LATIN AMERICA & CARIBBEAN · COUNTRY REFERENCE
Nicaragua
Written and compiled by American Business Capital Group Inc.
Selected country or entityMap: Natural Earth ↗
ANNUAL ECONOMIC SNAPSHOT
Population & economic scale
The most recent non-empty observations returned by the World Bank when this snapshot was collected. Read the year on each card: these are annual statistics, not live measurements.
World Bank reporting entity: Nicaragua · 3 of 3 indicators available.
Population
7,007,502
people
observation
Definition, value & source
Total population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship. The values shown are midyear estimates.
Received value: 7007502 people. The main card rounds for readability.
- Collected
- Oct 7, 2026
- Dataset update reported by API
- Jul 13, 2026; separate from the observation year
World Bank indicator ↗ · API record ↗
World Bank, World Development Indicators. CC BY 4.0. Underlying sources: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), uri: https://population.un.org/wpp/, publisher: UN Population Division; Statistical databases and publications from national statistical offices, National Statistical Offices (NSOs), uri: https://unstats.un.org/home/nso_sites/, publisher: National Statistical Offices; Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, Eurostat (ESTAT), uri: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/data/database?node_code=earn_ses_monthly, publisher: Eurostat; Population and Vital Statistics Report (various years), United Nations (UN), uri: https://unstats.un.org, publisher: UN Statistics Division
GDP
$22.24 billion
current US$
observation
Definition, value & source
Gross domestic product is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period. It can be measured in three different ways: using either the expenditure approach, the income approach, or the production approach. This indicator is expressed in current prices, meaning no adjustment has been made to account for price changes over time. This indicator is expressed in United States dollars.
Received value: 22237167113.0916 current US$. The main card rounds for readability.
- Collected
- Oct 7, 2026
- Dataset update reported by API
- Jul 13, 2026; separate from the observation year
World Bank indicator ↗ · API record ↗
World Bank, World Development Indicators. CC BY 4.0. Underlying sources: Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks; National Accounts data files, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Staff estimates, World Bank (WB)
GDP per capita
$3,173
current US$ per person
observation
Definition, value & source
Gross domestic product is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period. It can be measured in three different ways: using either the expenditure approach, the income approach, or the production approach. The core indicator has been divided by the general population to achieve a per capita estimate.This indicator is expressed in current prices, meaning no adjustment has been made to account for price changes over time. This indicator is expressed in United States dollars.
Received value: 3173.33724815085 current US$ per person. The main card rounds for readability.
- Collected
- Oct 7, 2026
- Dataset update reported by API
- Jul 13, 2026; separate from the observation year
World Bank indicator ↗ · API record ↗
World Bank, World Development Indicators. CC BY 4.0. Underlying sources: Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks; National Accounts data files, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Staff estimates, World Bank (WB)
GDP and GDP per capita use current US dollars, without an inflation or purchasing-power-parity adjustment. Source years can differ. Missing data is not zero; earlier archive figures below are retained as a separate historical reference.
THE REFERENCE FILE
Nicaragua at a glance
These are historical reference facts from the 2025 World Factbook archive. Each estimate keeps its own period; an archive edition does not make every figure a measurement from that year.
