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Country guide
Central AmericaCosta Rica
Capital San José · Median age 34
4 mobility routesPath to citizenshipMin presence 1 days/yrTropical
The practical read for Americans weighing life in Costa Rica: what the catalog knows about daily-life signals, costs, residency routes, and source freshness — with honest gaps where we have not sourced it yet.
Practical snapshot
Cost of living49
Healthcare69
Safety54
Climate resilience100
4 mobility routes
Check my fitAt a glance
Costa Rica in eight lenses
Every lens is a live, normalized signal (0–100, higher is better). Absent indicators show as Unknown — never guessed.
Cost & taxes
64 · MixedCost of living49
Tax burden79
Healthcare
69 · StrongHealthcare69
Safety & crime
63 · MixedSafety54
Low crime72
Climate
100 · StrongClimate resilience100
Language & integration
76 · StrongEnglish proficiency83
Migrant acceptance68
Freedom & rights
73 · StrongRule of law76
Political stability84
Low corruption61
Personal freedom90
Freedom of speech91
Property rights66
LGBTQ+ acceptance66
Reproductive rights50
Economy & work
50 · MixedEconomic freedom89
CompetitivenessUnknown—
Innovation42
Startup ecosystem0
Job market6
Prosperity82
Ease of doing business80
Quality of life
75 · StrongLiveability75
Happiness94
Life satisfaction94
Work–life balanceUnknown—
Internet speed36
Education78
Low trafficUnknown—
Fit summary
Where this country is strong, and where to look closer
Strengths
- Climate resilience100
- Happiness94
- Life satisfaction94
- Freedom of speech91
Look closer
- Startup ecosystem0
- Job market6
- Internet speed36
Country facts
The structured record
Facts imported for this country. Blank fields render as Unknown.
- Average Bedtime
- 1899-12-30
- Average Time In Bed
- 410 minutes
- Average Time In Bed Hours
- 6 hours 50 minutes
- Average Wakeup Time
- 1899-12-30
- Avg Precipitation
- 2926 mm
- Avg Temperature
- 24.83°C (76.69°F)
- Beer Consumption
- 48.85 liters_per_capita_year
- Best Time To Travel
- December-April
- Books Read Per Year
- 6.32
- Borders
- Nicaragua, Panama
- Citizenship By Birth
- Conditional
- Citizenship By Descent
- Yes
- Citizenship By Marriage
- 2 years
- Climate
- Tropical and subtropical; dry season (December to April); rainy season (May to November)
- Climate Category
- Hot & Humid
- Coffee Consumption
- 0.69 liters_per_capita_year
- Consulate Locations In The Us
- Atlanta,Chicago,Houston,Los Angeles,Miami,New York
- Country Code
- +506
- Country Intro Blurb
- Known for its coffee Colombia is where every cup comes with a side of salsa
- Country Motto
- Vivan siempre el trabajo y la paz ("Work and peace forever")
- Crypto Currency Status
- Implicit ban
- Currency
- Costa Rican Colón (CRC)
- Date Format
- DMY
- Distance From New York City
- 3560 km
- Driving Side
- Right-hand traffic
- Dual Citizenship
- Yes
- Economy
- Tourism, agriculture, electronics
- Famous Dance
- Cumbia
- Famous Festival
- Carnival of Barranquilla
- Famous Music
- Cumbia
- Fertility Rate
- 1.33
- Funny Fact
- Has a "Day of the Little Candles" festival
- Gambling Legislation
- Regulated
- Haiku
- Coffee plantations / Emerald mountains lush and green / Cartagena's charm
- Handgun Legislation
- Restricted
- Humidity
- 80
- Hype Video
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPpj_1Z9-SM
- Independence Day
- September 15, 1821
- Interesting Fact
- Known for its coffee Colombia is where every cup comes with a side of salsa
- Interesting Tradition
- Holds the Barranquilla Carnival the second largest carnival in South America
- Language
- Spanish
- Life Expectancy
- 80,8
- Mandatory Military Service
- Yes
- Mcdonalds In Country
- 65
- Medical Cannabis Legislation
- Legal
- Mensa Members
- 100
- Migration Rate
- 0.195 per_1000_population
- National Animal
- Andean Condor
- National Anthem
- Noble patria, tu hermosa bandera
- National Anthem Audio
- https://nationalanthems.info/cr.mp3
- National Dish
- Bandeja paisa
- National Pastime Or Sport
- Football (Soccer)
- Nobel Prizes
- 2
- Number Of Americans Living In Country
- 15209
- Number Of Migrants
- 0.995 thousands
- Obesity Rate
- 0.28600000000000003
- Passport Validity
- 10 years
- Percentage Of Vegetarian
- 0.04
- Population
- 5174000
- Quintessential Souvenir
- Handwoven mochila bag
- Quirky Tradition
- Celebrates "El Día de las Velitas" where candles are lit to mark the start of the Christmas season
- Rainless Days Per Year
- 244
- Representative Novel
- One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez (Nobel Prize in Literature, magical realism set in fictional Colombian town)
- Reproduction Rate
- 0.641
- Residency For Naturalization
- 5
- Same Sex Marriage Legislation
- Legal
- Spicy Food Consumption
- 19
- Strangest Law Still On The Books
- Illegal to portray Santa in ads for alcohol
- Tallest Building
- BD Bacatá Torre Sur (216 mt)
- Tea Consumption
- 0.02 liters_per_capita_year
- Time Zone
- GMT-6
- Tobacco Use Female
- 0.09699999999999999
- Tobacco Use Male
- 0.14300000000000002
- Total World Heritage Sites
- 4
- Us Emigrants 1990
- 8586
- Us Emigrants 1995
- 7301
- Us Emigrants 2000
- 9667
- Us Emigrants 2005
- 6336
- Us Emigrants 2010
- 12492
- Us Emigrants 2015
- 12673
- Us Emigrants 2020
- 15209
- Visitors Per Year
- 3.1 millions
- Voting Status
- Universal
- Weirdest Local Superstition
- Putting a broom upside down behind a door to get rid of guests
- Wine Consumption
- 0.72 liters_per_capita_year
Daily life & the American lens
What Tuesday actually feels like
Lived-experience narrative, English-comfort layers, and community voices.
Not yet sourced
Daily-life rhythm, the American-lens friction points, and community voices for Costa Rica come from verified field research and practitioner communities. That editorial layer is not committed to the Product Engine catalog yet, so we are not inventing it here.
Sources & freshness
Where this page comes from
Real provenance for the live figures above: named sources, verification status, and recent regulatory changes.
Verified data points
0Stale
0Unverified
116| Source | Confidence | Status | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| CATO Institute | — | unverified | — |
| Center for Reproductive Rights | — | unverified | — |
| CitizensOS Destination Facts — Country DB (Primary workbook) | — | unverified | — |
| EF Set | — | unverified | — |
| Equaldex | — | unverified | — |
| Freedom House | — | unverified | — |
| Gallup | — | unverified | — |
| Germanwatch | — | unverified | — |
| Heritage Foundation | — | unverified | — |
| Legatum | — | unverified | — |
| Numbeo | — | unverified | — |
| Ookla | — | unverified | — |
| Our World in Data | — | unverified | — |
| StartUp Blink | — | unverified | — |
| The Economist | — | unverified | — |
| The Lancet | — | unverified | — |
| Transparency International | — | unverified | — |
| US News | — | unverified | — |
| World Bank | — | unverified | — |
| World Happiness Report | — | unverified | — |
| World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) | — | unverified | — |
| World Justice Report | — | unverified | — |
| World Population Review | — | unverified | — |
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