Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary was 17,983 in 2024. ▼ Falling
Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Costa Rica, 2011–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 17,983 for out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in 2024.
That represents a change of up 1.7% on the previous year and down 47.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Costa Rica peaked at 38,469 in 2017 and was at its lowest, 17,681, in 2023.
That places Costa Rica 88th out of 170 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 and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 20,463 | — |
| 2012 | 24,520 | +19.8% |
| 2013 | 29,631 | +20.8% |
| 2014 | 34,538 | +16.6% |
| 2015 | 31,708 | -8.2% |
| 2016 | 28,805 | -9.2% |
| 2017 | 38,469 | +33.5% |
| 2018 | 25,335 | -34.1% |
| 2019 | 19,893 | -21.5% |
| 2020 | 24,759 | +24.5% |
| 2021 | 23,758 | -4.0% |
| 2022 | 18,635 | -21.6% |
| 2023 | 17,681 | -5.1% |
| 2024 | 17,983 | +1.7% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 17,983 is above the median for high income countries, which is 3,882, 4.6× the median. (64 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 17,983 is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 18,690, 96% of the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 28,151 | 19,893 | 38,469 | 9 |
| 2020s | 20,563 | 17,681 | 24,759 | 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 and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Costa Rica?
- Out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary in Costa Rica was 17,983 in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 38,469 in 2017.
- What is the lowest out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 17,681 in 2023.
- How does Costa Rica rank for out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary?
- Costa Rica ranks 88th out of 170 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 47.9%. 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 and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school age, male (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