Costa Rica vs Guatemala: Competitive elections
Costa Rica
1
in 2025
Guatemala
1
in 2025
Costa Rica rank
1st
Guatemala rank
1st
Competitive elections over time
- Costa Rica
- Guatemala
How they compare
Costa Rica currently reports 1 against 1 in Guatemala, a difference of 0.
The two have swapped places 6 times across 186 shared years of data; in 1840 it was Guatemala ahead.
Costa Rica ranks 1st and Guatemala ranks 1st of 198 countries.
Costa Rica has averaged higher in every one of the 19 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Costa Rica | Guatemala | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1840s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1850s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1860s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1870s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1880s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1890s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1900s | 0.9 | 0 | 0.9 | Costa Rica |
| 1910s | 0.8 | 0 | 0.8 | Costa Rica |
| 1920s | 1 | 0 | 1 | Costa Rica |
| 1930s | 1 | 0 | 1 | Costa Rica |
| 1940s | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.3 | Costa Rica |
| 1950s | 1 | 0.4 | 0.6 | Costa Rica |
| 1960s | 1 | 0 | 1 | Costa Rica |
| 1970s | 1 | 0 | 1 | Costa Rica |
| 1980s | 1 | 0.5 | 0.5 | Costa Rica |
| 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, Costa Rica or Guatemala?
- Costa Rica, at 1 against 1 in Guatemala as of 2025.
- What is the difference in competitive elections between Costa Rica and Guatemala?
- 0, with Costa Rica ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and Guatemala?
- 186 years are reported by both, from 1840 to 2025.
- How do Costa Rica and Guatemala rank globally for competitive elections?
- Costa Rica ranks 1st and Guatemala 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.