Public employment in Costa Rica

Costa Rica: Public employment was 2,095 in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
2,095
Change on year
down 2.8%
World rank
31st
of 47 countries
All-time high
2,175
in 2019
All-time low
1,902
in 2010
Years of data
8
2010–2023

Public employment in Costa Rica, 2010–2023

05001.0k1.5k2.0k2010201620232010: 1.9k2017: 2.1k2018: 2.1k2019: 2.2k2020: 1.9k2021: 2.0k2022: 2.2k2023: 2.1k

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

Costa Rica recorded 2,095 for public employment in 2023.

That represents a change of down 2.8% on the previous year and up 10.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, public employment in Costa Rica peaked at 2,175 in 2019 and was at its lowest, 1,902, in 2010.

That places Costa Rica 31st out of 47 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

Public employment in Costa Rica, year by year

Annual values for Public employment in Costa Rica, 2010 to 2023.
Year Value Change
2010 1,902
2017 2,051 +7.8%
2018 2,117 +3.2%
2019 2,175 +2.7%
2020 1,938 -10.9%
2021 2,040 +5.2%
2022 2,154 +5.6%
2023 2,095 -2.8%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 2,061 1,902 2,175 4
2020s 2,057 1,938 2,154 4

Countries ranked near Costa Rica

  1. 28 Slovakia 2,430 compare
  2. 29 New Zealand 2,290 compare
  3. 30 Ireland 2,234 compare
  4. 32 South Africa 1,976 compare
  5. 33 Croatia 1,684 compare
  6. 34 Azerbaijan 1,520 compare

See the full ranking of 47 places →

More work & labour data for Costa Rica

All data for Costa Rica →

Frequently asked questions

What is public employment in Costa Rica?
Public employment in Costa Rica was 2,095 in 2023, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest public employment recorded in Costa Rica?
The highest recorded value was 2,175 in 2019.
What is the lowest public employment recorded in Costa Rica?
The lowest recorded value was 1,902 in 2010.
How does Costa Rica rank for public employment?
Costa Rica ranks 31st out of 47 countries with data for 2023.
Is public employment rising or falling in Costa Rica?
Over the last ten years it is up 10.1%. 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 Public employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Public employment in Costa Rica. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 02 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/public-employment/costa-rica/

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About this data

Indicator
Public employment
Source
International Labour Organization
Licence
ILO Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
47 places, 681 data points, 1975–2024
Last refreshed

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. The total public sector employment covers all employment of general government sector as defined in System of National Accounts 1993 plus employment of publicly owned enterprises and companies, resident and operating at central, state (or regional) and local levels of government. It covers all persons employed directly by those institutions, without regard for the particular type of employment contract. See the working paper: Statistics on Public Sector Employment: Methodology, Structures and Trends. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.