Costa Rica vs Panama
Costa Rica vs Panama: Population growth
Population growth in 2023: 0.49% a year in Costa Rica and 1.29% a year in Panama, by UN estimates. In 2023 the value was higher in Panama, by 0.8 percentage points, or 2.62 times that in Costa Rica.
% a year · UN
What the numbers say
- Panama has been higher since 2000, when it overtook Costa Rica.
- In 2023, Costa Rica ranked 142 and Panama ranked 90 of 229 countries, counting from the highest.
- The UN projection (medium variant) puts Costa Rica at -1% a year and Panama at -0.2% a year in 2100.
- The world as a whole: 0.87% a year in 2023.
Every year
% a year · UN
| Year | Costa Rica | Panama | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 0.49 | 1.29 | 0.87 |
| 2022 | 0.44 | 1.33 | 0.88 |
| 2021 | 0.42 | 1.2 | 0.8 |
| 2020 | 0.6 | 1.21 | 0.9 |
| 2019 | 0.79 | 1.54 | 1.03 |
| 2018 | 0.89 | 1.65 | 1.07 |
| 2017 | 0.92 | 1.7 | 1.13 |
| 2016 | 0.97 | 1.73 | 1.17 |
| 2015 | 1.05 | 1.73 | 1.18 |
| 2014 | 1.07 | 1.73 | 1.22 |
| 2013 | 1.08 | 1.73 | 1.23 |
| 2012 | 1.15 | 1.75 | 1.27 |
| 2011 | 1.18 | 1.78 | 1.26 |
| 2010 | 1.17 | 1.77 | 1.27 |
| 2009 | 1.32 | 1.79 | 1.28 |
| 2008 | 1.36 | 1.82 | 1.28 |
| 2007 | 1.35 | 1.83 | 1.28 |
| 2006 | 1.35 | 1.84 | 1.28 |
| 2005 | 1.45 | 1.87 | 1.27 |
| 2004 | 1.44 | 1.9 | 1.28 |
| 2003 | 1.5 | 1.91 | 1.29 |
| 2002 | 1.58 | 1.92 | 1.3 |
| 2001 | 1.73 | 1.94 | 1.33 |
| 2000 | 1.86 | 1.95 | 1.35 |
| 1999 | 2.02 | 1.97 | 1.35 |
| 1998 | 2.12 | 1.99 | 1.37 |
| 1997 | 2.21 | 2.01 | 1.39 |
| 1996 | 2.31 | 2.02 | 1.42 |
| 1995 | 2.38 | 2.03 | 1.45 |
| 1994 | 2.43 | 2.05 | 1.47 |
| 1993 | 2.48 | 2.07 | 1.52 |
| 1992 | 2.52 | 2.08 | 1.57 |
| 1991 | 2.54 | 2.1 | 1.63 |
| 1990 | 2.55 | 2.14 | 1.76 |
| 1989 | 2.5 | 2.12 | 1.78 |
| 1988 | 2.54 | 2.17 | 1.79 |
| 1987 | 2.61 | 2.2 | 1.84 |
| 1986 | 2.68 | 2.25 | 1.83 |
| 1985 | 2.74 | 2.28 | 1.8 |
| 1984 | 2.75 | 2.33 | 1.8 |
| 1983 | 2.75 | 2.35 | 1.78 |
| 1982 | 2.74 | 2.35 | 1.86 |
| 1981 | 2.73 | 2.36 | 1.82 |
| 1980 | 2.72 | 2.37 | 1.8 |
| 1979 | 2.72 | 2.39 | 1.79 |
| 1978 | 2.68 | 2.41 | 1.74 |
| 1977 | 2.65 | 2.45 | 1.75 |
| 1976 | 2.62 | 2.51 | 1.78 |
| 1975 | 2.58 | 2.57 | 1.8 |
| 1974 | 2.56 | 2.63 | 1.88 |
| 1973 | 2.54 | 2.68 | 1.94 |
| 1972 | 2.57 | 2.74 | 1.97 |
| 1971 | 2.63 | 2.79 | 1.97 |
| 1970 | 2.69 | 2.82 | 2.06 |
