Latin America & Caribbean · Lower-middle income
Nicaragua: key statistics
Nicaragua has 7.0m people (2025) and a GDP per person of $3,173. Below: 76 indicators with the latest year, world rank and change over ten years.
- Capital
- Managua
- Income group
- Lower-middle income
- Currency
- Nicaraguan córdoba NIO
- Languages
- Spanish
- ISO codes
- NINIC
- Land neighbours
- Colombia, Costa Rica, Honduras
Population7.0m2025 · rank 108 of 217GDP$22.2bn2025 · rank 130 of 211GDP per capita$3,1732025 · rank 158 of 211Life expectancy75.1 yrs2024 · rank 106 of 217Internet users61.4%2024 · rank 137 of 188Fertility2.212024 · rank 93 of 217CO₂ per person0.83 t2024 · rank 146 of 203Inflation2.1%2025 · rank 120 of 180
topic profiles
Nicaragua, topic by topic
Each profile brings together the indicators of one topic with world and regional rank, values since 2000, group averages and a comparison with neighbours.
Population
Nicaragua
GDP per capita
NicaraguaLatin America & CaribbeanWorld
Life expectancy
NicaraguaLatin America & CaribbeanWorld
Internet users
NicaraguaLatin America & CaribbeanWorld
all indicators
Nicaragua by topic
World rank counts countries with a value in the recent window; regional rank is within Latin America & Caribbean.
PopulationFull population profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 7.0m | 2025 | 108/217 | 16/42 | +14% | 8.2bn | |
| Population growth | 1.31% | 2025 | 80/217 | 7/42 | ±0.0 pp | 0.91% | |
| Urban share | 59.4% | 2025 | 128/217 | 29/42 | +1.6 pp | 57.8% | |
| Fertility | 2.21 | 2024 | 93/217 | 10/42 | −10% | 2.19 | |
| Aged 65+ | 5.7% | 2025 | 141/217 | 38/42 | +1.0 pp | 10.4% | |
| Aged 0–14 | 28.3% | 2025 | 80/217 | 7/42 | −3.9 pp | 24.4% | |
| Density | 56.7 | 2023 | 148/216 | 28/42 | +14% | 62.1 | |
| Birth rate | 19.1 | 2024 | 79/217 | 7/42 | −16% | 16.3 | |
| Area | 130,370 km² | 2023 | 98/216 | 15/42 | ±0.0% | 140,539,257 km² |
EconomyFull economy profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP | $22.2bn | 2025 | 130/211 | 24/41 | +74% | $118tn | |
| GDP per capita | $3,173 | 2025 | 158/211 | 40/41 | +53% | $14,406 | |
| GDP per capita, PPP | $9,284 | 2025 | 143/199 | 36/38 | +70% | $25,704 | |
| GNI per capita | $2,850 | 2025 | 152/201 | 37/38 | +49% | $14,244 | |
| GDP growth | 4.9% | 2025 | 55/210 | 7/41 | +0.1 pp | 2.9% | |
| GDP per capita growth | 3.6% | 2025 | 66/210 | 13/41 | +0.2 pp | 2.0% | |
| Agriculture share | 14.5% | 2025 | 55/198 | 2/37 | −1.6 pp | 4.0% | |
| Industry share | 29.3% | 2025 | 56/201 | 10/38 | +3.5 pp | 25.0% | |
| Services share | 45.2% | 2025 | 169/201 | 37/38 | −3.4 pp | 63.3% | |
| Investment | 25.8% | 2025 | 61/175 | 4/25 | −7.7 pp | 26.3% | |
| Savings | 28.5% | 2024 | 46/163 | 2/22 | +7.8 pp | 26.0% |
Prices & public financeFull prices & public finance profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inflation | 2.1% | 2025 | 120/180 | 17/31 | −1.9 pp | 3.0% | |
| Real interest rate | 1.4% | 2025 | 105/136 | 27/31 | −2.7 pp | — | |
| Lending rate | 9.2% | 2025 | 62/136 | 15/31 | −2.9 pp | — | |
| Exchange rate | 36.62 | 2025 | 85/210 | 12/39 | +34% | — | |
| Tax revenue | 20.1% | 2024 | 48/142 | 3/20 | +4.8 pp | 13.9% | |
| Government expense | 16.3% | 2023 | 118/142 | 19/20 | +1.2 pp | 28.5% | |
| External debt | 82.8% | 2024 | 16/119 | 2/22 | −13.1 pp | — | |
| Military spending | 0.56% | 2025 | 140/156 | 17/22 | −0.2 pp | 2.48% |
Trade & investmentFull trade & investment profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exports | 41.6% | 2025 | 75/184 | 9/27 | +1.5 pp | 29.5% | |
| Imports | 54.9% | 2025 | 63/184 | 7/27 | −3.3 pp | 28.5% | |
| Trade openness | 96.4% | 2025 | 68/184 | 7/27 | −1.7 pp | 68.5% | |
| Current account | 4.2% | 2024 | 43/185 | 6/35 | +12.2 pp | — | |
