Countries › Costa Rica › Guide › 2. Macro and country context › Costa Rica's population, regions and labor market: where people live and work

Costa Rica's population, regions and labor market: where people live and work

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Last verified: 2026-10-29 · Status: Stable

INEC's official 2022 population estimate is 5,044,197 people, growing 1.45 percent a year since 2011, with 31.7 percent in San José province and fast growth in Guanacaste, Alajuela, Puntarenas and Limón; people aged 65 and over were 10.1 percent of the total. In June to August 2026 the labor force was 2.34 million, unemployment 6.7 percent, participation 54.4 percent and informal employment 36.1 percent of workers. Statistics are governed by Ley 9694, which makes answering INEC surveys compulsory for companies and fines refusal in multiples of the ₡462,200 salario base.

USD figures use the Banco Central de Costa Rica reference selling rate of ₡454.82 per US dollar (buying rate ₡449.44) published for 29 October 2026 (indicators 318 and 317 on bccr.fi.cr), rounded. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Population, 2022 (INEC estimate)	5044197 personsINEC Estimación de Población y Vivienda 2022, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Average annual population growth 2011 to 2022	1.45 %INEC Estimación de Población y Vivienda 2022, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
San José province share of population, 2022	31.7 %INEC Estimación de Población y Vivienda 2022, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Population aged 65 and over, 2022	10.1 %INEC Estimación de Población y Vivienda 2022, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Population under 15, 2022	20.8 %INEC Estimación de Población y Vivienda 2022, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Provinces	7 provincesConstitución art. 168; INEC, as of 2026-10-29 · in force
Unemployment rate, June to August 2026	6.7 %INEC ECE, as of 2026-10-01 · in force
Net participation rate, June to August 2026	54.4 %INEC ECE, as of 2026-10-01 · in force
Employment rate, June to August 2026	50.8 %INEC ECE, as of 2026-10-01 · in force
Informal employment share of workers, June to August 2026	36.1 %INEC ECE, as of 2026-10-01 · in force
Underemployment, June to August 2026	3.2 %INEC ECE, as of 2026-10-01 · in force
Labor force, June to August 2026	2.34 million personsINEC ECE, as of 2026-10-01 · in force
Female net participation rate, June to August 2026	41.9 %INEC ECE, as of 2026-10-01 · in force
Salario base 2026 (unit for fines)	462200 CRCPoder Judicial Circular 246-2025, as of 2026-01-01 · in force

The rule

1. Statistical activity is of public interest, and the Sistema de Estadística Nacional is led by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INEC) as its technical governing body. All natural and legal persons, resident or not, must provide free of charge and on time the statistical data and administrative records that SEN institutions request for official statistics under the national statistics plan, in open format when requested electronically. INEC has unrestricted access to public administrative records, including reserved ones.Ley 9694, Ley del Sistema de Estadística Nacional, art. 1, 4, 16 and 17, 2019-06-04 official text · verified 2026-10-29

2. Statistical confidentiality bars SEN staff from disclosing data on identifiable persons or companies, even after leaving their post, and data collected from respondents may not be used for tax, judicial or other non statistical purposes. Data revealing ethnic origin, political opinions, religion, sexual orientation or similar intimate matters may be collected only with express consent. Breach of confidentiality is punished as the crime of violating personal data under Código Penal art. 196 bis.Ley 9694, art. 18, 20 and 66, 2019-06-04 official text · verified 2026-10-29

3. Late, missing, incomplete or inaccurate statistical returns are fined: minor breaches 1 to 4 salarios base, serious breaches (including companies that fail to deliver or alter information INEC requests) 5 to 7 salarios base, and very serious breaches (false data, habitual resistance or obstruction) 8 to 10 salarios base. The salario base for 2026 is ₡462,200.
Cost to do it: Minor ₡462,200 to ₡1,848,800 (US$1,016.23 to US$4,064.90); serious ₡2,311,000 to ₡3,235,400 (US$5,081.13 to US$7,113.58); very serious ₡3,697,600 to ₡4,622,000 (US$8,129.81 to US$10,162.26).
Example: A company that ignores an INEC economic survey request faces a serious breach fine of ₡2,311,000 to ₡3,235,400. / About US$5,081.13 to US$7,113.58.Ley 9694 art. 62 to 65; Poder Judicial Circular 246-2025, Ley 9694 art. 63, 64 and 65; Circular 246-2025, 2025-12-17 official text · verified 2026-10-29

4. INEC's Estimación de Población y Vivienda 2022 puts the population at 5,044,197 (2,511,844 men and 2,532,353 women), up from 4,301,712 in 2011, an average annual growth rate of 1.45 percent. Children under 15 were 20.8 percent, people aged 15 to 64 were 69.1 percent and people 65 and over 10.1 percent, for a dependency ratio of 45. INEC published the results in July 2023 as an estimate because census fieldwork completed interviews in only 1,074,258 dwellings, 60.7 percent of the dwelling base, with 7.7 percent refusals, 19.2 percent pending and 12.4 percent not visited.INEC, Estimación de Población y Vivienda 2022, Resultados Generales, Sections 4.1 and 4.2, Cuadros 4.1 and 4.4, 2023-07-01 official text · verified 2026-10-29

