Botswana vs Costa Rica: Competitive elections
Botswana
1
in 2025
Costa Rica
1
in 2025
Botswana rank
1st
Costa Rica rank
1st
Competitive elections over time
- Botswana
- Costa Rica
How they compare
Botswana currently reports 1 against 1 in Costa Rica, a difference of 0.
Across all 141 years both countries report, Costa Rica has been ahead every year.
Botswana ranks 1st and Costa Rica ranks 1st of 198 countries.
Costa Rica has averaged higher in every one of the 15 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Botswana | Costa Rica | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1890s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1900s | 0 | 0.9 | 0.9 | Costa Rica |
| 1910s | 0 | 0.8 | 0.8 | Costa Rica |
| 1920s | 0 | 1 | 1 | Costa Rica |
| 1930s | 0 | 1 | 1 | Costa Rica |
| 1940s | 0 | 0.9 | 0.9 | Costa Rica |
| 1950s | 0 | 1 | 1 | Costa Rica |
| 1960s | 0.4 | 1 | 0.6 | Costa Rica |
| 1970s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1980s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1990s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2000s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher competitive elections, Botswana or Costa Rica?
- Botswana, at 1 against 1 in Costa Rica as of 2025.
- What is the difference in competitive elections between Botswana and Costa Rica?
- 0, with Botswana ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Botswana and Costa Rica?
- 141 years are reported by both, from 1885 to 2025.
- How do Botswana and Costa Rica rank globally for competitive elections?
- Botswana ranks 1st and Costa Rica ranks 1st of 198 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Competitive elections. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Whether the outcomes of elections are uncertain because their timing is not violated, voters are not systematically coerced, and election fraud is not consequential.