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Education · Latin America & Caribbean · High income
Costa Rica: education in numbers
Pre-primary enrolment is 95.2% (2021), 35th of 176 in the world and 7th of 33 in Latin America & Caribbean. Primary enrolment is 104.8% (2024), 53rd of 191 in the world and 12th of 39 in Latin America & Caribbean. Primary completion is 106.4% (2024), 16th of 168 in the world and 6th of 33 in Latin America & Caribbean.
Pre-primary enrolment
Costa RicaLatin America & CaribbeanHigh incomeWorld
Primary enrolment
Costa RicaLatin America & CaribbeanHigh incomeWorld
12 indicators
Education: Costa Rica in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within Latin America & Caribbean; values around 2000, 2010, 2020; group and world columns are World Bank aggregates.
| Indicator | Latest | World rank | In region | ~2000 | ~2010 | ~2020 | 10-year change | Region | Income group | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolmentPre-primary enrolment, % gross | 95.2%2021 | 35/176 | 7/33 | 45.7% | 77.4% | 97.2% | +17.3 ppsince 2011 | 75.6% | 83.8% | 60.9% | |
| Primary enrolmentPrimary school enrolment, % gross | 104.8%2024 | 53/191 | 12/39 | 105.3%2002 | 109.9% | 108.3% | +0.8 ppsince 2014 | 104.6% | 99.8% | 102.2% | |
| Primary completionPrimary completion rate, % of age group | 106.4%2024 | 16/168 | 6/33 | 91.6%2002 | 94.7% | 98.6% | +14.0 ppsince 2014 | 96.5% | 97.8% | 88.0% | |
| Secondary enrolmentSecondary school enrolment, % gross | 121.8%2024 | 14/176 | 4/37 | 65.6%2002 | 97.5% | 132.7% | +7.5 ppsince 2014 | 98.0% | 103.2% | 77.3% | |
| Lower secondary completionLower secondary completion rate, % of age group | 61.4%2024 | 133/168 | 29/32 | 43.9%2002 | 52.9% | 65.4% | +6.3 ppsince 2014 | 81.5% | 95.6% | 77.9% | |
| Tertiary enrolmentTertiary enrolment, % gross | 55.0%2019 | 72/172 | 12/31 | · | 44.7%2011 | 55.0%2019 | +29.2 ppsince 2004 | 58.9% | 82.0% | 43.6% | |
| Out-of-school childrenChildren out of school, % of primary school age | 4.5%2024 | 81/178 | 25/35 | · | 3.0%2011 | 5.3% | −4.6 ppsince 2014 | — | 2.5% | — | |
| Adult literacyAdult literacy rate, % of people 15+ | 97.4%2011 | 42/141 | 5/26 | 94.9% | 97.4%2011 | · | +2.5 ppsince 2000 | 94.9% | 97.7% | 87.7% | |
| Youth literacyYouth literacy rate, % of people 15–24 | 80.5%2018 | 128/148 | 31/31 | 97.6% | 99.1%2011 | 80.5%2018 | −17.1 ppsince 2000 | 98.7% | 99.3% | 93.1% | |
| Pupils per teacherPupils per teacher, primary | 12.22018 | 141/173 | 27/30 | 24.9 | 17.9 | 12.22018 | −36%since 2008 | 21.3 | 14.0 | 23.4 | |
| Education spendingPublic spending on education, % of GDP | 5.3%2023 | 46/184 | 8/38 | 4.7% | 6.6% | 6.6% | −1.4 ppsince 2013 | 3.8% | 4.7% | 3.6% | |
| Education, % of budgetEducation spending, % of government expenditure | 20.4%2023 | 16/179 | 3/37 | 18.8% | 22.9% | 30.1% | −2.5 ppsince 2013 | 16.6% | 12.0% | 14.0% |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)“·” — no value reported within two years of that date. World rank counts countries with a recent value.
Better than ten years ago
- Pre-primary enrolment+17.3 pp95.2% in 2021
- Primary completion+14.0 pp106.4% in 2024
- Secondary enrolment+7.5 pp121.8% in 2024
- Lower secondary completion+6.3 pp61.4% in 2024
Worse than ten years ago
- Youth literacy−17.1 pp80.5% in 2018
Only indicators where higher or lower is clearly better are rated (for example, unemployment down is better, life expectancy up is better).
neighbours
Costa Rica and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Costa Rica. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Costa Rica | Nicaragua | Panama |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolment | 95.2%2021 | 69.0%2020 | 27.0%2020 |
| Primary enrolment | 104.8%2024 | 109.5%2023 | 96.9%2024 |
| Primary completion | 106.4%2024 | 81.7%2022 | 96.2%2024 |
| Secondary enrolment | 121.8%2024 | 70.2%2023 | 76.6%2017 |
| Lower secondary completion | 61.4%2024 | 64.7%2010 | 78.8%2024 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 55.0%2019 | 30.4%2023 | 53.7%2023 |
| Out-of-school children | 4.5%2024 | 6.7%2023 | 7.7%2024 |
| Adult literacy | 97.4%2011 | 87.3%2014 | 96.2%2024 |
| Youth literacy | 80.5%2018 | 95.3%2014 | 99.2%2024 |