Freedom in Costa Rica
Where Costa Rica sits on every statistic this site carries, each against the countries the same source covers. Costa Rica has a figure for 58 of 60 indicators.
Personal
What a person may say, believe, publish, join and where they may go.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom of expression | 0.915 | 2025 | 23 of 163 |
| Freedom of association | 0.922 | 2025 | 4 of 163 |
| Civil liberties | 0.931 | 2025 | 17 of 163 |
| Freedom from political violence | 0.964 | 2025 | 20 of 163 |
| Equal protection of rights | 0.917 | 2025 | 16 of 163 |
| Academic freedom | 0.915 | 2025 | 12 of 163 |
| Media censorship effort | 0.934 | 2025 | 61 of 163 |
| Harassment of journalists | 1.773 | 2025 | 27 of 163 |
| Media self-censorship | 1.040 | 2025 | 50 of 163 |
| Universal right to vote | 1.000 | 2025 | 29 of 167 |
| Legal rights for women | 91.9 | 2023 | 37 of 164 |
| Women can get a passport as men do | 1.000 | 2023 | 32 of 164 |
| Access to justice for women | 1.000 | 2025 | 8 of 163 |
| Access to justice for men | 1.000 | 2025 | 12 of 163 |
| Civil liberties score | 53.0 | 2025 | 26 of 167 |
| Political rights score | 38.0 | 2025 | 22 of 167 |
Economic
What a person may own, trade, earn and keep.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trade openness | 71.5% | 2025 | 68 of 125 |
| Tax revenue as a share of GDP | 13.5% | 2024 | 24 of 83 |
| Government spending as a share of GDP | 28.6% | 2023 | 47 of 79 |
| Foreign investment inflows | 5.4% | 2025 | 8 of 87 |
| Regulatory quality | 64.0 | 2024 | 43 of 169 |
| GDP per capita | $28.4K | 2025 | 55 of 157 |
| GDP growth | 4.6% | 2025 | — |
| Inflation | -0.1% | 2025 | — |
| Unemployment | 6.8% | 2025 | 111 of 163 |
| Income inequality | 46.700 | 2023 | — |
| Extreme poverty | 1.5% | 2023 | 35 of 55 |
Digital
What a person may read, send and encrypt online, and who is watching.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet use | 87.2% | 2024 | 62 of 154 |
| Fixed broadband subscriptions | 23.3 | 2024 | 58 of 134 |
| Mobile subscriptions | 136.0 | 2024 | 31 of 134 |
Government
How power is held, checked and abused.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral democracy | 0.862 | 2025 | 10 of 163 |
| Liberal democracy | 0.809 | 2025 | 7 of 163 |
| Rule of law | 0.935 | 2025 | 24 of 163 |
| Judicial checks on government | 0.950 | 2025 | 16 of 163 |
| Legislative checks on government | 0.956 | 2025 | 8 of 157 |
| Political corruption | 0.206 | 2025 | 40 of 163 |
| Civil society participation | 0.883 | 2025 | 26 of 163 |
| Women’s political empowerment | 0.907 | 2025 | 22 of 163 |
| Voice and accountability | 74.6 | 2024 | 29 of 170 |
| Control of corruption | 61.6 | 2024 | 38 of 170 |
| Government effectiveness | 56.9 | 2024 | 56 of 169 |
| Political stability | 86.0 | 2024 | 6 of 170 |
Society
Health, schooling, safety and who takes part.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Human Development Index | 0.833 | 2023 | 52 of 165 |
| Life expectancy | 81.0 | 2024 | 31 of 170 |
| Secondary school enrolment | 121.8% | 2024 | 6 of 85 |
| Government spending on education | 5.3% | 2023 | — |
| Health spending | 6.9% | 2023 | — |
| Health costs paid out of pocket | 24.1% | 2023 | 62 of 164 |
| Maternal mortality | 24.0 | 2023 | 69 of 167 |
| Women in parliament | 49.1% | 2025 | 7 of 156 |
| Women in the workforce | 46.0% | 2025 | — |
| Fertility rate | 1.32 | 2024 | — |
| Urban population | 79.7% | 2025 | — |
| Refugees who left | 6.2 | 2024 | 57 of 168 |
| Population | 5.2M | 2025 | — |
Environment
Energy, emissions and access to power.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| CO₂ emissions per person | 1.63 | 2024 | 64 of 165 |
| Renewable energy use | 34.2% | 2021 | 66 of 169 |
| Access to electricity | 99.8% | 2024 | 88 of 169 |
What is missing
2 of the 60 statistics here have no figure for Costa Rica in the year they were last ranked. Coverage differs by source: an indicator missing here is one its producer does not publish for Costa Rica, not a zero. Who publishes what