Exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas was 15.62 micrograms per cubic meter in 2023. ▼ Falling
Exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas in Costa Rica, 2010–2023
Source: World Health Organization – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in micrograms per cubic meter.
Analysis
The most recent figure for exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas in Costa Rica is 15.62 micrograms per cubic meter, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of down 1.9% on the previous year and down 23.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas in Costa Rica peaked at 20.33 micrograms per cubic meter in 2015 and was at its lowest, 15.06 micrograms per cubic meter, in 2021.
Costa Rica ranks 102nd of 226 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.
Exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | micrograms per cubic meter | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 19.64 micrograms per cubic meter | — |
| 2011 | 20.31 micrograms per cubic meter | +3.4% |
| 2012 | 20.26 micrograms per cubic meter | -0.2% |
| 2013 | 20.32 micrograms per cubic meter | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 19.91 micrograms per cubic meter | -2.0% |
| 2015 | 20.33 micrograms per cubic meter | +2.1% |
| 2016 | 19.44 micrograms per cubic meter | -4.4% |
| 2017 | 18.84 micrograms per cubic meter | -3.1% |
| 2018 | 17.03 micrograms per cubic meter | -9.6% |
| 2019 | 16.62 micrograms per cubic meter | -2.4% |
| 2020 | 15.99 micrograms per cubic meter | -3.8% |
| 2021 | 15.06 micrograms per cubic meter | -5.8% |
| 2022 | 15.92 micrograms per cubic meter | +5.7% |
| 2023 | 15.62 micrograms per cubic meter | -1.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 19.27 micrograms per cubic meter | 16.62 micrograms per cubic meter | 20.33 micrograms per cubic meter | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.65 micrograms per cubic meter | 15.06 micrograms per cubic meter | 15.99 micrograms per cubic meter | 4 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
- 99 Zambia 16.57 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 100 Turkmenistan 16.47 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 101 Paraguay 16.4 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 103 Zimbabwe 15.43 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 104 Poland 15.42 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 105 Eswatini 15.33 micrograms per cubic meter compare
More environment data for Costa Rica
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 2.9 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.71 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.257 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.61 °C (2025)
- Sawnwood, non-coniferous — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Sawnwood, non-coniferous — Production, per unit of GDP 0 m3 per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Sawnwood, non-coniferous — Production, per capita 0.0525 m3 per person (2024)
- Sawnwood, non-coniferous — Import quantity, annual growth rate 34.12 % change on previous year (2024)
- Sawnwood, non-coniferous — Import quantity, per unit of GDP 0 m3 per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas in Costa Rica?
- Exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas in Costa Rica was 15.62 micrograms per cubic meter in 2023, according to World Health Organization – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 20.33 micrograms per cubic meter in 2015.
- What is the lowest exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.06 micrograms per cubic meter in 2021.
- How does Costa Rica rank for exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas?
- Costa Rica ranks 102nd out of 226 countries with data for 2023.
- Is exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 23.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Exposure to outdoor air pollution in urban areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 14 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual mean levels of fine particulate matter (population-weighted), by location (micrograms per cubic meter).