Costa Rica vs Slovakia
Costa Rica is 4% larger than Slovakia.
Costa RicaSlovakiaCosta Rica moved onto Slovakia · Equal-area projection
1.04×
Costa Rica is 1.04× the area of Slovakia.
 Costa Rica |  Slovakia | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaCosta Rica: 1.04× the area | 51,180 km²#126 of 194 | 49,034 km²#127 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 2 | 5 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSlovakia: 1.05× the population | 5,152,950#125 of 194 · 2025 | 5,413,813#122 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySlovakia: 1.1× the density | 101 / km²#88 of 194 | 110 / km²#78 of 194 |
| Urban populationCosta Rica: 1.5× the urban share | 80%#43 of 192 · 2025 | 53%#127 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSlovakia: 1.11× the births per woman | 1.32 per woman#168 of 192 · 2024 | 1.46 per woman#144 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthCosta Rica: 0.60 points higher | +0.45%#133 of 192 · 2025 | −0.15%#167 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateCosta Rica: 1.18× the birth rate | 10.0 per 1,000#140 of 192 · 2024 | 8.5 per 1,000#162 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateSlovakia: 1.77× the death rate | 5.6 per 1,000#154 of 192 · 2024 | 9.9 per 1,000#37 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Costa Rica: 2.7 points higher | 18.3%#124 of 192 · 2025 | 15.6%#155 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Slovakia: 6.2 points higher | 12.8%#63 of 192 · 2025 | 19.0%#35 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationCosta Rica: 6.0 per 1,000 higher | +0.2 per 1,000#68 of 192 · 2025 | −5.8 per 1,000#174 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSlovakia: 1.71× the refugees for its size | 0.07 per 1,000#126 of 190 · 2025 | 0.12 per 1,000#113 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyCosta Rica: 2.6 years longer | 81.0 years#38 of 192 · 2024 | 78.4 years#48 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityCosta Rica: 1.72× the infant mortality | 9.1 per 1,000 births#115 of 191 · 2024 | 5.3 per 1,000 births#141 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsSlovakia: 1.38× the doctors per person | 2.69 per 1,000#68 of 178 · 2022 | 3.70 per 1,000#38 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | — | 54.5%#67 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexSlovakia: 0.047 higher | 0.833#61 of 190 · 2023 | 0.880#43 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaSlovakia: 1.47× the income per person | $17,930#59 of 185 · 2025 | $26,410#43 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPSlovakia: 1.5× the economy | $102.91B2025 | $154.53B2025 |
| Income group | High income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Slovakia: 1.46× the output per person | $33,815#65 of 184 · 2025 | $49,309#46 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthCosta Rica: 3.8 points higher | +4.6%#51 of 187 · 2025 | +0.8%#160 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationSlovakia: 4.1 points higher | −0.1%#164 of 176 · 2025 | +4.0%#55 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentCosta Rica: 1.26× the unemployment | 6.8%#60 of 178 · 2025 | 5.4%#80 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyCosta Rica: 1.6× the share in extreme poverty | 0.8%#92 of 149 · 2025 | 0.5%#103 of 149 · 2023 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Costa Rica: 21.7 higher | 45.5#14 of 149 · 2025 | 23.8#148 of 149 · 2023 |
| Jobs in agricultureCosta Rica: 9.3 points higher | 11.5% of jobs#103 of 178 · 2025 | 2.2% of jobs#155 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySlovakia: 16.0 points higher | 18.5% of jobs#98 of 178 · 2025 | 34.5% of jobs#7 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesCosta Rica: 6.7 points higher | 70.0% of jobs#52 of 178 · 2025 | 63.3% of jobs#77 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentCosta Rica: 4.1 points higher | 5.4% of GDP#34 of 184 · 2025 | 1.3% of GDP#117 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsSlovakia: 46.3 points higher | 38.8% of GDP#77 of 168 · 2025 | 85.1% of GDP#11 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spending | 0.0% of GDP#153 of 155 · 2025 | 2.0% of GDP#59 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersAbout the same share online | 87%#72 of 184 · 2024 | 90%#55 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsAbout as many mobile subscriptions | 136 per 100#42 of 191 · 2024 | 140 per 100#36 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaCosta Rica: 1.47× the forest share | 59% of land#28 of 192 · 2024 | 40% of land#67 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personSlovakia: 3.38× the CO₂ per person | 1.63 t a year#110 of 185 · 2024 | 5.51 t a year#43 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyCosta Rica: 16.3 points higher | 34.2%#72 of 190 · 2021 | 17.9%#114 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricitySlovakia: 0.2 points higher | 99.8%#103 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Costa Rica: 1.29× the air pollution | 17.7 µg/m³#99 of 191 · 2023 | 13.7 µg/m³#128 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landSlovakia: 10.9 points higher | 26.6% of land#49 of 191 · 2025 | 37.5% of land#19 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSlovakia: 23.8 points higher | 3.3% of land#146 of 190 · 2024 | 27.1% of land#36 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressCosta Rica: 2.46× the water stress | 5.9%#112 of 176 · 2022 | 2.4%#142 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationCosta Rica: 3.55× the rain and snow | 2,926 mm#6 of 180 · 2022 | 824 mm#105 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityCosta Rica: 0.55 higher | +1.22#19 of 193 · 2025 | +0.67#59 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionCosta Rica: 0.63 higher | +0.69#46 of 193 · 2025 | +0.06#80 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateCosta Rica: 16.1× the homicide rate | 17.7 per 100,000#19 of 146 · 2023 | 1.1 per 100,000#99 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Parliamentary republic |
| Member of | OECD | EU, NATO, Euro area, Schengen Area, OECD |
| Capital | San Jose | Bratislava |
| Currency | Costa Rican colón (CRC) | Euro (EUR) |
| Official languages | Spanish | Slovak |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC−6 | UTC+1, summer time UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +506 | +421 |
| Region | Central America, North America | Eastern Europe, Europe |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Costa Rica sits at about 10° N and is stretched to 1.03× its true area; Slovakia at 49° N is stretched to 2.3×. That difference is why Slovakia looks so much bigger than it is next to Costa Rica. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Costa Rica bigger than Slovakia?
- Yes. Costa Rica is 4% larger than Slovakia. Costa Rica covers 51,180 km² and Slovakia covers 49,034 km².
- How many times does Slovakia fit into Costa Rica?
- About 1.0 times: Costa Rica has 1.04× the area of Slovakia.
- Why do Costa Rica and Slovakia look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Costa Rica is drawn about 1.03× its true area there and Slovakia about 2.3×. That is why Slovakia looks so much bigger than it really is next to Costa Rica. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Costa Rica or Slovakia?
- Slovakia: 5,413,813 people against 5,152,950. Density: Costa Rica 101 per km², Slovakia 110 per km².
- Which is richer, Costa Rica or Slovakia?
- By gross national income per person, Slovakia: $26,410 against $17,930 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.47× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Costa Rica or Slovakia?
- In Costa Rica: life expectancy at birth is 81.0 years, against 78.4 — 2.6 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Costa Rica and Slovakia have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Costa Rica: presidential republic; Slovakia: parliamentary republic.