Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and was 26,495 in 2024. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Costa Rica, 2011–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 26,495 for out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in 2024.
The figure is up 3.0% on the previous year and down 47.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Costa Rica peaked at 52,833 in 2017 and was at its lowest, 25,720, in 2023.
That places Costa Rica 93rd out of 171 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.
Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 41,071 | — |
| 2012 | 44,877 | +9.3% |
| 2013 | 47,770 | +6.4% |
| 2014 | 50,438 | +5.6% |
| 2015 | 47,892 | -5.0% |
| 2016 | 43,395 | -9.4% |
| 2017 | 52,833 | +21.7% |
| 2018 | 35,200 | -33.4% |
| 2019 | 28,189 | -19.9% |
| 2020 | 33,991 | +20.6% |
| 2021 | 32,854 | -3.3% |
| 2022 | 26,889 | -18.2% |
| 2023 | 25,720 | -4.3% |
| 2024 | 26,495 | +3.0% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 26,495 is above the median for high income countries, which is 9,449, 2.8× the median. (65 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 26,495 is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 29,378, 90% of the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 43,518 | 28,189 | 52,833 | 9 |
| 2020s | 29,190 | 25,720 | 33,991 | 5 |
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 out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Costa Rica?
- Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and in Costa Rica was 26,495 in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 52,833 in 2017.
- What is the lowest out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 25,720 in 2023.
- How does Costa Rica rank for out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and?
- Costa Rica ranks 93rd out of 171 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 47.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school children, adolescents and youth of primary and secondary school age, female (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 14 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release