Economy, jobs and prices in Puntarenas, Costa Rica: official figures
Construction permits in Puntarenas covered 512,652 square metres of new building and extensions in 2024, up 0.7% on 2023 and 13.4% of the national 3,820,422 square metres (4th highest of 7).
What is the value of construction in Puntarenas?
The value of construction, extensions and repairs in Puntarenas was 173.1 billion colones in 2024, up 7.7% on 2023, and 13.7% of the national total (4th highest of 7).
Source: INEC Costa Rica · saved copyHow much is built per person in Puntarenas?
Per resident, Puntarenas had 1,021 square metres of construction per 1,000 people in 2024 (2nd highest of 7; national 740) and 344,733 colones of construction value per person (2nd highest of 7; national 244,087).
Source: INEC Costa Rica · saved copyHow many new homes are being built in Puntarenas?
Permits were issued in Puntarenas in 2024 for 4,072 dwellings, against 3,753 in 2023, in 3,070 permits; that is 8.1 dwellings per 1,000 residents (2nd highest of 7; national 4.5).
Source: INEC Costa Rica · saved copyHow developed are the districts of Puntarenas?
The median of the 60 district scores of Mideplan's 2023 Social Development Index (0 to 100) in Puntarenas is 50.6, 2nd lowest of 7 (national district median 66.5).
Source: INEC Costa Rica · saved copyHow Puntarenas compares with other provinces
Construction area per 1,000 residents (2024)
Puntarenas ranks 2 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)
Puntarenas ranks 2 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)
Puntarenas ranks 2 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)
Puntarenas ranks 6 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 Puntarenas: 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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