Costa Rica SIM Card vs eSIM: What Tourists Should Buy

You’ll want data in Costa Rica for Waze, WhatsApp and ride apps from day one. The real choice is between an eSIM you set up before you fly and a local SIM card you buy after you land.

For most short trips, a Costa Rica eSIM is the easiest option: install it at home and it connects when you land, with no store visit. A local prepaid Costa Rica SIM card from Kölbi, Claro or Liberty is cheaper for longer stays and gives you a local number. Kölbi, run by the state utility ICE, has the widest coverage, which matters in rural areas. You’ll need your passport and an unlocked phone to buy a physical SIM. Don’t count on an airport kiosk.

This guide compares the carriers, eSIM vs SIM, where to buy, prices, data needs and the mistakes that leave travelers offline.

Quick picks

• Easiest for most short trips: an Airalo data eSIM, installed before you fly. Get an Airalo Costa Rica eSIM
• Heavy data users: a Holafly unlimited eSIM for streaming, video calls or remote work. Get a Holafly Costa Rica eSIM
• Long stays and rural travel: a Kölbi prepaid SIM, bought in town with your passport.

Option	Best for	Rough cost	Local number
eSIM (Airalo, Holafly)	Short trips, arriving connected	About $20 to $40 a week, depending on plan	No (data only)
Kölbi prepaid SIM	Rural areas, longer stays	Tourist pack about ₡12,000 ($24) for 30 days	Yes
Claro or Liberty prepaid SIM	Cities and areas where they’re strong	Data packs from about ₡3,000 to ₡5,000 ($6 to $10)	Yes
Home carrier roaming	Very short trips, zero setup	Daily pass from your carrier; adds up fast	Your own

The carriers

Costa Rica Mobile Carriers Compared

Costa Rica has three mobile networks. Every SIM and eSIM you buy runs on one of them, so coverage depends on which network it uses.

• Kölbi (ICE): the state-owned carrier and the most widely used. It has the broadest coverage, especially in rural areas, and is the safest choice if your route includes remote beaches, mountains or national parks.
• Claro: good service in many towns and tourist areas. It launched 5G in populated areas in 2025.
• Liberty (formerly Movistar): strong in cities and main tourist hubs and expanding 5G in Guanacaste, the Central Pacific and the Northern Zone. Coverage thins out in some rural areas.

4G LTE is what you’ll use most of the time. 5G helps in cities and some tourist hubs, but it isn’t needed for maps, messaging or ride apps. Coverage can vary block by block in rural areas, and Claro or Liberty sometimes have a tower where Kölbi doesn’t. If you’re staying somewhere remote, ask your host which carrier works best there.

eSIM or SIM?

Costa Rica eSIM vs Local SIM Card

Choose an eSIM if

• Your phone supports eSIM (most iPhones from the XR and XS on, and many recent Android phones) and is unlocked.
• You want data the moment you land for Uber, Waze or messaging your driver or hotel.
• Your trip is two weeks or less and you don’t need a local phone number.
• You want to keep your home SIM active for bank texts and two-factor codes.

Choose a local SIM if

• You’re staying several weeks or longer and want the lowest cost.
• You’ll spend time in rural areas where Kölbi’s coverage matters.
• You want a local number for calls to tour operators, restaurants or rentals.
• Your phone doesn’t support eSIM but has an unlocked SIM slot.

The main eSIM trade-off is coverage. Travel eSIMs connect through one or two local networks, often Liberty or Claro, and some travelers find them weak outside larger towns. A Kölbi SIM is the better bet for remote areas.

eSIM options

Best eSIM Options for Costa Rica

Airalo: flexible data packs

Airalo sells Costa Rica eSIM packs by length and amount of data, so you can match the plan to your trip. Its Costa Rica eSIM runs on the Liberty network. Plans are data only, so use WhatsApp for calls and texts. Prices change, so compare plans on the site before you buy.