| 1969 | 2.78 | 2.84 | 2.06 |
| 1968 | 2.83 | 2.88 | 2.09 |
| 1967 | 3.03 | 2.92 | 2 |
| 1966 | 3.16 | 2.96 | 2.04 |
| 1965 | 3.29 | 2.99 | 2.09 |
| 1964 | 3.41 | 3.02 | 2.16 |
| 1963 | 3.53 | 3.04 | 2.28 |
| 1962 | 3.64 | 3.03 | 2.11 |
| 1961 | 3.71 | 2.99 | 1.67 |
| 1960 | 3.75 | 2.93 | 1.58 |
| 1959 | 3.76 | 2.87 | 1.73 |
| 1958 | 3.74 | 2.81 | 2 |
| 1957 | 3.69 | 2.77 | 2.07 |
| 1956 | 3.65 | 2.73 | 1.98 |
| 1955 | 3.61 | 2.69 | 2.01 |
| 1954 | 3.57 | 2.66 | 1.99 |
| 1953 | 3.53 | 2.63 | 1.9 |
| 1952 | 3.45 | 2.55 | 1.94 |
| 1951 | 3.4 | 2.47 | 1.75 |
| 1950 | 3.32 | 2.38 | 1.74 |
UN projection (medium variant) · 2024–2100
| Year | Costa Rica | Panama | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 0.460.27–0.66 | 1.240.99–1.52 | 0.86 |
| 2025 | 0.440.2–0.66 | 1.20.91–1.52 | 0.84 |
| 2026 | 0.410.14–0.65 | 1.170.85–1.51 | 0.83 |
| 2027 | 0.390.08–0.66 | 1.130.79–1.51 | 0.81 |
| 2028 | 0.370.04–0.65 | 1.10.74–1.49 | 0.8 |
| 2029 | 0.35-0.01–0.65 | 1.070.68–1.47 | 0.78 |
| 2030 | 0.33-0.05–0.64 | 1.030.64–1.46 | 0.76 |
| 2031 | 0.31-0.07–0.64 | 1.010.58–1.42 | 0.75 |
| 2032 | 0.29-0.1–0.62 | 0.980.55–1.42 | 0.73 |
| 2033 | 0.27-0.13–0.62 | 0.950.52–1.41 | 0.72 |
| 2034 | 0.25-0.17–0.6 | 0.920.48–1.38 | 0.7 |
| 2035 | 0.23-0.22–0.59 | 0.890.45–1.36 | 0.69 |
| 2036 | 0.2-0.25–0.57 | 0.870.4–1.31 | 0.67 |
| 2037 | 0.18-0.25–0.56 | 0.840.38–1.29 | 0.65 |
| 2038 | 0.16-0.29–0.56 | 0.820.34–1.25 | 0.64 |
| 2039 | 0.13-0.33–0.53 | 0.790.32–1.23 | 0.62 |
| 2040 | 0.11-0.36–0.51 | 0.760.27–1.21 | 0.61 |
| 2041 | 0.08-0.4–0.5 | 0.730.25–1.18 | 0.59 |
| 2042 | 0.06-0.44–0.5 | 0.710.21–1.14 | 0.57 |
| 2043 | 0.03-0.48–0.48 | 0.680.2–1.13 | 0.56 |
| 2044 | 0-0.49–0.45 | 0.660.18–1.12 | 0.54 |
| 2045 | -0.03-0.53–0.42 | 0.630.13–1.09 | 0.52 |
| 2046 | -0.06-0.56–0.4 | 0.610.1–1.08 | 0.5 |
| 2047 | -0.09-0.6–0.38 | 0.580.06–1.07 | 0.48 |
| 2048 | -0.12-0.64–0.34 | 0.560.01–1.06 | 0.46 |
| 2049 | -0.14-0.67–0.35 | 0.53-0.01–1.02 | 0.44 |
| 2050 | -0.17-0.72–0.3 | 0.51-0.05–1.01 | 0.42 |
| 2051 | -0.2-0.74–0.28 | 0.48-0.07–0.98 | 0.4 |
| 2052 | -0.24-0.81–0.24 | 0.45-0.09–0.96 | 0.38 |
| 2053 | -0.27-0.85–0.21 | 0.43-0.12–0.97 | 0.36 |
| 2054 | -0.29-0.88–0.2 | 0.41-0.14–0.97 | 0.34 |
| 2055 | -0.32-0.92–0.18 | 0.39-0.16–0.95 | 0.33 |
| 2056 | -0.34-0.96–0.16 | 0.37-0.18–0.94 | 0.31 |
