Persons +3.2%
2004 1,615 Persons +1.0%
2005 1,722 Persons +6.6%
2006 1,772 Persons +2.9%
2007 1,871 Persons +5.6%
2008 1,895 Persons +1.3%
2009 1,861 Persons -1.8%
2010 1,837 Persons -1.3%
2011 1,798 Persons -2.1%
2012 1,953 Persons +8.6%
2013 1,978 Persons +1.3%
2014 2,017 Persons +2.0%
2015 2,005 Persons -0.6%
2016 1,952 Persons -2.7%
2017 2,011 Persons +3.0%
2018 2,080 Persons +3.5%
2019 2,132 Persons +2.5%
2020 1,900 Persons -10.9%
2021 2,007 Persons +5.7%
2022 2,123 Persons +5.8%
2023 2,072 Persons -2.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 967.18 Persons 927.08 Persons 1,010 Persons 3
1990s 1,201 Persons 1,031 Persons 1,412 Persons 10
2000s 1,686 Persons 1,446 Persons 1,895 Persons 10
2010s 1,976 Persons 1,798 Persons 2,132 Persons 10
2020s 2,025 Persons 1,900 Persons 2,123 Persons 4

Countries ranked near Costa Rica

  1. 28 New Zealand 2,890 Persons compare
  2. 29 Ireland 2,812 Persons compare
  3. 30 Finland 2,728 Persons compare
  4. 32 North Macedonia 739.38 Persons compare
  5. 33 Cyprus 513.63 Persons compare
  6. 34 Malta 338.16 Persons compare

See the full ranking of 46 places →

More work & labour data for Costa Rica

All data for Costa Rica →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual population and employment, national concept — total employment in Costa Rica?
Annual population and employment, national concept — total employment in Costa Rica was 2,072 Persons in 2023, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest annual population and employment, national concept — total employment recorded in Costa Rica?
The highest recorded value was 2,132 Persons in 2019.
What is the lowest annual population and employment, national concept — total employment recorded in Costa Rica?
The lowest recorded value was 927.08 Persons in 1987.
How does Costa Rica rank for annual population and employment, national concept — total employment?
Costa Rica ranks 31st out of 36 countries with data for 2023.
Is annual population and employment, national concept — total employment rising or falling in Costa Rica?
Over the last ten years it is up 4.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Annual population and employment, national concept — Total employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Annual population and employment, national concept — Total employment in Costa Rica. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 04 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/annual-population-and-employment-national-concept-total-employment/costa-rica/

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About this data

Indicator
Annual population and employment, national concept — Total employment
Unit
Persons
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
46 places, 1,714 data points, 1950–2025
Last refreshed

This table presents population and employment data according to the national concept. The national concept is defined by the residence of the person: employees are residents employed by either resident or non-resident producer units; and the self-employed are resident self-employed people in either resident or non-resident producer units. Users should note that population data corresponds to mid-year estimates (or the average of the reference year). These indicators were presented in the previous dissemination system in the SNA_TABLE3 dataset. See ANA Changes for information on changes in methodology: ANA Changes Explore also the GDP and non-financial accounts webpage: GDP and non-financial accounts webpage OECD statistics contact: STAT.Contact@oecd.org