Share of women who are overweight or obese in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Share of women who are overweight or obese was 73.7% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of women who are overweight or 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
Costa Rica recorded 73.7% for share of women who are overweight or obese in 2024. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and up 10.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of women who are overweight or obese in Costa Rica peaked at 73.7% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 33.0%, in 1980.
That places Costa Rica 30th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of women who are overweight or obese in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 33.0% | — |
| 1981 | 34.0% | +2.9% |
| 1982 | 35.0% | +2.9% |
| 1983 | 36.0% | +2.9% |
| 1984 | 37.0% | +2.8% |
| 1985 | 38.1% | +2.8% |
| 1986 | 39.1% | +2.8% |
| 1987 | 40.2% | +2.7% |
| 1988 | 41.3% | +2.7% |
| 1989 | 42.4% | +2.7% |
| 1990 | 43.5% | +2.6% |
| 1991 | 44.6% | +2.6% |
| 1992 | 45.8% | +2.5% |
| 1993 | 46.9% | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 48.0% | +2.4% |
| 1995 | 49.1% | +2.3% |
| 1996 | 50.2% | +2.3% |
| 1997 | 51.3% | +2.2% |
| 1998 | 52.4% | +2.1% |
| 1999 | 53.4% | +2.0% |
| 2000 | 54.4% | +1.9% |
| 2001 | 55.4% | +1.8% |
| 2002 | 56.4% | +1.7% |
| 2003 | 57.3% | +1.6% |
| 2004 | 58.1% | +1.5% |
| 2005 | 59.0% | +1.5% |
| 2006 | 59.8% | +1.4% |
| 2007 | 60.7% | +1.4% |
| 2008 | 61.5% | +1.4% |
| 2009 | 62.4% | +1.4% |
| 2010 | 63.2% | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 64.1% | +1.4% |
| 2012 | 64.9% | +1.3% |
| 2013 | 65.8% | +1.3% |
| 2014 | 66.6% | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 67.4% | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 68.2% | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 69.0% | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 69.7% | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 70.4% | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 71.1% | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 71.7% | +0.9% |
| 2022 | 72.4% | +0.9% |
| 2023 | 73.0% | +0.9% |
| 2024 | 73.7% | +0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 37.6% | 33.0% | 42.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 48.5% | 43.5% | 53.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 58.5% | 54.4% | 62.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 66.9% | 63.2% | 70.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 72.4% | 71.1% | 73.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
- 27 Qatar 75.5% compare
- 28 Marshall Islands 75.4% compare
- 29 Palau 75.0% compare
- 31 Seychelles 73.3% compare
- 32 Saudi Arabia 73.3% compare
- 33 Palestine, State of 73.3% compare
More gender data for Costa Rica
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 838.24 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth -2.49 % change on previous year (2030)
- Population 4,413 (2030)
- Working-age population (UN estimates and projections) 4,413 (2030)
- Population (UN estimates and projections), annual growth rate 0.8911 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 24,787 (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 25,901 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 25,098 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 26,214 (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 25,387 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of women who are overweight or obese in Costa Rica?
- Share of women who are overweight or obese in Costa Rica was 73.7% 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 women who are overweight or obese recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 73.7% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of women who are overweight or obese recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 33.0% in 1980.
- How does Costa Rica rank for share of women who are overweight or obese?
- Costa Rica ranks 30th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of women who are overweight or obese rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.6%. 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 women who are overweight or obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
A person is defined as overweight if they have a body-mass index (BMI) equal to or greater than 25. BMI is a person's weight in kilograms divided by his height in meters squared.