Age of full democracy in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Age of full democracy was 67 years in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Age of full democracy in Costa Rica, 1959–2025
Source: Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for age of full democracy in Costa Rica is 67 years, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 67 years on record.
The figure is up 1.5% on the previous year and up 17.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of full democracy in Costa Rica peaked at 67 years in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1959.
Costa Rica ranks 19th of 89 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of full democracy in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1959 | 1 years | — |
| 1960 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1961 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1962 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1963 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1964 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1965 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1966 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1967 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1968 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1969 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1970 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1971 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1972 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1973 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1974 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1975 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1976 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1977 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1978 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1979 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1980 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1981 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1982 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1983 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1984 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 1985 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 1986 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 1987 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 1988 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 1989 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 1990 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 1991 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 1992 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 1993 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 1994 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 1995 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 1996 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 1997 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 1998 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 1999 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 2000 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 2001 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 2002 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 2003 | 45 years | +2.3% |
| 2004 | 46 years | +2.2% |
| 2005 | 47 years | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 48 years | +2.1% |
| 2007 | 49 years | +2.1% |
| 2008 | 50 years | +2.0% |
| 2009 | 51 years | +2.0% |
| 2010 | 52 years | +2.0% |
| 2011 | 53 years | +1.9% |
| 2012 | 54 years | +1.9% |
| 2013 | 55 years | +1.9% |
| 2014 | 56 years | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 57 years | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 58 years | +1.8% |
| 2017 | 59 years | +1.7% |
| 2018 | 60 years | +1.7% |
| 2019 | 61 years | +1.7% |
| 2020 | 62 years | +1.6% |
| 2021 | 63 years | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 64 years | +1.6% |
| 2023 | 65 years | +1.6% |
| 2024 | 66 years | +1.5% |
| 2025 | 67 years | +1.5% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 67 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 57 years, 1.2× the median. (52 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 67 years is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 40 years, 1.7× the median. (25 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of full democracy in Costa Rica changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1961 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1962 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
| 1963 | +25.0% | 4 years | 5 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1 years | 1 years | 1 years | 1 |
| 1960s | 6.5 years | 2 years | 11 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 16.5 years | 12 years | 21 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 26.5 years | 22 years | 31 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 36.5 years | 32 years | 41 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 46.5 years | 42 years | 51 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 56.5 years | 52 years | 61 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 64.5 years | 62 years | 67 years | 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 1 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 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 full democracy in Costa Rica?
- Age of full democracy in Costa Rica was 67 years in 2025, according to Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of full democracy recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 67 years in 2025.
- What is the lowest age of full democracy recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1959.
- How does Costa Rica rank for age of full democracy?
- Costa Rica ranks 19th out of 89 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age of full democracy rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 17.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of full democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Number of consecutive years in a full democracy.