The Fernshore Index
The factors tradespeople look at first.
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 100Mixed
Price level 0.591 of United States prices (2025).
Source: Price level index (GDP), Costa Rica. Checked 15 October 2026.
Work and career
50 of 100Mixed
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.
Visa, United States passport
85 of 100Strong
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 100Strong
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 100Strong
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 100Strong
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.
English
44 of 100Mixed
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.
Safety
50 of 100Mixed
Global Peace Index 2026: 62nd of 163.
Source: Global Peace Index 2026, overall rank. Checked 15 October 2026.
Healthcare
79 of 100Strong
WHO UHC service coverage index 84 (2023).
Source: UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1). Checked 15 October 2026.
The country
The rest of the research on Costa Rica.
The country page grades every factor, with its sources.
Costa RicaQuestions from tradespeople about Costa Rica.
How could a tradesperson work legally in Costa Rica?
The migration law has a 'specific occupation' worker category for foreigners needed for salaried work, based on Ministry of Labour studies; DGME sets the period, terms and employer. Visitors may not work, with listed exceptions, and the nomad stay bars paid work there. Steps and timings are unknown.
Are trades reserved for Costa Ricans, and is a foreign trade licence recognised?
We found no list of occupations reserved for Costa Ricans and no source on recognising a foreign trade licence, so both are unknown. The migration law ties specific-occupation permits to the occupations the Ministry of Labour's studies recommend. Ask DGME and the Ministry of Labour before planning around a trade.
How much English will I find at work in Costa Rica?
The EF English Proficiency Index scores Costa Rica 516, 55th globally, which Fernshore grades as mixed. The page does not print its edition year, and the index comes from people who chose to take EF's online test, so it does not show how much English is used on building sites or in a given trade.
What do prices and rents look like, and what do trades pay in Costa Rica?
Prices overall are about 0.59 of US prices (World Bank, 2025), an average, not a budget. Heredia one-bedroom adverts asked CRC 210,000 to 400,000 a month (about US$461 to US$878) on 10 October 2026. We found no sourced pay for trades in Costa Rica, so whether a wage covers these costs is unknown.
How safe is Costa Rica, and what is healthcare like for a worker?
The Global Peace Index 2026 ranks Costa Rica 62nd of 163. Canada advises a high degree of caution because of crime; petty theft and car break-ins are frequent. WHO's service index is 84 of 100 (2023). Residents must enrol with the CCSS; private clinics are mainly in San José and usually want payment upfront.
Sources
Where each figure comes from.
Every figure on this page links to the page we read, with the date we checked it.
- [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.
- [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.
- [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.
- [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.
- [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.