Domestic credit to private sector by banks in Costa Rica
Costa Rica: Domestic credit to private sector by banks was 50.0% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Domestic credit to private sector by banks in Costa Rica, 1960–2025
Source: International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for domestic credit to private sector by banks in Costa Rica is 50.0%, measured in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% on the previous year and down 8.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, domestic credit to private sector by banks in Costa Rica peaked at 59.2% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 10.7%, in 1995.
Costa Rica ranks 74th of 187 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Domestic credit to private sector by banks in Costa Rica, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 27.0% | — |
| 1961 | 27.2% | +0.5% |
| 1962 | 25.8% | -5.2% |
| 1963 | 26.7% | +3.7% |
| 1964 | 29.2% | +9.4% |
| 1965 | 29.9% | +2.2% |
| 1966 | 27.7% | -7.3% |
| 1967 | 27.4% | -1.1% |
| 1968 | 25.9% | -5.3% |
| 1969 | 25.2% | -2.7% |
| 1970 | 25.4% | +0.7% |
| 1971 | 29.6% | +16.5% |
| 1972 | 28.8% | -2.7% |
| 1973 | 25.6% | -11.3% |
| 1974 | 28.0% | +9.6% |
| 1975 | 29.2% | +4.4% |
| 1976 | 28.6% | -2.2% |
| 1977 | 26.4% | -7.8% |
| 1978 | 28.5% | +8.1% |
| 1979 | 29.5% | +3.3% |
| 1980 | 27.7% | -5.8% |
| 1981 | 23.2% | -16.4% |
| 1982 | 18.7% | -19.3% |
| 1983 | 21.4% | +14.1% |
| 1984 | 19.9% | -6.9% |
| 1985 | 19.0% | -4.4% |
| 1986 | 17.9% | -6.0% |
| 1987 | 19.0% | +6.0% |
| 1988 | 17.8% | -6.3% |
| 1989 | 16.3% | -8.0% |
| 1990 | 15.8% | -3.0% |
| 1991 | 11.0% | -30.5% |
| 1992 | 12.5% | +13.2% |
| 1993 | 14.3% | +15.1% |
| 1994 | 14.0% | -2.5% |
| 1995 | 10.7% | -23.3% |
| 1996 | 13.6% | +26.8% |
| 1997 | 14.8% | +8.8% |
| 1998 | 19.1% | +28.7% |
| 1999 | 22.5% | +17.8% |
| 2000 | 25.5% | +13.6% |
| 2001 | 28.2% | +10.7% |
| 2002 | 30.4% | +7.6% |
| 2003 | 31.6% | +4.0% |
| 2004 | 31.8% | +0.8% |
| 2005 | 35.3% | +11.0% |
| 2006 | 37.4% | +5.9% |
| 2007 | 43.3% | +15.7% |
| 2008 | 48.9% | +12.9% |
| 2009 | 47.0% | -3.9% |
| 2010 | 43.7% | -7.1% |
| 2011 | 45.5% | +4.2% |
| 2012 | 46.9% | +3.2% |
| 2013 | 49.1% | +4.7% |
| 2014 | 52.5% | +6.9% |
| 2015 | 54.5% | +3.8% |
| 2016 | 57.8% | +6.2% |
| 2017 | 58.6% | +1.3% |
| 2018 | 59.2% | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 54.9% | -7.2% |
| 2020 | 58.8% | +7.0% |
| 2021 | 55.0% | -6.4% |
| 2022 | 50.4% | -8.5% |
| 2023 | 49.5% | -1.7% |
| 2024 | 50.3% | +1.5% |
| 2025 | 50.0% | -0.4% |
Costa Rica compared with similar countries
- Costa Rica's 50.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 64.3%, 78% of the median. (61 countries reporting)
- Costa Rica's 50.0% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 42.9%, 1.2× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 27.2% | 25.2% | 29.9% | 10 |
| 1970s | 28.0% | 25.4% | 29.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 20.1% | 16.3% | 27.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 14.8% | 10.7% | 22.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 36.0% | 25.5% | 48.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 52.3% | 43.7% | 59.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 52.3% | 49.5% | 58.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Costa Rica
- 71 Saint Lucia 51.7% compare
- 72 Montenegro 50.9% compare
- 73 Trinidad and Tobago 50.3% compare
- 75 Mongolia 48.5% compare
- 76 Greece 48.4% compare
- 77 Czechia 48.0% compare
More financial sector data for Costa Rica
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, annual growth rate 5.01 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0009 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per capita 18.96 units per person (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0007 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per capita 13.85 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, annual growth rate 5.01 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0009 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per capita 18.96 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, SDR, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is domestic credit to private sector by banks in Costa Rica?
- Domestic credit to private sector by banks in Costa Rica was 50.0% in 2025, according to International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest domestic credit to private sector by banks recorded in Costa Rica?
- The highest recorded value was 59.2% in 2018.
- What is the lowest domestic credit to private sector by banks recorded in Costa Rica?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.7% in 1995.
- How does Costa Rica rank for domestic credit to private sector by banks?
- Costa Rica ranks 74th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is domestic credit to private sector by banks rising or falling in Costa Rica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Costa Rica data come from?
- The figures come from International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Domestic credit to private sector by banks (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Domestic credit to private sector by banks refers to financial resources provided to the private sector by other depository corporations (deposit taking corporations except central banks), such as through loans, purchases of nonequity securities, and trade credits and other accounts receivable, that establish a claim for repayment. For some countries these claims include credit to public enterprises. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.