| 2057 | -0.37-0.99–0.16 | 0.35-0.21–0.93 | 0.3 |
| 2058 | -0.39-1.04–0.17 | 0.33-0.25–0.91 | 0.28 |
| 2059 | -0.41-1.05–0.15 | 0.31-0.28–0.89 | 0.27 |
| 2060 | -0.44-1.1–0.15 | 0.29-0.32–0.88 | 0.25 |
| 2061 | -0.46-1.14–0.15 | 0.28-0.34–0.88 | 0.24 |
| 2062 | -0.47-1.19–0.16 | 0.26-0.35–0.87 | 0.23 |
| 2063 | -0.5-1.22–0.14 | 0.24-0.38–0.86 | 0.22 |
| 2064 | -0.51-1.26–0.13 | 0.23-0.4–0.89 | 0.21 |
| 2065 | -0.53-1.28–0.12 | 0.22-0.42–0.88 | 0.2 |
| 2066 | -0.55-1.33–0.12 | 0.2-0.47–0.89 | 0.19 |
| 2067 | -0.56-1.36–0.1 | 0.19-0.49–0.88 | 0.18 |
| 2068 | -0.58-1.4–0.08 | 0.18-0.52–0.85 | 0.17 |
| 2069 | -0.61-1.45–0.09 | 0.16-0.54–0.86 | 0.16 |
| 2070 | -0.63-1.49–0.08 | 0.15-0.56–0.86 | 0.15 |
| 2071 | -0.65-1.53–0.09 | 0.13-0.59–0.85 | 0.14 |
| 2072 | -0.67-1.55–0.08 | 0.12-0.61–0.83 | 0.13 |
| 2073 | -0.69-1.61–0.08 | 0.1-0.65–0.82 | 0.12 |
| 2074 | -0.72-1.61–0.1 | 0.09-0.65–0.82 | 0.1 |
| 2075 | -0.74-1.67–0.07 | 0.07-0.68–0.82 | 0.09 |
| 2076 | -0.76-1.71–0.06 | 0.06-0.71–0.79 | 0.08 |
| 2077 | -0.78-1.77–0.05 | 0.05-0.72–0.78 | 0.07 |
| 2078 | -0.8-1.81–0.03 | 0.03-0.75–0.76 | 0.06 |
| 2079 | -0.82-1.86–0.03 | 0.02-0.77–0.77 | 0.05 |
| 2080 | -0.84-1.86–0.03 | 0.01-0.8–0.77 | 0.04 |
| 2081 | -0.86-1.92–0.01 | -0.01-0.79–0.76 | 0.03 |
| 2082 | -0.88-1.97–-0.03 | -0.02-0.82–0.76 | 0.02 |
| 2083 | -0.89-2.03–-0.02 | -0.04-0.87–0.77 | 0.01 |
| 2084 | -0.91-2.08–-0.04 | -0.05-0.92–0.76 | -0 |
| 2085 | -0.93-2.11–-0.03 | -0.06-0.96–0.74 | -0.01 |
| 2086 | -0.94-2.12–-0.04 | -0.07-0.95–0.74 | -0.02 |
| 2087 | -0.95-2.19–-0.04 | -0.08-0.98–0.75 | -0.03 |
| 2088 | -0.96-2.19–-0.04 | -0.09-1.01–0.75 | -0.04 |
| 2089 | -0.97-2.26–-0.04 | -0.1-1.02–0.73 | -0.05 |
| 2090 | -0.98-2.3–-0.03 | -0.11-1.04–0.75 | -0.05 |
| 2091 | -0.99-2.36–-0.01 | -0.12-1.06–0.76 | -0.06 |
| 2092 | -0.99-2.38–0 | -0.13-1.09–0.79 | -0.07 |
| 2093 | -0.99-2.46–-0.01 | -0.14-1.12–0.78 | -0.07 |
| 2094 | -0.99-2.45–-0 | -0.15-1.14–0.74 | -0.08 |
| 2095 | -1-2.44–0.03 | -0.16-1.15–0.77 | -0.09 |
| 2096 | -1-2.48–0.02 | -0.16-1.17–0.79 | -0.1 |
| 2097 | -1-2.52–0 | -0.17-1.21–0.77 | -0.11 |
| 2098 | -1-2.56–-0 | -0.18-1.22–0.77 | -0.11 |
| 2099 | -1-2.55–0.04 | -0.19-1.22–0.74 | -0.12 |
| 2100 | -1-2.61–0.05 | -0.2-1.25–0.76 | -0.13 |
Each country on its own
Good to know
