Share of men who are obese in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Share of men who are obese was 25.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of men who are obese in Costa Rica, 1980–2024
Source: World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, share of men who are obese in Costa Rica stood at 25.6%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.0% on the previous year and up 21.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of men who are obese in Costa Rica peaked at 25.6% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 5.6%, in 1980.
That places Costa Rica 57th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of men who are obese in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 5.6% | — |
| 1981 | 5.8% | +4.8% |
| 1982 | 6.1% | +4.9% |
| 1983 | 6.4% | +4.9% |
| 1984 | 6.8% | +5.0% |
| 1985 | 7.1% | +5.0% |
| 1986 | 7.4% | +5.0% |
| 1987 | 7.8% | +5.0% |
| 1988 | 8.2% | +5.0% |
| 1989 | 8.6% | +5.0% |
| 1990 | 9.0% | +4.9% |
| 1991 | 9.5% | +4.9% |
| 1992 | 9.9% | +4.8% |
| 1993 | 10.4% | +4.7% |
| 1994 | 10.9% | +4.7% |
| 1995 | 11.4% | +4.6% |
| 1996 | 11.9% | +4.5% |
| 1997 | 12.4% | +4.5% |
| 1998 | 13.0% | +4.4% |
| 1999 | 13.5% | +4.3% |
| 2000 | 14.1% | +4.1% |
| 2001 | 14.7% | +3.9% |
| 2002 | 15.2% | +3.8% |
| 2003 | 15.8% | +3.6% |
| 2004 | 16.3% | +3.4% |
| 2005 | 16.8% | +3.2% |
| 2006 | 17.3% | +3.0% |
| 2007 | 17.8% | +2.9% |
| 2008 | 18.3% | +2.7% |
| 2009 | 18.8% | +2.6% |
| 2010 | 19.3% | +2.5% |
| 2011 | 19.7% | +2.4% |
| 2012 | 20.2% | +2.3% |
| 2013 | 20.6% | +2.2% |
| 2014 | 21.1% | +2.2% |
| 2015 | 21.5% | +2.1% |
| 2016 | 21.9% | +2.0% |
| 2017 | 22.4% | +2.0% |
| 2018 | 22.8% | +1.9% |
| 2019 | 23.2% | +1.9% |
| 2020 | 23.7% | +1.9% |
| 2021 | 24.1% | +1.9% |
| 2022 | 24.6% | +1.9% |
| 2023 | 25.1% | +2.0% |
| 2024 | 25.6% | +2.0% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 25.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 25.6%, 1.0× the median. (66 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 25.6% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 24.3%, 1.1× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 7.0% | 5.6% | 8.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 11.2% | 9.0% | 13.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 16.5% | 14.1% | 18.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 21.3% | 19.3% | 23.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 24.6% | 23.7% | 25.6% | 5 |
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 share of men who are obese in Costa Rica?
- Share of men who are obese in Costa Rica was 25.6% in 2024, according to World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of men who are obese recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 25.6% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of men who are obese recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.6% in 1980.
- How does Costa Rica rank for share of men who are obese?
- Costa Rica ranks 57th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of men who are obese rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 21.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization – Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of men who are obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Obesity is defined as having a body-mass index (BMI) equal to, or greater than, 30. BMI is a person's weight (in kilograms) divided by their height (in meters) squared.