Alcohol consumption in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Alcohol consumption was 2.9 Litres per person in 2025. ▼ Falling
Alcohol consumption in Costa Rica, 1961–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Litres per person.
Analysis
The most recent figure for alcohol consumption in Costa Rica is 2.9 Litres per person, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 65 years on record.
That represents a change of down 19.4% on the previous year and down 9.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, alcohol consumption in Costa Rica peaked at 6.1 Litres per person in 1990 and was at its lowest, 2.9 Litres per person, in 1962.
That places Costa Rica 39th out of 41 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Alcohol consumption in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | Litres per person | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 3.2 Litres per person | — |
| 1962 | 2.9 Litres per person | -9.4% |
| 1963 | 3.8 Litres per person | +31.0% |
| 1964 | 3.7 Litres per person | -2.6% |
| 1965 | 4.1 Litres per person | +10.8% |
| 1966 | 4.6 Litres per person | +12.2% |
| 1967 | 3.4 Litres per person | -26.1% |
| 1968 | 3.5 Litres per person | +2.9% |
| 1969 | 3.7 Litres per person | +5.7% |
| 1970 | 3.7 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 3.6 Litres per person | -2.7% |
| 1972 | 3.8 Litres per person | +5.6% |
| 1973 | 3.9 Litres per person | +2.6% |
| 1974 | 3.7 Litres per person | -5.1% |
| 1975 | 3.5 Litres per person | -5.4% |
| 1976 | 4 Litres per person | +14.3% |
| 1977 | 4.5 Litres per person | +12.5% |
| 1978 | 5.2 Litres per person | +15.6% |
| 1979 | 5 Litres per person | -3.8% |
| 1980 | 4.6 Litres per person | -8.0% |
| 1981 | 4.6 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 4.7 Litres per person | +2.2% |
| 1983 | 4.5 Litres per person | -4.3% |
| 1984 | 4.9 Litres per person | +8.9% |
| 1985 | 5 Litres per person | +2.0% |
| 1986 | 4.9 Litres per person | -2.0% |
| 1987 | 4.2 Litres per person | -14.3% |
| 1988 | 5.5 Litres per person | +31.0% |
| 1989 | 5.4 Litres per person | -1.8% |
| 1990 | 6.1 Litres per person | +13.0% |
| 1991 | 6.1 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 5.6 Litres per person | -8.2% |
| 1993 | 5.6 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 6.1 Litres per person | +8.9% |
| 1995 | 5.9 Litres per person | -3.3% |
| 1996 | 5.6 Litres per person | -5.1% |
| 1997 | 5.6 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 5.6 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 5.4 Litres per person | -3.6% |
| 2000 | 4.2 Litres per person | -22.2% |
| 2001 | 4.3 Litres per person | +2.4% |
| 2002 | 4.2 Litres per person | -2.3% |
| 2003 | 4.1 Litres per person | -2.4% |
| 2004 | 4.1 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 4.1 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 4.2 Litres per person | +2.4% |
| 2007 | 4.3 Litres per person | +2.4% |
| 2008 | 4.3 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 4.1 Litres per person | -4.7% |
| 2010 | 3.7 Litres per person | -9.8% |
| 2011 | 3.3 Litres per person | -10.8% |
| 2012 | 3.2 Litres per person | -3.0% |
| 2013 | 3.1 Litres per person | -3.1% |
| 2014 | 3.2 Litres per person | +3.2% |
| 2015 | 3.2 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 3.4 Litres per person | +6.2% |
| 2017 | 3.3 Litres per person | -2.9% |
| 2018 | 3.3 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 3.1 Litres per person | -6.1% |
| 2020 | 3.2 Litres per person | +3.2% |
| 2021 | 3.6 Litres per person | +12.5% |
| 2022 | 3.5 Litres per person | -2.8% |
| 2023 | 3.5 Litres per person | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 3.6 Litres per person | +2.9% |
| 2025 | 2.9 Litres per person | -19.4% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 2.9 Litres per person is below the median for high income countries, which is 8.45 Litres per person, 34% of the median. (30 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 2.9 Litres per person is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 6.2 Litres per person, 47% of the median. (7 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Alcohol consumption 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | +31.0% | 2.9 Litres per person | 3.8 Litres per person |
| 1988 | +31.0% | 4.2 Litres per person | 5.5 Litres per person |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 3.66 Litres per person | 2.9 Litres per person | 4.6 Litres per person | 9 |
| 1970s | 4.09 Litres per person | 3.5 Litres per person | 5.2 Litres per person | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.83 Litres per person | 4.2 Litres per person | 5.5 Litres per person | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.76 Litres per person | 5.4 Litres per person | 6.1 Litres per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.19 Litres per person | 4.1 Litres per person | 4.3 Litres per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.28 Litres per person | 3.1 Litres per person | 3.7 Litres per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.38 Litres per person | 2.9 Litres per person | 3.6 Litres per person | 6 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More reference data data for Costa Rica
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.2987 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.406 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0167 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.3161 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 2.24 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 5.91 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0907 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is alcohol consumption in Costa Rica?
- Alcohol consumption in Costa Rica was 2.9 Litres per person in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest alcohol consumption recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 6.1 Litres per person in 1990.
- What is the lowest alcohol consumption recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.9 Litres per person in 1962.
- How does Costa Rica rank for alcohol consumption?
- Costa Rica ranks 39th out of 41 countries with data for 2025.
- Is alcohol consumption rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Alcohol consumption. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Unhealthy lifestyles and poor environments cause millions of people to die prematurely. Smoking, harmful alcohol use, physical inactivity and obesity are the root cause of many chronic conditions. This dataset presents the latest data for alcohol consumption. Please refer to the Sources and Methods for detailed country-specific information.