Age of electoral democracy in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Age of electoral democracy was 76 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
76
Change on year
up 1.3%
World rank
20th
of 111 countries
All-time high
76
in 2025
All-time low
1
in 1950
Years of data
76
1950–2025
Age of electoral democracy in Costa Rica, 1950–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 76 for age of electoral democracy in 2025. That is the highest value across all 76 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.3% on the previous year and up 15.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of electoral democracy in Costa Rica peaked at 76 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1, in 1950.
That places Costa Rica 20th out of 111 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of electoral democracy in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1 | — |
| 1951 | 2 | +100.0% |
| 1952 | 3 | +50.0% |
| 1953 | 4 | +33.3% |
| 1954 | 5 | +25.0% |
| 1955 | 6 | +20.0% |
| 1956 | 7 | +16.7% |
| 1957 | 8 | +14.3% |
| 1958 | 9 | +12.5% |
| 1959 | 10 | +11.1% |
| 1960 | 11 | +10.0% |
| 1961 | 12 | +9.1% |
| 1962 | 13 | +8.3% |
| 1963 | 14 | +7.7% |
| 1964 | 15 | +7.1% |
| 1965 | 16 | +6.7% |
| 1966 | 17 | +6.2% |
| 1967 | 18 | +5.9% |
| 1968 | 19 | +5.6% |
| 1969 | 20 | +5.3% |
| 1970 | 21 | +5.0% |
| 1971 | 22 | +4.8% |
| 1972 | 23 | +4.5% |
| 1973 | 24 | +4.3% |
| 1974 | 25 | +4.2% |
| 1975 | 26 | +4.0% |
| 1976 | 27 | +3.8% |
| 1977 | 28 | +3.7% |
| 1978 | 29 | +3.6% |
| 1979 | 30 | +3.4% |
| 1980 | 31 | +3.3% |
| 1981 | 32 | +3.2% |
| 1982 | 33 | +3.1% |
| 1983 | 34 | +3.0% |
| 1984 | 35 | +2.9% |
| 1985 | 36 | +2.9% |
| 1986 | 37 | +2.8% |
| 1987 | 38 | +2.7% |
| 1988 | 39 | +2.6% |
| 1989 | 40 | +2.6% |
| 1990 | 41 | +2.5% |
| 1991 | 42 | +2.4% |
| 1992 | 43 | +2.4% |
| 1993 | 44 | +2.3% |
| 1994 | 45 | +2.3% |
| 1995 | 46 | +2.2% |
| 1996 | 47 | +2.2% |
| 1997 | 48 | +2.1% |
| 1998 | 49 | +2.1% |
| 1999 | 50 | +2.0% |
| 2000 | 51 | +2.0% |
| 2001 | 52 | +2.0% |
| 2002 | 53 | +1.9% |
| 2003 | 54 | +1.9% |
| 2004 | 55 | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 56 | +1.8% |
| 2006 | 57 | +1.8% |
| 2007 | 58 | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 59 | +1.7% |
| 2009 | 60 | +1.7% |
| 2010 | 61 | +1.7% |
| 2011 | 62 | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 63 | +1.6% |
| 2013 | 64 | +1.6% |
| 2014 | 65 | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 66 | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 67 | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 68 | +1.5% |
| 2018 | 69 | +1.5% |
| 2019 | 70 | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 71 | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 72 | +1.4% |
| 2022 | 73 | +1.4% |
| 2023 | 74 | +1.4% |
| 2024 | 75 | +1.4% |
| 2025 | 76 | +1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 5.5 | 1 | 10 | 10 |
| 1960s | 15.5 | 11 | 20 | 10 |
| 1970s | 25.5 | 21 | 30 | 10 |
| 1980s | 35.5 | 31 | 40 | 10 |
| 1990s | 45.5 | 41 | 50 | 10 |
| 2000s | 55.5 | 51 | 60 | 10 |
| 2010s | 65.5 | 61 | 70 | 10 |
| 2020s | 73.5 | 71 | 76 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More social development data for Costa Rica
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 36,395 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 367 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh 1 (2025)
- Democracy lexical 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0001 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 367 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0071 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of electoral democracy in Costa Rica?
- Age of electoral democracy in Costa Rica was 76 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of electoral democracy recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 76 in 2025.
- What is the lowest age of electoral democracy recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 in 1950.
- How does Costa Rica rank for age of electoral democracy?
- Costa Rica ranks 20th out of 111 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age of electoral democracy rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Age of electoral democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 76 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).