CR · AmericasZM · Africa
Costa Rica vs Zambia: tax rates compared
Between the two, Zambia's income tax rate (37%) tops Costa Rica's (25%) by 12pp. The 200-country average is 28%: Costa Rica sits below it, Zambia sits above it. Costa Rica's figure is dated 2025-01-01 and Zambia's 2026-01-01, so the two rates come from different data vintages.
Verified data covers five of the six tracked tax types for both countries; every rate below is cited to its source and dated.
At a glance
| Tax | CR | ZM | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income Tax | 25% | 37% | ZM +12 pp |
| Corporate Tax | 30% | 30% | match |
| VAT | 13% | 16% | ZM +3 pp |
| Capital Gains Tax | 15% | 0% | CR +15 pplargest gap |
| Wealth Tax | 0% | 0% | match |
Income Tax
| Country | Rate | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Costa Rica | 25% | Source: OECD Tax Database — Top statutory personal income tax rates · as of 2025-01-01 |
| Zambia | 37% | Source: PWC Worldwide Tax Summaries — Zambia (Individual, Taxes on personal income) · as of 2026-01-01 |
| Difference | −12 pp | Zambia higher |
Corporate Tax
| Country | Rate | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Costa Rica | 30% | Source: Tax Foundation — Worldwide Corporate Tax Rates · as of 2025-01-01 |
| Zambia | 30% | Source: Tax Foundation — Worldwide Corporate Tax Rates · as of 2025-01-01 |
| Difference | 0 pp | displayed rates match |
There's no gap here — Costa Rica and Zambia both post a corporate tax rate of 30%. The 201-country average is 22.6%: both sit above it.
VAT
| Country | Rate | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Costa Rica | 13% | Source: PWC Worldwide Tax Summaries — Costa Rica (Corporate, Other taxes) · as of 2026-06-30 |
| Zambia | 16% | Source: PWC Worldwide Tax Summaries — Zambia (Corporate, Other taxes) · as of 2026-03-20 |
| Difference | −3 pp | Zambia higher |
Between the two, Zambia's VAT rate (16%) tops Costa Rica's (13%) by 3pp. The 181-country average is 15%: Costa Rica sits below it, Zambia sits above it.
Capital Gains Tax
| Country | Rate | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Costa Rica | 15% | Source: PWC Worldwide Tax Summaries — Costa Rica (Individual, Income determination) · as of 2026-06-30 |
| Zambia | 0% | Source: PWC Worldwide Tax Summaries — Zambia (Individual, Income determination) · as of 2026-03-20 |
| Difference | +15 pp | Costa Rica higher |
Between the two, Costa Rica's capital gains tax rate (15%) tops Zambia's (0%) by 15pp. The 175-country average is 10.3%: Costa Rica sits above it, Zambia sits below it.
Wealth Tax
| Country | Rate | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Costa Rica | 0% | Source: PWC Worldwide Tax Summaries — Net wealth/worth tax rates (quick chart) · as of 2026-06-30 |
| Zambia | 0% | Source: PWC Worldwide Tax Summaries — Zambia (Individual, Other taxes) · as of 2026-03-20 |
| Difference | 0 pp | displayed rates match |
There's no gap here — Costa Rica and Zambia both post a wealth tax rate of 0%. The 193-country average is 0.1%: both sit below it.
Not covered for both countries yet: Crypto Tax.