Pesticide use in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Pesticide use was 9,451 tonnes in 2023. ▲ Rising
Pesticide use in Costa Rica, 1990–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
In 2023, pesticide use in Costa Rica stood at 9,451 tonnes.
That represents a change of up 3.5% on the previous year and down 23.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, pesticide use in Costa Rica peaked at 14,283 tonnes in 2000 and was at its lowest, 1,447 tonnes, in 1990.
Costa Rica ranks 47th of 211 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3,461 tonnes | 1,447 tonnes | 11,091 tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 12,198 tonnes | 10,704 tonnes | 14,283 tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 12,112 tonnes | 10,285 tonnes | 14,241 tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 9,898 tonnes | 9,128 tonnes | 11,842 tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
More reference data data for Costa Rica
- Spring temperature anomalies 0.2864 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.8623 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 0.1052 °C (2026)
- Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 0.3865 °C (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies 0.3144 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 143 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Competitive elections 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is pesticide use in Costa Rica?
- Pesticide use in Costa Rica was 9,451 tonnes in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest pesticide use recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 14,283 tonnes in 2000.
- What is the lowest pesticide use recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,447 tonnes in 1990.
- How does Costa Rica rank for pesticide use?
- Costa Rica ranks 47th out of 211 countries with data for 2023.
- Is pesticide use rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 23.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Pesticide use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total pesticide use measured in tonnes of pesticide consumption per year.