The National Institute of Statistics and Censuses presented the results of the Continuous Employment Survey for the June, July and August 2025 quarter.
At the national level, the unemployed population was estimated at 137 thousand people, representing a reduction of 25 thousand compared to the same period of the previous year. The unemployment rate was 6.0%, with no significant changes compared to 2024.
The employed population reached 2.16 million people, although there was a decrease of 55 thousand employed women in the last year. As for the labor force, it was estimated at 2.30 million people, with a drop of 105 thousand with respect to the previous year.
The report also highlights that nearly 810 thousand people work informally, 447 thousand of whom are self-employed and 363 thousand are salaried workers or family assistants.
With these data, INEC confirms that, although unemployment shows signs of improvement, informality continues to be a major challenge for the Costa Rican labor market.
This is a news service prepared by ICS. For more information about the story, write to info@ics.cr or call 2519-9992 ICS, tax specialists.