Inflation Costa Rica 2022
Average inflation: 8.3%
Inflation in 2022
Inflation is very high at 8.3%, far above the ECB target.
Peak and Trough
The highest inflation was in August at 12.1%. The lowest inflation was in January at 3.5%.
- Highest month
- August: 12.1%
- Lowest month
- January: 3.5%
- Difference
- 8.6 percentage points
- Months with data
- 12 of 12
Category Insights
The highest price increase was in Transport with an average of 16.3%. The lowest price increase was in Clothing and footwear with an average of 0.6%.
- Highest increase
- Transport: 16.3%
- Lowest increase
- Clothing and footwear: 0.6%
Historical Context
Inflation is 5.3 percentage points higher than the 5-year average of 3.0%.
- 5-year average
- 3%
- 10-year average
- 2.7%
- All-time high (2005)
- 13.8%
- All-time low (2016)
- 0%
Trend
Over the period 2020-2022, inflation shows an upward trend. Compared to 2021, inflation has risen by 6.6 percentage points.
- Change vs. previous year
- +6.6 percentage points
- Largest monthly swing
- August: +10.4 percentage points
ECB Target
Inflation is 6.3 percentage points above the ECB target of 2.0%. This means purchasing power is declining faster than intended.
Purchasing Power
At this high inflation rate, purchasing power rapidly decreases. This has a major impact on households, especially without adequate salary increases.
What you could buy for CRC 100 this year will cost approximately CRC 108.30 next year at this inflation rate.
Multi-year trend
Monthly figures 2022
Inflation by category
Inflation differs per product group. Click on a category for the historical trend.
Month overview
| Month | Inflation | Difference vs. 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| January | 3.5% | +2.5 |
| February | 4.9% | +4.5 |
| March | 5.8% | +5.3 |
| April | 7.2% | +6.0 |
| May | 8.7% | +7.4 |
| June | 10.1% | +8.2 |
| July | 11.5% | +10.1 |
| August | 12.1% | +10.4 |
| September | 10.4% | +8.3 |
| October | 9.0% | +6.5 |
| November | 8.3% | +5.0 |
| December | 7.9% | +4.6 |
| Average | 8.3% |
Data source
Data from OECD. Last updated: 26/10/2026.