The unemployment rate in Costa Rica fell to 6.3% in the fourth quarter of 2025, down from 6.9% in the same period a year earlier. The number of unemployed individuals declined by 17.7 thousand to 147.5 thousand. Meanwhile, the employment rate edged down to 51.1% from 52.8%, as the number of employed individuals decreased by 47.9 thousand to 2.18 million. At the same time, the labor force participation rate declined to 54.5%, down from 56.7%. source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos de Costa Rica

Unemployment Rate in Costa Rica increased to 6.30 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 from 5.70 percent in the third quarter of 2025. Unemployment Rate in Costa Rica averaged 10.68 percent from 2010 until 2025, reaching an all time high of 24.00 percent in the second quarter of 2020 and a record low of 5.70 percent in the third quarter of 2025. This page provides - Costa Rica Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. Costa Rica Unemployment Rate - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on March of 2026.

Unemployment Rate in Costa Rica increased to 6.30 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 from 5.70 percent in the third quarter of 2025. Unemployment Rate in Costa Rica is expected to be 7.90 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the Costa Rica Unemployment Rate is projected to trend around 8.00 percent in 2027, according to our econometric models.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2025-12-18 04:25 AM
Unemployment Rate
Q3 5.7% 7.4% 7.40%
2026-02-05 11:20 PM
Unemployment Rate
Q4 6.3% 5.7% 5.5%
2026-05-08 04:00 PM
Unemployment Rate
Q1 6.3% 7.90%


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Employed Persons 2183473.00 2206569.00 Dec 2025
Labor Force Participation Rate 54.50 54.90 percent Dec 2025
Population 5.16 5.13 Million Dec 2024
Unemployment Rate 6.30 5.70 percent Dec 2025


Costa Rica Unemployment Rate
In Costa Rica, the unemployment rate measures the number of people actively looking for a job as a percentage of the labour force.
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
6.30 5.70 24.00 5.70 2010 - 2025 percent Quarterly

News Stream
Costa Rica Jobless Rate Drops to 6.3% in Q4
The unemployment rate in Costa Rica fell to 6.3% in the fourth quarter of 2025, down from 6.9% in the same period a year earlier. The number of unemployed individuals declined by 17.7 thousand to 147.5 thousand. Meanwhile, the employment rate edged down to 51.1% from 52.8%, as the number of employed individuals decreased by 47.9 thousand to 2.18 million. At the same time, the labor force participation rate declined to 54.5%, down from 56.7%.
2026-02-05
Costa Rica Q3 Jobless Rate Lowest Since 2010
The unemployment rate in Costa Rica fell to 5.7% in the third quarter of 2025, down from 6.6% in the same period last year. It marked the lowest unemployment rate since the data began in 2010, as the number of unemployed individuals decreased by 24.6 thousand to 134.5 thousand. Meanwhile, the employment rate declined to 51.7%, down from 53.5%, with the number of employed individuals falling by 48.8 thousand to 2.21 million. At the same time, the labor force participation rate dropped to 54.9%, down from 57.3%.
2025-12-18
Costa Rica Jobless Rate Falls to 7.4% in Q2
The unemployment rate in Costa Rica dropped to 7.4% in the second quarter of 2025, down from 8.5% in the same period last year. The number of unemployed individuals decreased by 28.5 thousand to 172.6 thousand. Meanwhile, the employment rate declined slightly to 50.7%, down from 51.4%, with the number of employed individuals decreasing by 4 thousand to 2.15 million. At the same time, the labor force participation rate fell to 54.7%, down from 56.2%.
2025-09-19