Statizoid

Political liberties in Costa Rica

Costa Rica: Political liberties was 1 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
1
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
1st
of 197 countries
All-time high
1
in 1959
All-time low
0
in 1838
Years of data
188
1838–2025

Political liberties in Costa Rica, 1838–2025

00.20.40.60.81183819312025

Source: Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

Costa Rica recorded 1 for political liberties in 2025. That is the highest value across all 188 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, political liberties in Costa Rica peaked at 1 in 1959 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1838.

That places Costa Rica 1st out of 197 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1830s 0 0 0 2
1840s 0 0 0 10
1850s 0 0 0 10
1860s 0 0 0 10
1870s 0 0 0 10
1880s 0 0 0 10
1890s 0 0 0 10
1900s 0 0 0 10
1910s 0 0 0 10
1920s 0 0 0 10
1930s 0 0 0 10
1940s 0 0 0 10
1950s 0.1 0 1 10
1960s 1 1 1 10
1970s 1 1 1 10
1980s 1 1 1 10
1990s 1 1 1 10
2000s 1 1 1 10
2010s 1 1 1 10
2020s 1 1 1 6

Countries ranked near Costa Rica

  1. 1 Andorra 1 compare
  2. 1 Antigua and Barbuda 1 compare
  3. 1 Argentina 1 compare
  4. 1 Australia 1 compare
  5. 1 Austria 1 compare
  6. 1 Bahamas, The 1 compare
  7. 1 Barbados 1 compare
  8. 1 Belgium 1 compare
  9. 1 Belize 1 compare
  10. 1 Brazil 1 compare
  11. 1 Bulgaria 1 compare
  12. 1 Canada 1 compare
  13. 1 Cabo Verde 1 compare
  14. 1 Chile 1 compare
  15. 1 Croatia 1 compare
  16. 1 Cyprus 1 compare
  17. 1 Czechia 1 compare
  18. 1 Denmark 1 compare
  19. 1 Dominica 1 compare
  20. 1 Dominican Republic 1 compare
  21. 1 Estonia 1 compare
  22. 1 Fiji 1 compare
  23. 1 Finland 1 compare
  24. 1 France 1 compare
  25. 1 Germany 1 compare
  26. 1 Ghana 1 compare
  27. 1 Greece 1 compare
  28. 1 Grenada 1 compare
  29. 1 Guyana 1 compare
  30. 1 Iceland 1 compare
  31. 1 Ireland 1 compare
  32. 1 Italy 1 compare
  33. 1 Jamaica 1 compare
  34. 1 Japan 1 compare
  35. 1 Kiribati 1 compare
  36. 1 Latvia 1 compare
  37. 1 Liechtenstein 1 compare
  38. 1 Lithuania 1 compare
  39. 1 Luxembourg 1 compare
  40. 1 Malta 1 compare
  41. 1 Marshall Islands 1 compare
  42. 1 Mauritius 1 compare
  43. 1 Micronesia, Fed. Sts. 1 compare
  44. 1 Monaco 1 compare
  45. 1 Mongolia 1 compare
  46. 1 Namibia 1 compare
  47. 1 Naoero 1 compare
  48. 1 Netherlands 1 compare
  49. 1 New Zealand 1 compare
  50. 1 Norway 1 compare
  51. 1 Palau 1 compare
  52. 1 Panama 1 compare
  53. 1 Papua New Guinea 1 compare
  54. 1 Poland 1 compare
  55. 1 Portugal 1 compare
  56. 1 Romania 1 compare
  57. 1 St. Kitts and Nevis 1 compare
  58. 1 St. Lucia 1 compare
  59. 1 St. Vincent and the Grenadines 1 compare
  60. 1 Samoa 1 compare
  61. 1 San Marino 1 compare
  62. 1 Sao Tome and Principe 1 compare
  63. 1 Seychelles 1 compare
  64. 1 Slovenia 1 compare
  65. 1 South Africa 1 compare
  66. 1 Korea, Rep. 1 compare
  67. 1 Spain 1 compare
  68. 1 Suriname 1 compare
  69. 1 Sweden 1 compare
  70. 1 Switzerland 1 compare
  71. 1 Taiwan 1 compare
  72. 1 Tonga 1 compare
  73. 1 Trinidad and Tobago 1 compare
  74. 1 Tuvalu 1 compare
  75. 1 United Kingdom 1 compare
  76. 1 United States 1 compare
  77. 1 Uruguay 1 compare
  78. 1 Vanuatu 1 compare

See the full ranking of 198 places →

More reference data data for Costa Rica

All data for Costa Rica →

Frequently asked questions

What is political liberties in Costa Rica?
Political liberties in Costa Rica was 1 in 2025, according to Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest political liberties recorded in Costa Rica?
The highest recorded value was 1 in 1959.
What is the lowest political liberties recorded in Costa Rica?
The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1838.
How does Costa Rica rank for political liberties?
Costa Rica ranks 1st out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
Is political liberties rising or falling in Costa Rica?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
The figures come from Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Political liberties. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 188 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Political liberties
Source
Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
198 places, 32,485 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Indicates whether the freedoms of expression, assembly, and association are respected.