Economy, jobs and prices in Guanacaste, Costa Rica: official figures
Construction permits in Guanacaste covered 720,312 square metres of new building and extensions in 2024, down 3.8% on 2023 and 18.9% of the national 3,820,422 square metres (2nd highest of 7).
What is the value of construction in Guanacaste?
The value of construction, extensions and repairs in Guanacaste was 259.6 billion colones in 2024, down 1.1% on 2023, and 20.6% of the national total (2nd highest of 7).
Source: INEC Costa Rica · saved copyHow much is built per person in Guanacaste?
Per resident, Guanacaste had 1,755 square metres of construction per 1,000 people in 2024 (the highest of 7; national 740) and 632,686 colones of construction value per person (the highest of 7; national 244,087).
Source: INEC Costa Rica · saved copyHow many new homes are being built in Guanacaste?
Permits were issued in Guanacaste in 2024 for 3,722 dwellings, against 4,029 in 2023, in 3,188 permits; that is 9.1 dwellings per 1,000 residents (the highest of 7; national 4.5).
Source: INEC Costa Rica · saved copyHow developed are the districts of Guanacaste?
The median of the 61 district scores of Mideplan's 2023 Social Development Index (0 to 100) in Guanacaste is 56.3, 3rd lowest of 7 (national district median 66.5).
Source: INEC Costa Rica · saved copyHow Guanacaste compares with other provinces
Construction area per 1,000 residents (2024)
Guanacaste ranks 1 of 7, highest first. Square metres of permitted construction per 1,000 residents
| Rank | Region | Construction area per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guanacaste | 1,755 |
| 2 | Puntarenas | 1,021 |
| 3 | Cartago | 874 |
| 4 | Alajuela | 782 |
| 5 | Heredia | 700 |
| 6 | Limon | 433 |
| 7 | San Jose | 430 |
Construction value per resident (2024)
Guanacaste ranks 1 of 7, highest first. Colones per resident
| Rank | Region | Construction value per resident |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guanacaste | 632,686 colones |
| 2 | Puntarenas | 344,733 colones |
| 3 | Cartago | 245,874 colones |
| 4 | Heredia | 233,911 colones |
| 5 | Alajuela | 233,159 colones |
| 6 | San Jose | 160,236 colones |
| 7 | Limon | 123,252 colones |
Dwellings permitted per 1,000 residents (2024)
Guanacaste ranks 1 of 7, highest first. Permitted dwellings per 1,000 residents
| Rank | Region | Dwellings permitted per 1,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guanacaste | 9.1 |
| 2 | Puntarenas | 8.1 |
| 3 | Alajuela | 4.8 |
| 4 | Limon | 4.6 |
| 5 | Cartago | 4.2 |
| 6 | Heredia | 3.6 |
| 7 | San Jose | 2.3 |
District Social Development Index (median) (2023)
Guanacaste ranks 5 of 7, highest first. Median of district scores, 0 to 100; unweighted by population
| Rank | Region | District Social Development Index (median) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heredia | 84.1 |
| 2 | Cartago | 74.2 |
| 3 | San Jose | 70.8 |
| 4 | Alajuela | 67.5 |
| 5 | Guanacaste | 56.3 |
| 6 | Puntarenas | 50.6 |
| 7 | Limon | 50.0 |
More on Guanacaste: overview · health · poverty and living standards · Costa Rica
Sources
- INEC Costa Rica: Anuario Estadistico 2023-2024, Economia: tables 5.15 to 5.17 (construction area, value and housing permits by province), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 ad3ab4d7eeb9…)
- INEC Costa Rica: Anuario Estadistico 2023-2024, Social: tables 12.6 and 12.7 (homicides and suicides, Poder Judicial) and 12.28 (district Social Development Index 2023, Mideplan), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 e8115b94fa09…)
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