View Airalo Costa Rica eSIM plans

Holafly: unlimited data

Holafly sells unlimited-data eSIMs that run on Claro and Liberty, from about $20 for three days to about $38 for a week. A fair-use policy applies, so speeds can slow temporarily after heavy use. You can share up to 1GB a day as a hotspot. There’s no local phone number.

View Holafly Costa Rica eSIM plans

How to set up an eSIM

1. Check that your phone is unlocked and supports eSIM before you buy.
2. Install the eSIM at home on Wi-Fi. You’ll scan a QR code or install it in the provider’s app.
3. Leave it switched off until you land. Some plans start counting days when they first connect.
4. On arrival, turn on the eSIM line and data roaming for that line, and turn off data roaming on your home SIM so your carrier doesn’t charge you.

Physical SIM

Where to Buy a SIM Card in Costa Rica

Carrier desks at Juan Santamaría (SJO) and Liberia (LIR) airports have closed or open irregularly, so don’t plan your arrival around one. Small airport convenience stores sometimes sell SIMs, but stock varies.

• Near SJO: City Mall in Alajuela, about five minutes from the airport, has Kölbi, Claro and Liberty stores.
• Near LIR: all three carriers have stores in downtown Liberia, about 10 to 15 minutes away.
• Anywhere else: carrier stores in larger towns, plus many supermarkets and electronics shops.

What you need

• Your passport. Prepaid lines are registered to your ID, and foreigners can register with a passport.
• An unlocked phone. A locked phone is the most common reason a Costa Rican SIM doesn’t work. Dual-SIM phones are usually fine in the second slot, but check with your carrier before you travel.
• Cash in colones helps at smaller shops. See our guide to cash in Costa Rica.

Prepaid prices

A SIM card itself costs about ₡500 to ₡2,500 (roughly $1 to $5), plus the plan or balance you add. Kölbi’s tourist SIM costs about ₡12,000 ($24) with taxes and includes 5GB of data, another 5GB for selected apps such as WhatsApp and Waze, 100 national minutes and 30 texts for 30 days. Claro and Liberty sell shorter data packs, such as 2GB for 10 days or 5GB for 30 days, for about ₡3,000 to ₡5,000. Plans and prices change often, so confirm the total at the counter.

Data

How Much Data Do You Need?

• Light use (maps, WhatsApp, a few ride bookings): a 5GB plan is enough for most one- to two-week trips, especially with hotel Wi-Fi.
• Moderate use (daily navigation, photos to social media): 5 to 10GB, or the Kölbi tourist pack with its extra app data.
• Heavy use (video calls, streaming, remote work): an unlimited eSIM, or a larger local plan you top up.

Turn off automatic app updates and photo backups on mobile data, and use Wi-Fi for big uploads.

Avoid these

Common SIM and eSIM Mistakes

1. Traveling with a locked phone. Ask your carrier to remove the lock a few weeks before you leave.
2. Leaving data roaming on for your home line. Daily roaming passes add up quickly over a week or two.
3. Counting on an airport kiosk. Plan on an eSIM, or a store stop on the way to your hotel.
4. Relying on an eSIM in remote areas. If you’re heading somewhere rural, a Kölbi SIM covers more ground.
5. Driving without offline maps. Signal drops on mountain and rural roads. Download maps before you set out.

Topping up

How to Recharge a Costa Rica SIM

Topping up is called a recarga. Most supermarkets and corner stores can add credit at the register: tell the cashier your carrier and the amount, and you’ll get a text confirming your new balance. You can also top up in carrier stores or through the carrier’s app. Some plans renew automatically if you have enough balance, so check before you leave.

For calls home, see how to call Costa Rica from the United States. In an emergency, dial 911 from any phone; our list of Costa Rica emergency numbers has the rest. For plugs and chargers, see our guide to power outlets and voltage, and add your eSIM or SIM plan to our Costa Rica travel checklist. Planning to use ride apps? Read Uber in Costa Rica first, and see our airport guide for arrival options.

Ready to set up? Get your Airalo Costa Rica eSIM, or for unlimited data, see Holafly’s unlimited plans.

Good to know

Costa Rica SIM Card FAQ