5. The national territory is divided into provinces, cantons and districts; each canton is governed by a municipality with an elected council and an executive. There are seven provinces: San José, Alajuela, Cartago, Heredia, Guanacaste, Puntarenas and Limón. San José and Alajuela each have more than one million people; Guanacaste grew fastest between 2011 and 2022 (2.12 percent a year) and Heredia slowest (0.91 percent).Constitución Política art. 168 and 169; INEC, Estimación de Población y Vivienda 2022, Constitución art. 168 and 169; INEC Cuadro 4.4, 2023-07-01 official text · verified 2026-10-29

6. INEC's Encuesta Continua de Empleo for June to August 2026: labor force 2.34 million, employed 2.19 million, unemployed 157 thousand. Unemployment was 6.7 percent (6.4 percent for men, 7.3 percent for women), with a statistically significant rise of 1.0 point for men year on year. The participation rate was 54.4 percent (66.9 percent for men, 41.9 percent for women), the employment rate 50.8 percent, underemployment 3.2 percent and informal employment 36.1 percent of workers (790 thousand people; 81.8 percent of the self employed). The largest employers were commerce and repair (395 thousand), education and health (277 thousand) and professional and administrative support activities (212 thousand).INEC, Encuesta Continua de Empleo, trimestre junio a agosto 2026, Resumen de resultados, 2026-10-01 official text · verified 2026-10-29

7. The Banco Central reports, with INEC data, that unemployment was stable in the second quarter of 2026 while participation and employment rates fell and underemployment rose, that real income in the main job contracted in April and May 2026, and that from 2032 the population aged 65 and over is expected to exceed the group aged 14 or younger.BCCR Informe de Política Monetaria July 2026, Labor market section and presentation slide 12, 2026-07-30 official text · verified 2026-10-29

Province	2011	2022	Share 2022	Annual growth 2011 to 2022 (%)
San José	1,404,242	1,601,167	31.7%	1.19
Alajuela	848,146	1,035,464	20.5%	1.81
Cartago	490,903	545,092	10.8%	0.95
Heredia	433,677	479,117	9.5%	0.91
Guanacaste	326,953	412,808	8.2%	2.12
Puntarenas	410,929	500,166	9.9%	1.79
Limón	386,862	470,383	9.3%	1.78
Costa Rica	4,301,712	5,044,197	100.0%	1.45

Population by province, 2011 and 2022 (INEC, Estimación de Población y Vivienda 2022, Cuadro 4.4; shares computed)

Indicator	Total	Men	Women
Unemployment rate	6.7%	6.4%	7.3%
Net participation rate	54.4%	66.9%	41.9%
Employment rate	50.8%	62.7%	38.8%
Underemployment	3.2%	2.8%	3.9%
Informal employment share	36.1%	37.4%	34.1%

Labor market, June to August 2026 (INEC Encuesta Continua de Empleo)

Worked example

Survey compliance cost. Ignoring an INEC request is a serious breach under Ley 9694 art. 64(d): 5 to 7 salarios base, ₡2,311,000 to ₡3,235,400 (US$5,081.13 to US$7,113.58) in 2026. Answering is free and data cannot be used by the tax authority (art. 20).
Sizing a hiring pool. With 2.19 million employed and 157 thousand unemployed in June to August 2026, and 36.1 percent of workers informal, a new employer competes for formal workers and should budget full social security costs; see labor/employing-people and taxes/payroll-taxes.

Step by step

1. Use INEC's quarterly employment survey and population estimates for market sizing; cite the survey period, since INEC publishes moving quarters.
2. Register a contact for INEC economic surveys and answer on time to avoid Ley 9694 fines.
3. For site selection outside the Greater Metropolitan Area, compare province growth (Guanacaste, Alajuela, Puntarenas, Limón) with free zone incentives; see taxes/tax-incentives.
4. For wages and hiring rules, see labor/minimum-wage and labor/employing-people; track the data at /dashboard/ and /country/costa-rica/.

Common traps

Treating the 2022 figure as a full census count. INEC published it as an estimate because coverage was low; use it with its stated method.
Comparing moving quarters with calendar quarters. The ECE is released for rolling three month periods; compare the same period year on year, as INEC does.
Ignoring informality. Over a third of workers are informal, and 81.8 percent of the self employed, which affects contractor and distribution strategies.
Assuming survey data can be used against you. Ley 9694 art. 20 bars use of respondents' data for tax or judicial purposes, so inaccurate answers carry fines without any offsetting benefit.

Sources

← Costa Rica's external sector: exports, free zones, foreign direct investment and reservesForeign investment in Costa Rica: equal treatment, no screening or registration, and the treaties that protect investors →

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