Why it is here
Why Jacó is on the list.
A city is listed when there is evidence that people move there. This is the evidence.
- Journey School of Costa Rica lists a Jacó campus (Calle Ancha, Plaza Boulevard), Kindergarten to Grade 12; the school says its other campuses are working toward the same accreditations as Tamarindo. [Jacó S1]
- A law firm's guide calls Jacó the closest beach town to the capital and says it is popular among expats who want beach life and city amenities (no headcount). [E1]
The Fernshore Index
How it grades, factor by factor.
Each grade is against a published measure, with its source and the date we checked it. It is research information, not advice. Where we have no figure, the row says Unknown.
Cost of living
55 of 100MixedCountry figure
Price level 0.591 of United States prices (2025).
Source: Price level index (GDP), Costa Rica. Checked 15 October 2026.
Climate
16 of 100WeakCountry figure
The Heredia and San José area, the main city: 3 comfortable months a year (January, November and December), measured at Tobías Bolaños airport in San José.
Source: Climate normals 1991–2020, Tobías Bolaños Palma Airport, Pavas, San José (WMO 78764). Checked 15 October 2026.
Safety
50 of 100MixedCountry figure
Global Peace Index 2026: 62nd of 163.
Source: Global Peace Index 2026, overall rank. Checked 15 October 2026.
Healthcare
79 of 100StrongCountry figure
WHO UHC service coverage index 84 (2023).
Source: UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1). Checked 15 October 2026.
Schools
UnknownCountry figure
Our research doesn't cover schools yet.
Community
UnknownCountry figure
Not covered by Expat Insider 2026
Lifestyle
UnknownCountry figure
Not covered by Expat Insider 2026
Work and career
50 of 100MixedCountry figure
Mixed: a residence route for remote workers exists (the digital nomad stay), but fixed broadband is 23.29 per 100 people (2024), under the 30 line.
Source: Digital nomads in Costa Rica: remote worker visa; Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Costa Rica. Checked 15 October 2026.
Retirement
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
Strong: pensioners (a pension of at least US$1,000 a month) and people living on income (at least US$2,500 a month) are temporary residents, and three consecutive years of temporary residence allow an application for permanent residence. Later changes by Law 9996 were not checked.
Source: Ley General de Migración y Extranjería No. 8764, articles 78, 79, 81 and 82. Checked 15 October 2026.
Internet
52 of 100MixedCountry figure
23.29 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people (2024).
Source: Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Costa Rica. Checked 15 October 2026.
English
44 of 100MixedCountry figure
EF EPI score 516, between the 499 and 550 anchors. The page does not print its edition year.
Source: EF English Proficiency Index: Costa Rica. Checked 15 October 2026.
Visa, United States passport
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
Strong: the digital nomad stay is open to US passport holders paid from abroad, with no job offer in Costa Rica and no age minimum. It runs up to a year and renews once; the income test is about US$3,000 a month (about US$36,000 a year, about US$4,000 a month for a family), with no deposit. To be safe, have more than US$3,100 a month. No entry visa is needed for 180 days.
Source: Digital nomads in Costa Rica: remote worker visa; Digital nomads: remote worker and service provider stay (requirements, fees, procedure); General Guidelines for Entry and Stay Visas for Non-Residents (November 2025). Checked 15 October 2026.
Visa, Canada passport
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
Strong: the digital nomad stay is open to Canadian passport holders paid from abroad, with no job offer in Costa Rica and no age minimum. It runs up to a year and renews once; the income test is about US$3,000 a month (about US$36,000 a year, about US$4,000 a month for a family), with no deposit. To be safe, have more than US$3,100 a month. No entry visa is needed for 180 days.
Source: Digital nomads in Costa Rica: remote worker visa; Digital nomads: remote worker and service provider stay (requirements, fees, procedure); General Guidelines for Entry and Stay Visas for Non-Residents (November 2025). Checked 15 October 2026.
Visa, Australia passport
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
Strong: the digital nomad stay is open to Australian passport holders paid from abroad, with no job offer in Costa Rica and no age minimum. It runs up to a year and renews once; the income test is about US$3,000 a month (about US$36,000 a year, about US$4,000 a month for a family), with no deposit. To be safe, have more than US$3,100 a month. No entry visa is needed for 180 days.
Source: Digital nomads in Costa Rica: remote worker visa; Digital nomads: remote worker and service provider stay (requirements, fees, procedure); General Guidelines for Entry and Stay Visas for Non-Residents (November 2025). Checked 15 October 2026.
Visa, New Zealand passport
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
Strong: the digital nomad stay is open to New Zealand passport holders paid from abroad, with no job offer in Costa Rica and no age minimum. It runs up to a year and renews once; the income test is about US$3,000 a month (about US$36,000 a year, about US$4,000 a month for a family), with no deposit. To be safe, have more than US$3,100 a month. No entry visa is needed for 180 days.
Source: Digital nomads in Costa Rica: remote worker visa; Digital nomads: remote worker and service provider stay (requirements, fees, procedure); General Guidelines for Entry and Stay Visas for Non-Residents (November 2025). Checked 15 October 2026.
The country
More on Costa Rica.
Questions about Jacó.
How big is Jacó, and do expats live there?
Garabito canton, which contains Jacó, had 26,672 residents in the 2022 estimate, and 9,282 of its 16,655 dwellings were occupied. A law-firm guide calls Jacó the closest beach town to the capital and says expats who want beach life and city amenities like it. It gives no headcount.
Is Jacó safe?