Population
total: 6,739,380 (2025 est.) male: 3,304,133 female: 3,435,247
Real GDP (purchasing power parity)
$52.989 billion (2024 est.) $51.153 billion (2023 est.) $48.985 billion (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars
GDP (official exchange rate)
$19.694 billion (2024 est.) note: data in current dollars at official exchange rate
Real GDP growth rate
3.6% (2024 est.) 4.4% (2023 est.) 3.6% (2022 est.) note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency
Real GDP per capita
$7,700 (2024 est.) $7,500 (2023 est.) $7,300 (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
4.6% (2024 est.) 8.4% (2023 est.) 10.5% (2022 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices
Unemployment rate
4.6% (2024 est.) 4.8% (2023 est.) 5% (2022 est.) note: % of labor force seeking employment
Labor force
3.225 million (2024 est.) note: number of people ages 15 or older who are employed or seeking work
Public debt
33.3% of GDP (2017 est.) note: official data; data cover general government debt and include debt instruments issued (or owned) by Government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities, as well as intragovernmental debt; intragovernmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as retirement, medical care, and unemployment, debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions; Nicaragua rebased its GDP figures in 2012, which reduced the figures for debt as a percentage of GDP
Budget
revenues: $3.856 billion (2023 est.) expenditures: $3.382 billion (2023 est.) note: central government revenues and expenses (excluding grants/extrabudgetary units/social security funds) converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated
Current account balance
$817.618 million (2024 est.) $1.465 billion (2023 est.) -$459.6 million (2022 est.) note: balance of payments - net trade and primary/secondary income in current dollars
Exports
$8.135 billion (2024 est.) $8.248 billion (2023 est.) $7.87 billion (2022 est.) note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars
Imports
$11.437 billion (2024 est.) $10.519 billion (2023 est.) $10.213 billion (2022 est.) note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold
$6.105 billion (2024 est.) $5.447 billion (2023 est.) $4.404 billion (2022 est.) note: holdings of gold (year-end prices)/foreign exchange/special drawing rights in current dollars
Debt - external
$6.753 billion (2023 est.) note: present value of external debt in current US dollars
Electricity access
electrification - total population: 86.5% (2022 est.) electrification - urban areas: 100% electrification - rural areas: 66.3%
Internet users
percent of population: 58% (2023 est.)
THE HISTORICAL REFERENCE LIBRARY
Explore the country in detail
Browse the economy, population, resources and infrastructure. These archived descriptions keep their original wording and dates; they have not been updated to describe current conditions.
29 of 29 sections
Location
Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras
archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Capital
name: Managua geographic coordinates: 12 08 N, 86 15 W time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the name comes from Lake Managua, whose name is composed of the Guaran words ama (rain) and nagua (spirit) and refers to a local deity
archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Economic overview
low-income Central American economy; until 2018, nearly 20 years of sustained GDP growth; recent struggles due to COVID-19, political instability, and hurricanes; significant remittances; increasing poverty and food scarcity since 2005; sanctions limit investment
2018, 2005 source periods; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Natural resources
gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish
archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Agricultural products
sugarcane, milk, rice, oil palm fruit, maize, plantains, cassava, groundnuts, beans, chicken (2023) note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage
2023 source periods; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Industries
food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, knit and woven apparel, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood, electric wire harness manufacturing, mining
archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Exports - partners
USA 51%, Mexico 12%, El Salvador 6%, Canada 6%, Switzerland 4% (2023) note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports
2023 source periods; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Exports - commodities
garments, gold, insulated wire, coffee, beef (2023) note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars
2023 source periods; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Imports - partners
USA 24%, China 13%, Mexico 9%, Honduras 9%, Guatemala 8% (2023) note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports
2023 source periods; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Imports - commodities
garments, refined petroleum, crude petroleum, plastic products, fabric (2023) note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars
2023 source periods; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Climate
tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands
archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Terrain
extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes
archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Land use
agricultural land: 42.3% (2023 est.) arable land: 12.5% (2023 est.) permanent crops: 2.5% (2023 est.) permanent pasture: 27.4% (2023 est.) forest: 40.1% (2023 est.) other: 17.6% (2023 est.)
2023 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Natural hazards
destructive earthquakes; volcanoes; landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes volcanism: significant volcanic activity; Cerro Negro (728 m) is one of Nicaragua's most active volcanoes; its lava flows and ash have been known to cause significant damage to farmland and buildings; other historically active volcanoes include Concepcion, Cosiguina, Las Pilas, Masaya, Momotombo, San Cristobal, and Telica
archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Languages
Spanish (official) 99.5%, Indigenous 0.3%, Portuguese 0.1%, other 0.1% (2020 est.) major-language sample(s): La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de informaci n b sica. (Spanish) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information. note: English and indigenous languages found on the Caribbean coast
2020 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Religions
Roman Catholic 44.9%, Protestant 38.7% (Evangelical 38.2, Adventist 0.5%), other 1.2%, (includes Jehovah's Witness and Church of Jesus Christ), believer but not belonging to a church 1%, agnostic or atheist 0.4%, none 13.7%, unspecified 0.2% (2020 est.)
