Costa Rica vs United States
United States is 192 times larger than Costa Rica. Costa Rica would fit into United States about 192 times.
Costa RicaUnited StatesCosta Rica moved onto United States · Equal-area projection
Remote islands and overseas parts not drawn; the figures include them
0.01×
Costa Rica is 0.01× the area of United States. Put the other way, United States is 192× the size of Costa Rica.
 Costa Rica |  United States | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaUnited States: 192× the area | 51,180 km²#126 of 194 | 9,826,675 km²#3 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 2 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationUnited States: 66.3× the population | 5,152,950#125 of 194 · 2025 | 341,784,857#3 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityCosta Rica: 2.89× the density | 101 / km²#88 of 194 | 35 / km²#145 of 194 |
| Urban populationAbout the same urban share | 80%#43 of 192 · 2025 | 80%#41 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateUnited States: 1.23× the births per woman | 1.32 per woman#168 of 192 · 2024 | 1.63 per woman#121 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthUnited States: 0.07 points higher | +0.45%#133 of 192 · 2025 | +0.52%#125 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateUnited States: 1.06× the birth rate | 10.0 per 1,000#140 of 192 · 2024 | 10.6 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateUnited States: 1.61× the death rate | 5.6 per 1,000#154 of 192 · 2024 | 9.0 per 1,000#52 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Costa Rica: 1.2 points higher | 18.3%#124 of 192 · 2025 | 17.1%#140 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65United States: 5.6 points higher | 12.8%#63 of 192 · 2025 | 18.4%#38 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationUnited States: 3.4 per 1,000 higher | +0.2 per 1,000#68 of 192 · 2025 | +3.6 per 1,000#26 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadCosta Rica: 7.0× the refugees for its size | 0.07 per 1,000#126 of 190 · 2025 | 0.01 per 1,000#155 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyCosta Rica: 2.1 years longer | 81.0 years#38 of 192 · 2024 | 78.9 years#46 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityCosta Rica: 1.65× the infant mortality | 9.1 per 1,000 births#115 of 191 · 2024 | 5.5 per 1,000 births#139 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsUnited States: 1.37× the doctors per person | 2.69 per 1,000#68 of 178 · 2022 | 3.68 per 1,000#39 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | — | 79.4%#27 of 145 · 2022 |
| Human Development IndexUnited States: 0.105 higher | 0.833#61 of 190 · 2023 | 0.938#16 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaUnited States: 4.95× the income per person | $17,930#59 of 185 · 2025 | $88,810#5 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPUnited States: 299× the economy | $102.91B2025 | $30.77T2025 |
| Income group | High income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)United States: 2.66× the output per person | $33,815#65 of 184 · 2025 | $90,027#9 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthCosta Rica: 2.4 points higher | +4.6%#51 of 187 · 2025 | +2.2%#126 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationUnited States: 3.0 points higher | −0.1%#164 of 176 · 2025 | +2.9%#92 of 176 · 2024 |
| UnemploymentCosta Rica: 1.62× the unemployment | 6.8%#60 of 178 · 2025 | 4.2%#110 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyUnited States: 1.38× the share in extreme poverty | 0.8%#92 of 149 · 2025 | 1.1%#82 of 149 · 2024 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Costa Rica: 3.7 higher | 45.5#14 of 149 · 2025 | 41.8#30 of 149 · 2024 |
| Jobs in agricultureCosta Rica: 10.0 points higher | 11.5% of jobs#103 of 178 · 2025 | 1.5% of jobs#164 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryUnited States: 0.4 points higher | 18.5% of jobs#98 of 178 · 2025 | 18.9% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesUnited States: 9.6 points higher | 70.0% of jobs#52 of 178 · 2025 | 79.6% of jobs#16 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentCosta Rica: 4.4 points higher | 5.4% of GDP#34 of 184 · 2025 | 1.0% of GDP#126 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsCosta Rica: 27.8 points higher | 38.8% of GDP#77 of 168 · 2025 | 11.0% of GDP#159 of 168 · 2024 |
| Military spending | 0.0% of GDP#153 of 155 · 2025 | 3.1% of GDP#27 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersUnited States: 1.09× the share online | 87%#72 of 184 · 2024 | 95%#27 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsCosta Rica: 1.2× the mobile subscriptions | 136 per 100#42 of 191 · 2024 | 113 per 100#102 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaCosta Rica: 1.75× the forest share | 59% of land#28 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#92 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personUnited States: 8.36× the CO₂ per person | 1.63 t a year#110 of 185 · 2024 | 13.6 t a year#13 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyCosta Rica: 23.3 points higher | 34.2%#72 of 190 · 2021 | 10.9%#139 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityUnited States: 0.2 points higher | 99.8%#103 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Costa Rica: 2.53× the air pollution | 17.7 µg/m³#99 of 191 · 2023 | 7.0 µg/m³#173 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landCosta Rica: 13.7 points higher | 26.6% of land#49 of 191 · 2025 | 12.9% of land#131 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landUnited States: 13.3 points higher | 3.3% of land#146 of 190 · 2024 | 16.6% of land#64 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressUnited States: 4.78× the water stress | 5.9%#112 of 176 · 2022 | 28.2%#57 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationCosta Rica: 4.09× the rain and snow | 2,926 mm#6 of 180 · 2022 | 715 mm#111 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityCosta Rica: 1.52 higher | +1.22#19 of 193 · 2025 | −0.30#122 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionUnited States: 0.18 higher | +0.69#46 of 193 · 2025 | +0.87#39 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateCosta Rica: 3.05× the homicide rate | 17.7 per 100,000#19 of 146 · 2023 | 5.8 per 100,000#46 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Presidential republicconstitutional federal republic |
| Member of | OECD | NATO, OECD, G7, G20 |
| Capital | San Jose | Washington D.C. |
| Currency | Costa Rican colón (CRC) | United States dollar (USD) |
| Official languages | Spanish | English |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC−6 | UTC−5, summer time UTC−4 · UTC−10 to UTC−5, 6 time zones |
| Calling code | +506 | +1 |
| Region | Central America, North America | Northern America, North America |
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; United States at 45° N is stretched to 1.98×. That difference is why United States 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 United States?
- No. Costa Rica is 192 times smaller than United States. Costa Rica covers 51,180 km² and United States covers 9,826,675 km².
- How many times does Costa Rica fit into United States?
- About 192 times: United States has 192× the area of Costa Rica.
- Why do Costa Rica and United States 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 United States about 1.98×. That is why United States 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 United States?
- United States: 341,784,857 people against 5,152,950. Density: Costa Rica 101 per km², United States 35 per km².
- Which is richer, Costa Rica or United States?
- By gross national income per person, United States: $88,810 against $17,930 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 4.95× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Costa Rica or United States?
- In Costa Rica: life expectancy at birth is 81.0 years, against 78.9 — 2.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Costa Rica and United States have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).