Costa Rica

As Costa Rica confronted some of the highest inflation registered in decades, the energy drinks category saw a notable increase in unit prices. Nevertheless, energy drinks has managed to see a solid performance overall. Penetration of energy drinks…

Ageing, urbanisation and migration continue to be major factors shaping the global population. The number of seniors around the world kept expanding in 2021 and is expected to grow further in the years to 2040. The number of small children is…

The premium segment continued to outperform its mass counterpart in volume and current value growth terms in fragrances in Costa Rica in 2023. While this was mainly because sales in the former were increasing from a much lower base, premium brands…

Leading player Wal-Mart continued to invest in expanding Palí and Maxi Pali in 2022, opening new locations nationwide. Between January to September, nine stores in different parts of the country were opened: seven Palí stores and two Maxi Palí. The…

Consumers continue to conscious about discretionary income in 2023, with the higher price of gum an issue for the less affluent. Gum is not an essential item among Costa Ricans, and so it is easy to reduce consumption, and instead, is more popular as…

Shampoos was the most dynamic of the main hair care categories in Costa Rica in terms of volume and current sales growth in 2023. Together with the fact that these products are considered a basic necessity by most consumers, it continued to benefit…

"Macrobioticas" or health food stores, can be found nationwide, and in some parts of the country, their presence is even more visible than that of pharmacies. Traditional healers, known as curanderos or yerberos, are often consulted for advice and…

While there was still economic uncertainty, inflationary pressure eased significantly in 2023, even falling into deflation territory for part of the year. With the improved economic situation, home care registered healthy current value and modest…

There were significant price rises for home-insecticides in 2023, and in particular for spray/aerosols, as supply chain disruptions still lingered and this resulted in high current and constant value growth. However, despite significant price…

Inflation has taken its toll on hot drinks in Costa Rica, striking the coffee category especially hard in 2022. Conditions were exacerbated by the swift and unexpected appreciation of the colon vis-à-vis the dollar, which created a set of challenging…

The number of households is set to increase moderately, while the average household size will shrink in Costa Rica over 2023-2028. Couples with children will remain the dominant household type but the fastest household expenditure growth is forecast…

As pre-pandemic life resumes in Costa Rica, consumers are enjoying being outside and socializing once again, especially in Costa Rica´s warm climate. Retail volume sales in ice cream parlours continues to recover in 2023, although this trend is…

Insight into income, wealth and expenditure of consumers and households is vital in helping businesses make strategic decisions with regards to which country (or even which region within a country) to enter, which consumer segment to target, which…

The juice category was negatively affected by the high inflation affecting the country, with some of the highest unit price increases within soft drinks being applied to juices. In addition to persistent inflationary pressures, issues regarding the…

Laundry care registered healthy current and constant value growth in 2023, though volume growth was much more muted. Powder detergent continued to be the most popular format, followed by liquid detergent. Liquid detergent, however, registered the…

Mass beauty and personal care products made with activated charcoal continued to gain popularity in Costa Rica in 2023. While penetration remained strongest in oral care, specifically in toothpaste and toothbrushes, rising consumer awareness of the…

Meals and soups is expected to register both current value and volume growth in 2023. With society fully opened up post pandemic, and consumers leading busy lives, they appreciate the convenience of meals and coups, with ready meals in particular…

In keeping with the trend observed earlier in the review period, multifunctional men’s grooming products continued to gain popularity in Costa Rica in 2023. Prominent examples included a Nivea Men liquid soap that is suitable for cleansing the body,…

Menstrual care in Costa Rica recorded double-digit retail value growth in 2023, driven by prices and the essential nature of the products. To aid sales, sanitary pads, tampons and panty liners had a VAT rate of 1% from 1 February 2023, down from the…

Nappies/diapers/pants recorded positive retail value growth in 2023 in Costa Rica. Despite rising prices, brand loyalty is generally strong in nappies/diapers/pants, where Huggies and Pampers are the leading choices, and consumers are generally…