Urban area over the long-term in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Urban area over the long-term was 1,053 km² per grid cell in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
1,053 km² per grid cell
Change on year
up 1.5%
World rank
93rd
of 202 countries
All-time high
1,053 km² per grid cell
in 2025
All-time low
0.0035 km² per grid cell
in 1000
Years of data
108
1000–2025
Urban area over the long-term in Costa Rica, 1000–2025
Source: HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in km² per grid cell.
Analysis
The most recent figure for urban area over the long-term in Costa Rica is 1,053 km² per grid cell, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 108 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.5% on the previous year and up 18.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban area over the long-term in Costa Rica peaked at 1,053 km² per grid cell in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.0035 km² per grid cell, in 1000.
Costa Rica ranks 93rd of 202 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 0.0035 km² per grid cell | 0.0035 km² per grid cell | 0.0035 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1100s | 0.0113 km² per grid cell | 0.0113 km² per grid cell | 0.0113 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1200s | 0.0371 km² per grid cell | 0.0371 km² per grid cell | 0.0371 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1300s | 0.1213 km² per grid cell | 0.1213 km² per grid cell | 0.1213 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1400s | 0.3971 km² per grid cell | 0.3971 km² per grid cell | 0.3971 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1500s | 1.3 km² per grid cell | 1.3 km² per grid cell | 1.3 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1600s | 0.0693 km² per grid cell | 0.0693 km² per grid cell | 0.0693 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1700s | 0.5912 km² per grid cell | 0.5912 km² per grid cell | 0.5912 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1710s | 0.7206 km² per grid cell | 0.7206 km² per grid cell | 0.7206 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1720s | 0.854 km² per grid cell | 0.854 km² per grid cell | 0.854 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1730s | 1.01 km² per grid cell | 1.01 km² per grid cell | 1.01 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1740s | 1.2 km² per grid cell | 1.2 km² per grid cell | 1.2 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1750s | 1.42 km² per grid cell | 1.42 km² per grid cell | 1.42 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1760s | 1.68 km² per grid cell | 1.68 km² per grid cell | 1.68 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1770s | 2 km² per grid cell | 2 km² per grid cell | 2 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1780s | 2.36 km² per grid cell | 2.36 km² per grid cell | 2.36 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1790s | 2.8 km² per grid cell | 2.8 km² per grid cell | 2.8 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1800s | 3.32 km² per grid cell | 3.32 km² per grid cell | 3.32 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1810s | 4.06 km² per grid cell | 4.06 km² per grid cell | 4.06 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1820s | 4.97 km² per grid cell | 4.97 km² per grid cell | 4.97 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1830s | 6.43 km² per grid cell | 6.43 km² per grid cell | 6.43 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1840s | 8.43 km² per grid cell | 8.43 km² per grid cell | 8.43 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1850s | 10.78 km² per grid cell | 10.78 km² per grid cell | 10.78 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1860s | 13.49 km² per grid cell | 13.49 km² per grid cell | 13.49 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1870s | 18.41 km² per grid cell | 18.41 km² per grid cell | 18.41 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1880s | 24.8 km² per grid cell | 24.8 km² per grid cell | 24.8 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1890s | 30.21 km² per grid cell | 30.21 km² per grid cell | 30.21 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1900s | 36.09 km² per grid cell | 36.09 km² per grid cell | 36.09 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1910s | 39.15 km² per grid cell | 39.15 km² per grid cell | 39.15 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1920s | 41.27 km² per grid cell | 41.27 km² per grid cell | 41.27 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1930s | 41.27 km² per grid cell | 41.27 km² per grid cell | 41.27 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1940s | 49.15 km² per grid cell | 49.15 km² per grid cell | 49.15 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1950s | 87.77 km² per grid cell | 74.82 km² per grid cell | 102.72 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 1960s | 132.09 km² per grid cell | 106.75 km² per grid cell | 162.3 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 1970s | 208.04 km² per grid cell | 169.75 km² per grid cell | 247.63 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 1980s | 317.71 km² per grid cell | 258.2 km² per grid cell | 393.25 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 1990s | 498.08 km² per grid cell | 413.99 km² per grid cell | 571.45 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 2000s | 712.16 km² per grid cell | 585.95 km² per grid cell | 791.71 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 2010s | 881.12 km² per grid cell | 805.55 km² per grid cell | 959.29 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,015 km² per grid cell | 977.43 km² per grid cell | 1,053 km² per grid cell | 6 |
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 urban area over the long-term in Costa Rica?
- Urban area over the long-term in Costa Rica was 1,053 km² per grid cell in 2025, according to HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest urban area over the long-term recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 1,053 km² per grid cell in 2025.
- What is the lowest urban area over the long-term recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0035 km² per grid cell in 1000.
- How does Costa Rica rank for urban area over the long-term?
- Costa Rica ranks 93rd out of 202 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban area over the long-term rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Urban area over the long-term. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 108 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total built-up area of a country over time.