Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Costa Rica fits inside Nicaragua 2.6 times.
Costa Rica: 51,100 km² (2023) · Nicaragua: 130,370 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Costa Rica’s coastline is 42% longer than Nicaragua’s.
Costa Rica: 1,290 km (2026 edition) · Nicaragua: 910 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Costa Rica’s highest peak towers 1,734 m above Nicaragua’s.
Costa Rica: 3,819 m (2026 edition) · Nicaragua: 2,085 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Nicaragua has 36% more people than Costa Rica.
Costa Rica: 5.15 million (2025) · Nicaragua: 7.01 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Costa Rica is 73% more densely populated than Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 101 per km² (2025) · Nicaragua: 58 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Costa Rica are 4.1 cm taller than in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 174 cm (2019) · Nicaragua: 169.9 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Costa Rica are 4.7 cm taller than in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 160.4 cm (2019) · Nicaragua: 155.6 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Costa Rica is 8.8 years older than in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 34.1 years (2023) · Nicaragua: 25.3 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Nicaragua have 0.9 more children on average than in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica: 1.32 children per woman (2024) · Nicaragua: 2.21 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
13% of people in Costa Rica are 65 or older, versus 5.7% in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 12.8% (2025) · Nicaragua: 5.7% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Costa Rica has produced 1.9 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Nicaragua 0.0.
Costa Rica: 1.9 (2025) · Nicaragua: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Costa Rica and Nicaragua are practically level.
Costa Rica: 1 (2026) · Nicaragua: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Costa Rica’s economy is 4.6 times the size of Nicaragua’s.
Costa Rica: $103 billion (2025) · Nicaragua: $22.2 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Costa Rica produces 3.6 times as much per person as Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: Int$33,815 (2025) · Nicaragua: Int$9,284 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Nicaragua than in Costa Rica (Gini 0.7 points higher).
Costa Rica: 45.5 (2025) · Nicaragua: 46.2 (2014)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 6.8% in Costa Rica, versus 5.0% in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 6.8% (2025) · Nicaragua: 5% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Costa Rica: no data · Nicaragua: 0.5% (2024)
How expensive is it?
Costa Rica’s price level (US = 100) is 1.7× Nicaragua’s.
Costa Rica: 59% (2025) · Nicaragua: 34% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Costa Rica spends 5.4 times as much on health per person as Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: $1,163 (2023) · Nicaragua: $217 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Costa Rica live 5.9 years longer than in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 81 years (2024) · Nicaragua: 75.1 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Nicaragua is 3% more likely to die before turning one than in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica: 9.1 per 1,000 (2024) · Nicaragua: 9.4 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Costa Rica has 3.9 times as many doctors per person as Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 2.7 per 1,000 (2022) · Nicaragua: 0.7 per 1,000 (2018)
How common is obesity?
34% of adults in Nicaragua are obese, versus 33% in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica: 33.4% (2024) · Nicaragua: 34% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
Costa Rica: 7.9% (2024) · Nicaragua: no data
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Costa Rica rate their lives 1.14 points higher than in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 7.44 (2025) · Nicaragua: 6.30 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Nicaragua drink 8% more alcohol than in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica: 4 litres (2023) · Nicaragua: 4.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Costa Rica has 77% more meat per person than Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 64.1 kg (2023) · Nicaragua: 36.3 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Costa Rica has 301 kcal more food per person per day than Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 3,061 kcal (2023) · Nicaragua: 2,760 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Costa Rica: 2,177 hours (2023) · Nicaragua: no data
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Nicaragua went to school 1.1 years longer than in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica: 8.8 years (2023) · Nicaragua: 9.9 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Costa Rica welcomed 4.7 times as many tourists per resident as Nicaragua (2019).
Costa Rica: 0.57 (2024) · Nicaragua: 0.12 (2022)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
87% of people in Costa Rica are online, versus 61% in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 87% (2024) · Nicaragua: 61% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in Costa Rica have electricity, versus 89% in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 99.8% (2024) · Nicaragua: 88.7% (2024)
How many live in cities?
80% of people in Costa Rica live in cities, versus 59% in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 80% (2025) · Nicaragua: 59% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Costa Rica has 136 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Nicaragua 106.
Costa Rica: 136 (2024) · Nicaragua: 106 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Costa Rica: 278 km (2014) · Nicaragua: no data
How much do they fly?
Costa Rica: 0.38 (2023) · Nicaragua: no data
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 60% of Costa Rica, but only 26% of Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 60.4% (2023) · Nicaragua: 25.8% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Costa Rica emits 2.1 times as much CO₂ as someone in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 1.7 t (2024) · Nicaragua: 0.8 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
100% of Costa Rica’s electricity is renewable, versus 62% in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 100% (2025) · Nicaragua: 62.4% (2024)
How clean is the air?
Nicaragua and Costa Rica are nearly identical here.
Costa Rica: 20.3 µg/m³ (2024) · Nicaragua: 20.5 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 56% more likely to be murdered in Costa Rica than in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 17.7 per 100k (2023) · Nicaragua: 11.3 per 100k (2021)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Costa Rica are 14% deadlier than in Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 15.5 per 100k (2021) · Nicaragua: 13.6 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Nicaragua is on average 2.5 °C warmer than Costa Rica.
Costa Rica: 23.3°C (2016–2025 avg) · Nicaragua: 25.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Costa Rica gets 76% more rain than Nicaragua.
Costa Rica: 3,367 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Nicaragua: 1,913 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Costa Rica bigger than Nicaragua?
Nicaragua is larger. Costa Rica fits inside Nicaragua 2.6 times.
Which has more people, Costa Rica or Nicaragua?
Nicaragua has 36% more people than Costa Rica (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Costa Rica or Nicaragua?
People in Costa Rica live 5.9 years longer than in Nicaragua. Life expectancy at birth is 81.0 years in Costa Rica and 75.1 in Nicaragua.
Are people taller in Costa Rica or Nicaragua?
Men in Costa Rica are 4.1 cm taller than in Nicaragua (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
