Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Self-employed, female (% of female employment) was 23.3% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Costa Rica, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Costa Rica is 23.3%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.9% on the previous year and down 12.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Costa Rica peaked at 32.9% in 1997 and was at its lowest, 23.3%, in 2025.
That places Costa Rica 113th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 32.2% | — |
| 1992 | 28.4% | -11.9% |
| 1993 | 31.0% | +9.2% |
| 1994 | 30.6% | -1.3% |
| 1995 | 31.0% | +1.5% |
| 1996 | 28.1% | -9.3% |
| 1997 | 32.9% | +17.0% |
| 1998 | 31.1% | -5.4% |
| 1999 | 32.3% | +3.6% |
| 2000 | 31.1% | -3.5% |
| 2001 | 31.0% | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 31.6% | +1.9% |
| 2003 | 31.6% | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 32.3% | +2.1% |
| 2005 | 29.5% | -8.6% |
| 2006 | 28.5% | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 26.5% | -7.0% |
| 2008 | 27.3% | +3.0% |
| 2009 | 27.2% | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 23.9% | -12.3% |
| 2011 | 23.7% | -0.5% |
| 2012 | 24.6% | +3.6% |
| 2013 | 26.5% | +7.8% |
| 2014 | 27.0% | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 26.6% | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 24.7% | -7.4% |
| 2017 | 24.5% | -0.8% |
| 2018 | 24.7% | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 25.1% | +1.7% |
| 2020 | 25.1% | -0.0% |
| 2021 | 24.5% | -2.4% |
| 2022 | 24.2% | -1.3% |
| 2023 | 23.3% | -3.4% |
| 2024 | 23.5% | +0.6% |
| 2025 | 23.3% | -0.9% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 23.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 9.7%, 2.4× the median. (62 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 23.3% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 30.5%, 76% of the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 30.8% | 28.1% | 32.9% | 9 |
| 2000s | 29.7% | 26.5% | 32.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 25.1% | 23.7% | 27.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 24.0% | 23.3% | 25.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
- 110 Syrian Arab Republic 23.4% compare
- 111 Algeria 23.4% compare
- 112 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 23.3% compare
- 114 Libya 23.1% compare
- 115 Palestine, State of 22.9% compare
- 116 Argentina 22.8% compare
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 self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Costa Rica?
- Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Costa Rica was 23.3% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest self-employed, female (% of female employment) recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 32.9% in 1997.
- What is the lowest self-employed, female (% of female employment) recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 23.3% in 2025.
- How does Costa Rica rank for self-employed, female (% of female employment)?
- Costa Rica ranks 113th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, female (% of female employment) rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Self-employed, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Self-employed workers are those workers who, working on their own account or with one or a few partners or in cooperative, hold the type of jobs defined as a "self-employment jobs." i.e. jobs where the remuneration is directly dependent upon the profits derived from the goods and services produced. Self-employed workers include sub-categories of employers, own-account workers and members of producers' cooperatives and contributing family workers.