- How fast the population grew or shrank in a year: births minus deaths, plus people moving in minus people moving out.
- Source: UN DESA, World Population Prospects 2024.
- The dashed line is the UN projection (medium variant), a scenario rather than a forecast; the band is its 95% prediction interval.
- Ranks count the 229 countries with a value in 2023, highest first.
- The faint line is the world as a whole, as the same source counts it.
How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time
Costa Rica vs Panama
Health
- Life expectancyCosta Rica: 80.8 years in 2023Panama: 79.6 years in 2023
- Child mortalityCosta Rica: 1 per 100 live births in 2024Panama: 1.5 per 100 live births in 2024
- Infant mortalityCosta Rica: 6.5 per 1,000 live births in 2023Panama: 12.6 per 1,000 live births in 2023
- DepressionCosta Rica: 2.91% in 2017Panama: 2.68% in 2017
- Suicide rateCosta Rica: 7.8 per 100,000 people in 2017Panama: 5 per 100,000 people in 2017
People
- PopulationCosta Rica: 5.11 million people in 2023Panama: 4.46 million people in 2023
- Fertility rateCosta Rica: 1.33 births per woman in 2023Panama: 2.12 births per woman in 2023
- Urban populationCosta Rica: 79.7% in 2025Panama: 66.2% in 2025
- Median ageCosta Rica: 34.1 years in 2023Panama: 29.6 years in 2023
- People aged 65 and overCosta Rica: 11.7% in 2023Panama: 9.1% in 2023
- Net migration rateCosta Rica: 0.2 per 1,000 people in 2023Panama: 1.6 per 1,000 people in 2023
Economy
Education
Politics
Conflict
Military
- Military spendingCosta Rica: 0% of GDP in 2025Panama: 0% of GDP in 2025
- Military spending in US dollarsCosta Rica: $0 in 2025Panama: $0 in 2025
- Military spending per personCosta Rica: $0 in 2025Panama: $0 in 2025
- Military share of state spendingCosta Rica: 0% of government spending in 2025Panama: 0% of government spending in 2025
- Armed forces personnelCosta Rica: 10,000 people in 2020Panama: 28,000 people in 2020
- National powerCosta Rica: 0.03% of world capability in 2022Panama: 0.03% of world capability in 2022
- Armed forces, share of workersCosta Rica: 0.41% of the labour force in 2020Panama: 1.33% of the labour force in 2020
- Arms importsCosta Rica: 8 million TIV in 2019Panama: 2 million TIV in 1989
- Arms exportsCosta Rica: 3 million TIV in 2009Panama: 1 million TIV in 2019