2020 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Age structure
0-14 years: 25.1% (male 855,256/female 818,714) 15-64 years: 68.9% (male 2,240,297/female 2,360,244) 65 years and over: 6% (2024 est.) (male 178,347/female 224,090)
2024 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Urbanization
urban population: 59.8% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 1.45% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
2023, 2020 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 74.7 years (2024 est.) male: 73.2 years female: 76.4 years
2024 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Electricity
installed generating capacity: 1.849 million kW (2023 est.) consumption: 4.654 billion kWh (2023 est.) imports: 1.125 billion kWh (2023 est.) transmission/distribution losses: 839 million kWh (2023 est.)
2023 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Electricity generation sources
fossil fuels: 35.5% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) solar: 0.6% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) wind: 12.9% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) hydroelectricity: 14.9% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) geothermal: 15.7% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) biomass and waste: 20.4% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
2023 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Petroleum
total petroleum production: 200 bbl/day (2023 est.) refined petroleum consumption: 28,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)
2023 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Carbon dioxide emissions
3.806 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.) from coal and metallurgical coke: 2 metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.) from petroleum and other liquids: 3.806 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2023 est.)
2023 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Telephones - mobile cellular
total subscriptions: 7.33 million (2024 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 106 (2024 est.)
2024 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Broadband - fixed subscriptions
total: 371,000 (2023 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 5 (2023 est.)
2023 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Airports
39 (2025)
2025 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Ports
total ports: 5 (2024) large: 0 medium: 0 small: 2 very small: 3 ports with oil terminals: 4 key ports: Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff, Puerto Cabezas, Puerto Sandino
2024 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
GDP - composition, by sector of origin
agriculture: 14.4% (2024 est.) industry: 27.6% (2024 est.) services: 46.8% (2024 est.) note: figures may not total 100% due to non-allocated consumption not captured in sector-reported data
2024 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
Remittances
26.6% of GDP (2024 est.) 26.2% of GDP (2023 est.) 20.6% of GDP (2022 est.) note: personal transfers and compensation between resident and non-resident individuals/households/entities
2024, 2023, 2022 dates in source text; archive edition 2025 · Archive source ↗
CURRENCY OBSERVATIONS
Money & exchange rates
The latest verified daily references are separate from the historical country profile. Values are currency units per US$1.
Cordoba Oro
NIO per US$1
Published reference snapshot; its original observation date is preserved.
1 NIO = US$0.0273045
36.624–36.624 NIO per US$1 across the displayed observations. The vertical scale follows this range.
View dated observations
| Observation date | NIO per US$1 |
|---|---|
| Oct 6, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Oct 5, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Oct 4, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Oct 2, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Oct 1, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 30, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 29, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 28, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 27, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 25, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 24, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 23, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 22, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 21, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 20, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 18, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 17, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 16, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 15, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 14, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 13, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 11, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 10, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 9, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 8, 2026 | 36.624 |
| Sep 7, 2026 | 36.624 |
Daily references are not live execution prices. A check time does not change a source observation date.
CAPITAL MARKETS
Stock exchanges
No venue from our curated stock exchange directory is listed for this entity.
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Official data & country reports
Research directories have their own coverage. A link is not a claim that every entity has an IMF report or a separate national statistical office.
SOURCES & DATES
Where the facts come from.
Editorial presentation by American Business Capital Group Inc. The organizations and archive links below are the underlying sources.
- Country reference
- CIA World Factbook · 2025 archive
- Archive retrieved
- Oct 6, 2026 · retrieval date, not an observation period
- Currency associations
- SIX / ISO 4217 currency registry ↗
- Rate observations
- Frankfurter / official reference providers ↗ · each observation is dated separately
- State classification
- UN member states ↗ · UN observer states ↗
- UN membership is shown separately from territory and currency coverage; inclusion is not a position on sovereignty or boundaries.
- CIA World Factbook text preserved by World Factbook Archive. Archive edition 2025; individual estimates retain their own dates. These are historical reference facts, not current observations.
About the editions. The CIA announced the end of its online World Factbook on February 4, 2026. Our historical profiles retain the archive editions shown above.
Skyhorse lists The CIA World Factbook 2026–2027, published April 7, 2026 (ISBN 9781510786042). That book’s full text has not been incorporated here; its edition title does not redate the imported archive. Archive distribution license.
Geography is a simplified reference. Displayed boundaries and entity inclusion do not express a position on sovereignty or disputed borders.