SIM cards and eSIM in Costa Rica

Mobile internet eSIM Best option when traveling

Guac

Recommended

Reliable mobile internet at better prices than most travel eSIMs, with polished iOS and Android apps and support for making and receiving phone calls.

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Airalo

One of the biggest travel eSIM brands, with a very large destination catalog.

Holafly

Known for unlimited-data plans in many destinations, at a higher price per gigabyte.

Buying a local SIM card ID registration required

Registration

All prepaid SIMs must be registered with SUTEL, the national telecoms regulator, so bring your passport: your name and passport number are tied to the SIM, and up to five SIMs may be registered per passport. Allow time, as the process can take anywhere from a couple of minutes to around 20, and the SIM may then take some hours to activate, so do not assume it works the moment you leave the counter.

Tourist plans and prices

SIM cards themselves are cheap, around 500 to 1,500 CRC (roughly $1 to $3). Kolbi tourist packages of 3 to 10 GB over 7 to 30 days run about 5,000 to 12,500 CRC (roughly $10 to $25), while Claro plans span roughly 400 CRC for 300 MB up to around 10,000 CRC for unlimited data, with validity from eight hours to 30 days.

Where to buy

At San Jose's Juan Santamaria airport (SJO) there is a blue Kolbi/ICE kiosk opposite the baggage carousels (colones cash only, so hit the ATM first) and a Claro stand at baggage claim 5 with a vending machine and an agent on hand. City Mall in Alajuela, five minutes from SJO, has Kolbi, Claro and Liberty storefronts. Liberia airport (LIR) is thinner: downtown Liberia has all three carriers about 10 to 15 minutes away. ICE also has offices in most larger towns.

Airport prices

Modest for the standard products, larger for tourist-branded bundles: the Claro airport stand's roughly $30 for 7 days or $60 for 15 days of unlimited data sits well above the ordinary 5,000 to 12,500 CRC (roughly $10 to $25) tourist packages, so compare before buying.

Local eSIM

Costa Rican stores now sell eSIMs alongside physical SIMs, and in a Liberty store you can opt for either; the SUTEL passport registration applies either way. Local prepaid is generally cheaper than travel eSIMs here, but the hassle of finding an open carrier store is the main reason to prefer a travel eSIM anyway.

Local carriers

• Kolbi

  The state-owned network with the most customers and the best coverage by far, thanks to a much higher tower count. The default pick for anyone leaving the main towns.

• Liberty

  Second on coverage and the cheapest SIMs, at roughly $1.25 to $4. It took over Movistar's Costa Rican operation, so older guides and airport signs may still say Movistar.

• Claro

  The newest entrant, with solid 4G, early 5G in major cities and plans often cheaper than Kolbi's, but weaker off the beaten path.