Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both was 4.6% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Costa Rica, 2000–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Costa Rica stood at 4.6%. That is the lowest value across all 26 years on record.
That represents a change of down 13.2% on the previous year and down 70.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Costa Rica peaked at 36.1% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 4.6%, in 2025.
That places Costa Rica 169th out of 206 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 33.1% | — |
| 2001 | 35.1% | +6.0% |
| 2002 | 36.1% | +2.8% |
| 2003 | 34.9% | -3.3% |
| 2004 | 31.9% | -8.6% |
| 2005 | 28.9% | -9.4% |
| 2006 | 26.3% | -9.0% |
| 2007 | 23.6% | -10.3% |
| 2008 | 21.2% | -10.2% |
| 2009 | 19.8% | -6.6% |
| 2010 | 18.3% | -7.6% |
| 2011 | 16.9% | -7.7% |
| 2012 | 16.9% | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 16.6% | -1.8% |
| 2014 | 16.1% | -3.0% |
| 2015 | 15.8% | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 14.8% | -6.3% |
| 2017 | 13.0% | -12.2% |
| 2018 | 10.7% | -17.7% |
| 2019 | 8.9% | -16.8% |
| 2020 | 7.7% | -13.5% |
| 2021 | 7.0% | -9.1% |
| 2022 | 6.4% | -8.6% |
| 2023 | 5.9% | -7.8% |
| 2024 | 5.3% | -10.2% |
| 2025 | 4.6% | -13.2% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 4.6% is below the median for high income countries, which is 5.6%, 82% of the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 4.6% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 15.8%, 29% of the median. (39 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 29.1% | 19.8% | 36.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.8% | 8.9% | 18.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.1% | 4.6% | 7.7% | 6 |
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 rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Costa Rica?
- Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both in Costa Rica was 4.6% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 36.1% in 2002.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.6% in 2025.
- How does Costa Rica rank for out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both?
- Costa Rica ranks 169th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 70.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for youth of upper secondary school age, both sexes (modelled data) (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release