Annual area burnt by wildfires in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Annual area burnt by wildfires was 98,035 hectares in 2026. ▼ Falling
Annual area burnt by wildfires in Costa Rica, 2012–2026
Source: Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Costa Rica recorded 98,035 hectares for annual area burnt by wildfires in 2026.
That represents a change of up 431.5% on the previous year and down 33.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual area burnt by wildfires in Costa Rica peaked at 173,609 hectares in 2013 and was at its lowest, 18,446 hectares, in 2025.
Costa Rica ranks 70th of 248 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Annual area burnt by wildfires in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 93,193 hectares | — |
| 2013 | 173,609 hectares | +86.3% |
| 2014 | 113,979 hectares | -34.3% |
| 2015 | 130,323 hectares | +14.3% |
| 2016 | 146,248 hectares | +12.2% |
| 2017 | 81,968 hectares | -44.0% |
| 2018 | 80,997 hectares | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 128,112 hectares | +58.2% |
| 2020 | 111,750 hectares | -12.8% |
| 2021 | 39,664 hectares | -64.5% |
| 2022 | 127,076 hectares | +220.4% |
| 2023 | 36,295 hectares | -71.4% |
| 2024 | 99,995 hectares | +175.5% |
| 2025 | 18,446 hectares | -81.6% |
| 2026 | 98,035 hectares | +431.5% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 98,035 hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 273 hectares, 359.1× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 98,035 hectares is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 12,198 hectares, 8.0× the median. (42 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 118,554 hectares | 80,997 hectares | 173,609 hectares | 8 |
| 2020s | 75,894 hectares | 18,446 hectares | 127,076 hectares | 7 |
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 annual area burnt by wildfires in Costa Rica?
- Annual area burnt by wildfires in Costa Rica was 98,035 hectares in 2026, according to Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 173,609 hectares in 2013.
- What is the lowest annual area burnt by wildfires recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 18,446 hectares in 2025.
- How does Costa Rica rank for annual area burnt by wildfires?
- Costa Rica ranks 70th out of 248 countries with data for 2026.
- Is annual area burnt by wildfires rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 33.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Global Wildfire Information System (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual area burnt by wildfires. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Area burnt by wildfires in hectares. The 2026 data is incomplete and was last updated 18 September 2026.