Initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage was 2.8% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage in Costa Rica, 2004–2021
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 2.8% for initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage in 2021.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.5% on the previous year and down 1.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage in Costa Rica peaked at 2.8% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 2004.
Costa Rica ranks 8th of 87 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 0.0% | — |
| 2010 | 2.7% | — |
| 2011 | 2.8% | +3.8% |
| 2012 | 2.5% | -12.8% |
| 2013 | 2.2% | -10.8% |
| 2014 | 2.4% | +9.8% |
| 2015 | 2.5% | +2.7% |
| 2016 | 2.6% | +5.7% |
| 2017 | 2.7% | +5.2% |
| 2018 | 2.8% | +3.6% |
| 2019 | 2.8% | -1.9% |
| 2020 | 2.8% | +1.5% |
| 2021 | 2.8% | -1.5% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 2.8% is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.5%, 5.5× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 2.8% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 1.8%, 1.6× the median. (16 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 1 |
| 2010s | 2.6% | 2.2% | 2.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.8% | 2.8% | 2.8% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More education data for Costa Rica
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 37,015 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 14,772 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 62,694 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 61,047 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 464,490 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 460,126 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -3.03 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0897 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage in Costa Rica?
- Initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage in Costa Rica was 2.8% in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 2.8% in 2018.
- What is the lowest initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 2004.
- How does Costa Rica rank for initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage?
- Costa Rica ranks 8th out of 87 countries with data for 2021.
- Is initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Initial private expenditure on education (household) as a percentage of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release