Employment outside the formal sector in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Employment outside the formal sector was 804.48 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Employment outside the formal sector in Costa Rica, 2010–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 804.48 for employment outside the formal sector in 2025.
The figure is down 4.5% on the previous year and up 0.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment outside the formal sector in Costa Rica peaked at 944.32 in 2019 and was at its lowest, 608.77, in 2011.
Costa Rica ranks 40th of 81 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 16 years of available data.
Employment outside the formal sector in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 616.46 | — |
| 2011 | 608.77 | -1.2% |
| 2012 | 707.37 | +16.2% |
| 2013 | 758.08 | +7.2% |
| 2014 | 790.84 | +4.3% |
| 2015 | 803.16 | +1.6% |
| 2016 | 735.5 | -8.4% |
| 2017 | 860.77 | +17.0% |
| 2018 | 899.36 | +4.5% |
| 2019 | 944.32 | +5.0% |
| 2020 | 807.24 | -14.5% |
| 2021 | 875.29 | +8.4% |
| 2022 | 890.09 | +1.7% |
| 2023 | 800.66 | -10.0% |
| 2024 | 842.53 | +5.2% |
| 2025 | 804.48 | -4.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 772.46 | 608.77 | 944.32 | 10 |
| 2020s | 836.72 | 800.66 | 890.09 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More work & labour data for Costa Rica
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.9965 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.9952 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.9977 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.61 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.29 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 5,205 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 569.35 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 1,908 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 1,868 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 3,776 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment outside the formal sector in Costa Rica?
- Employment outside the formal sector in Costa Rica was 804.48 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest employment outside the formal sector recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 944.32 in 2019.
- What is the lowest employment outside the formal sector recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 608.77 in 2011.
- How does Costa Rica rank for employment outside the formal sector?
- Costa Rica ranks 40th out of 81 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment outside the formal sector rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Employment outside the formal sector (previous ILO definition - ICLS13). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. This harmonized series for employment outside the formal sector is derived using the same set of criteria across countries to improve comparability. The criteria used are based on employment status, institutional sector, destination of production, bookkeeping, registration, social security contribution, places of work and size. Data disaggregated by occupation are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO). Data may have been regrouped from the national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISCO. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.