| FDI inflows | 6.8% | 2025 | 31/197 | 9/38 | −0.8 pp | 1.4% | |
| Remittances | 26.6% | 2024 | 7/178 | 3/35 | +17.0 pp | 0.8% | |
| Tourist arrivals | 474,000 | 2020 | 128/196 | 28/41 | −56% | 2.4bn |
LabourFull labour profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment | 5.0% | 2025 | 100/187 | 21/31 | +0.3 pp | 4.8% | |
| Youth unemployment | 9.5% | 2025 | 121/187 | 22/31 | +0.8 pp | 13.4% | |
| Participation rate | 66.1% | 2025 | 54/187 | 9/31 | +1.0 pp | 61.0% | |
| Women's participation | 51.3% | 2025 | 111/187 | 19/31 | +2.9 pp | 48.9% |
Aid, poverty & equalityFull aid, poverty & equality profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net ODA received | $582m | 2023 | 59/145 | 7/32 | +17% | $259bn | |
| ODA, % of GNI | 3.4% | 2023 | 60/139 | 4/30 | −1.3 pp | 0.2% | |
| ODA per person | $85.3 | 2023 | 56/145 | 9/32 | +2.9% | $32.2 | |
| Extreme poverty | 6.6% | 2014 | — | — | −19.7 pp | 10.1% | |
| Poverty, $4.20/day | 15.7% | 2014 | — | — | −26.3 pp | 18.2% | |
| National poverty rate | 24.9% | 2016 | 59/145 | 14/23 | −23.4 pp | — | |
| Gini index | 46.2 | 2014 | — | — | −13% | — | |
| Undernourishment | 17.3% | 2022 | 34/167 | 3/28 | +0.4 pp | 8.1% | |
| Women in parliament | 54.9% | 2025 | 3/190 | 2/32 | +13.6 pp | 27.2% |
EducationFull education profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult literacy | 87.3% | 2014 | 93/141 | 23/26 | +10.6 pp | 87.7% | |
| Female literacy | 88.1% | 2014 | 91/147 | 24/28 | +11.5 pp | 84.6% | |
| Primary enrolment | 109.5% | 2023 | 34/191 | 9/39 | −10.1 pp | 102.2% | |
| Secondary enrolment | 70.2% | 2023 | 141/176 | 34/37 | −1.2 pp | 77.3% | |
| Tertiary enrolment | 30.4% | 2023 | 111/172 | 19/31 | +12.4 pp | 43.6% | |
| Primary completion | 81.7% | 2022 | 132/168 | 30/33 | −1.1 pp | 88.0% | |
| Pupils per teacher | 30.2 | 2010 | — | — | −15% | 23.4 | |
| Education spending | 2.9% | 2023 | 147/184 | 33/38 | −1.6 pp | 3.6% |
HealthFull health profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy | 75.1 yrs | 2024 | 106/217 | 24/42 | +3.2% | 73.5 yrs | |
| Infant mortality | 9.4 | 2024 | 116/196 | 26/35 | −41% | 27.7 | |
| Under-5 mortality | 11.2 | 2024 | 116/196 | 26/35 | −39% | 37.4 | |
| Maternal mortality | 60 | 2023 | 87/194 | 13/34 | −30% | 197 | |
| Health spending | 8.3% | 2023 | 57/193 | 9/33 | +0.7 pp | 10.1% | |
| Health spending per person | $217 | 2023 | 127/193 | 31/33 | +54% | $1,317 | |
| Physicians | 0.68 | 2018 | 122/180 | 26/29 | +3.5% | 1.86 | |
| Measles vaccination | 85% | 2023 | 127/193 | 21/33 | −14.0 pp | 84% | |
| Child stunting | 17.3% | 2012 | 70/154 | 5/28 | −7.8 pp | — |
Digital & energy accessFull digital & energy access profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Internet users | 61.4% | 2024 | 137/188 | 31/34 | +43.8 pp | 73.6% | |
| Mobile subscriptions | 106.0 | 2024 | 131/210 | 24/40 | −9.1% | 111.5 | |
| Fixed broadband | 5.8 | 2024 | 136/208 | 35/39 | +215% | 20.1 | |
| Electricity access | 88.7% | 2024 | 165/215 | 41/42 | +6.8 pp | 91.9% | |
| Clean cooking | 63.0% | 2024 | 128/192 | 30/33 | +12.0 pp | 75.4% |
EnvironmentFull environment profile
| Indicator | Value | Year | World rank | In region | 10-year change | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CO₂ per person | 0.83 t | 2024 | 146/203 | 37/39 | +2.5% | 4.69 t | |
| Renewable energy | 50.4% | 2021 | 47/212 | 5/41 | −2.9 pp | 19.7% | |
| Renewable power | 69.5% | 2021 | 39/206 | 9/41 | +35.5 pp | 27.8% | |
| Forest cover | 25.8% | 2023 | 117/214 | 31/42 | −16.1 pp | 31.1% | |
| Arable land | 12.5% | 2022 | 84/206 | 10/39 | ±0.0 pp | 10.7% | |
| Water withdrawals | 0.8% | 2022 | 158/177 | 29/33 | −0.1 pp | 9.0% |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)
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