Canada's government lists Jacó, including the crocodile viewing area on the Tárcoles River, among Puntarenas province areas of particular concern for theft, and names Puntarenas among the provinces most affected by violent crime. Riptides are common and very few beaches have lifeguards. No Jacó-only figure is known.
Are there international schools in Jacó?
Journey School of Costa Rica lists a Jacó campus on Calle Ancha, Kindergarten to Grade 12. It says its other campuses are working toward the same accreditations as Tamarindo, an authorized IB World School, so do not assume Jacó offers the IB Diploma. Confirm with the school.
What is the weather like in Jacó?
The national set has no Jacó station. The nearest, Tobías Bolaños airport in San José, is inland in the Central Valley and shows monthly mean daily highs of 28.9 to 31.5 °C (1991 to 2020), so the coast may differ. Jacó's own temperatures and rainfall are not known.
What does it cost to rent in Jacó?
We found no Jacó rent. The only Pacific-coast advert we priced is a furnished two-bedroom in Tamarindo at CRC 425,000 a month, a different town and one asking rent. Canada's government says burglars sometimes target rental accommodation and homes owned by foreigners, so ask how a building is secured.
Sources
Where each figure comes from.
Every figure on this page links to the page we read, with the date we checked it.
- [N1] Estimación de población y vivienda 2022: Resultados generales, table 6.1, Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INEC). Checked 15 October 2026. Garabito canton: 26,672 residents in the 2022 estimate, the second-fastest growing canton in 2011 to 2022 (3.97% a year); 9,282 of its 16,655 dwellings were occupied. Jacó is its main town; the figure is for the canton.
- [Jacó S1] Journey School of Costa Rica, Journey School of Costa Rica. Checked 15 October 2026. The school's own site: Jacó campus at Calle Ancha, Plaza Boulevard Local #33, Garabito, Kindergarten to Grade 12; says its other campuses are pursuing similar accreditations to the Tamarindo campus.
- [E1] The top places for expats to live in Costa Rica, CostaRicaLaw.com (private law firm guide, not official). Checked 15 October 2026. Published 4 January 2024 by the firm; opinion and description, no headcount.
- [Jacó W1] Climate normals 1991–2020, Tobías Bolaños Palma Airport, Pavas, San José (WMO 78764), Instituto Meteorológico Nacional (WMO Climate Normals 1991–2020 via NOAA NCEI). Checked 15 October 2026. The nearest of the four stations in the published national set, in the same central valley; used here only for the weather type, not as Jacó's own normals. Coolest month's average daily high 28.9 °C.
- [C1] Price level index (GDP), Costa Rica, World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2025: 59.06 (United States = 100), read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
- [Costa Rica W1] Climate normals 1991–2020, Tobías Bolaños Palma Airport, Pavas, San José (WMO 78764), Instituto Meteorológico Nacional (WMO Climate Normals 1991–2020 via NOAA NCEI). Checked 15 October 2026. The Heredia and San José area, the main city for Costa Rica's climate grade. Monthly mean daily highs 28.9 to 31.5 °C; rain 10.7 mm (January), 135.1 mm (November) and 25.4 mm (December); 3 comfortable months (January, November, December).
- [Costa Rica S1] Global Peace Index 2026, overall rank, Institute for Economics and Peace. Checked 15 October 2026. Costa Rica ranks 62nd of 163 countries (score 1.860).
- [H1] UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1), World Health Organization. Checked 15 October 2026. Costa Rica: 84 out of 100 (2023), read from the WHO GHO API on 15 October 2026.
- [K1] Digital nomads in Costa Rica: remote worker visa, Costa Rica Tourism Board (ICT), visitcostarica.com. Checked 15 October 2026. No publication date shown. Stable net income of at least US$3,000 a month (US$5,000 for families); a stay of one year with the option to renew for a further year; health insurance of at least US$50,000; US$100 payment. The page names no nationality restriction. The Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería site (migracion.go.cr) refused automated access, so the official procedure was not read there.
- [K2] Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Costa Rica, International Telecommunication Union, via the World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2024: 23.29 per 100 people, read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
- [R1] Ley General de Migración y Extranjería No. 8764, articles 78, 79, 81 and 82, Asamblea Legislativa de la República de Costa Rica (copy published by ICODER). Checked 15 October 2026. Article 78: permanent residence for those who held temporary residence for three consecutive years. Article 79: temporary residence for up to two years, renewable, includes rentistas and pensionados. Article 81: pension of at least US$1,000 a month. Article 82: income of at least US$2,500 a month. Later changes by Law 9996 were not checked.
- [F1] EF English Proficiency Index: Costa Rica, EF Education First (private test-taker index). Checked 15 October 2026. Score 516, global rank 55, 18 points below the previous score. The page does not print its edition year; it is the live country page read on 15 October 2026.
- [V1] Digital nomads: remote worker and service provider stay (requirements, fees, procedure), Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería (DGME), Internet Archive copy. Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 29 August 2025, re-read on 15 October 2026; DGME's live page (migracion.go.cr) returns 403 to automated readers, so it was not compared with the capture. States a minimum pay from abroad of US$3,000 a month (US$4,000 with dependants), no nationality restriction and no Costa Rican job offer, and renewal after 180 days in the country. Applies to US, CA, AU and NZ passports alike.
- [V2] General Guidelines for Entry and Stay Visas for Non-Residents (November 2025), Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería, published in La Gaceta (Alcance 148, 17 November 2025); Internet Archive copy. Checked 15 October 2026. Internet Archive capture of 27 September 2026, re-read on 15 October 2026. Australia, Canada, the United States and New Zealand are in the first group: no entry visa, a stay of up to 180 days.