Cheapest eSIM for Costa Rica
The cheapest eSIM for Costa Rica right now is MobiMatter, 50 GB for 30 Days at $39.99. That is $0.80 per GB.
1225 plans from 58 providers, watched and re-ranked by the real price per gigabyte. Every one is a prepaid travel eSIM for Costa Rica that you buy online and install before you fly, so it works the moment you land.
Swipe the table for price and verdict →
| Rank | Provider | Data | Validity | Price (USD) | Price per GB | Verdict | Get |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paid placement. It sits above the ranking and does not change it. Advertise here | SponsoredPaid placement. It sits above the ranking and does not change it. Advertise hereMegaEsim Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
3 GB | 15 Days | $7.59 | $2.53 | Sponsored | Get |
| 1 | MobiMatter Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
50 GB | 30 Days | $39.99 | $0.80 | Best value | Get |
| 2 | nadanada | 50 GB | 30 Days | $41.99 | $0.84 | Best value | Get |
| 3 | Lempart Flex Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
45 GB | 15 Days | $38.49 | $0.86 | Great | Get |
| 4 | MobiMatter Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
20 GB | 30 Days | $17.99 | $0.90 | Great | Get |
| 5 | CocoRoam | 50 GB | 30 Days | $49.40 | $0.99 | Great | Get |
| 6 | Tourist eSIM | 50 GB | 30 Days | $52.11 | $1.04 | Good | Get |
| 7 | nadanada | 20 GB | 30 Days | $20.99 | $1.05 | Good | Get |
| 8 | Breeze | 50 GB | 30 Days | $54.99 | $1.10 | Good | Get |
| 9 | AirPlans Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
20 GB | 30 Days | $22.35 | $1.12 | Good | Get |
| 10 | CocoRoam | 20 GB | 30 Days | $22.60 | $1.13 | Good | Get |
| 11 | AirPlans Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
50 GB | 30 Days | $56.74 | $1.13 | Good | Get |
| 12 | GigaPanda | 50 GB | 30 Days | $57.90 | $1.16 | Good | Get |
| 13 | Lempart Flex Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
30 GB | 7 Days | $24.49 | $1.17 | Good | Get |
| 14 | Esimatic | 50 GB | 30 Days | $59.99 | $1.20 | Good | Get |
| 15 | Tourist eSIM | 20 GB | 30 Days | $24.34 | $1.22 | Good | Get |
| 16 | Breeze | 20 GB | 30 Days | $24.99 | $1.25 | Okay | Get |
| 17 | Esimatic | 20 GB | 30 Days | $25.89 | $1.29 | Okay | Get |
| 18 | FlyEsim Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
50 GB | 30 Days | $67.44 | $1.35 | Okay | Get |
| 19 | AloOui Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG10 |
50 GB | 30 Days | $67.52 | $1.35 | Okay | Get |
| 20 | ByteSIM | 50 GB | 30 Days | $73.90 | $1.48 | Okay | Get |
| 21 | eSIMzio Coupon: WATCHDOG15 |
20 GB | 30 Days | $30.75 | $1.54 | Okay | Get |
| 22 | Nomad | 20 GB | 30 Days | $31.00 | $1.55 | Okay | Get |
| 23 | FlyEsim Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
20 GB | 30 Days | $31.47 | $1.57 | Fair | Get |
| 24 | Yesim Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
20 GB | 30 Days | $31.50 | $1.57 | Fair | Get |
| 25 | Yatelo Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
20 GB | 30 Days | $32.09 | $1.60 | Fair | Get |
| 26 | Horizon eSIM | 3 GB | 7 Days | $5.06 | $1.69 | Fair | Get |
| 27 | Horizon eSIM | 1 GB | 7 Days | $1.71 | $1.71 | Fair | Get |
| 28 | eSIM4Travel | 5 GB | 30 Days | $8.61 | $1.72 | Fair | Get |
| 29 | eSIM4Travel | 3 GB | 30 Days | $5.32 | $1.77 | Fair | Get |
| 30 | Earth Esim Coupon: ESIMWD5 |
30 GB | 30 Days | $52.99 | $1.77 | Fair | Get |
| 31 | AloOui Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG10 |
20 GB | 30 Days | $36.45 | $1.82 | Fair | Get |
| 32 | eSIModo Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
50 GB | 30 Days | $91.99 | $1.84 | Fair | Get |
| 33 | Saily Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
20 GB | 30 Days | $36.99 | $1.85 | Fair | Get |
| 34 | CloudOn | 50 GB | 30 Days | $94.99 | $1.90 | Fair | Get |
| 35 | Earth Esim Coupon: ESIMWD5 |
12 GB | 30 Days | $22.99 | $1.92 | Fair | Get |
| 36 | CloudOn | 20 GB | 30 Days | $38.49 | $1.92 | Fair | Get |
| 37 | Airalo | 20 GB | 15 Days | $38.50 | $1.93 | Fair | Get |
| 38 | eSIModo Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
20 GB | 7 Days | $39.03 | $1.95 | Fair | Get |
| 39 | ByteSIM | 20 GB | 30 Days | $39.90 | $1.99 | Fair | Get |
| 40 | GigaPanda | 20 GB | 30 Days | $39.90 | $1.99 | Fair | Get |
| 41 | GigSky | 20 GB | 90 Days | $39.99 | $2.00 | Fair | Get |
| 42 | SimSmash | 20 GB | 30 Days | $39.99 | $2.00 | Fair | Get |
| 43 | Saily Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
50 GB | 365 Days | $99.99 | $2.00 | Fair | Get |
| 44 | Airalo | 20 GB | 30 Days | $40.50 | $2.02 | Fair | Get |
| 45 | Yesim Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
10 GB | 30 Days | $21.00 | $2.10 | Expensive | Get |
| 46 | AlpineSIM | 20 GB | 30 Days | $42.12 | $2.11 | Expensive | Get |
| 47 | SimSmash | 10 GB | 30 Days | $21.49 | $2.15 | Expensive | Get |
| 48 | Yatelo Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
10 GB | 30 Days | $21.92 | $2.19 | Expensive | Get |
| 49 | Cellesim Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG |
10 GB | 30 Days | $21.92 | $2.19 | Expensive | Get |
| 50 | Travel eSIM | 20 GB | 30 Days | $43.84 | $2.19 | Expensive | Get |
| 51 | GigSky | 50 GB | 180 Days | $109.99 | $2.20 | Expensive | Get |
| 52 | SparkRoam Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG5 |
20 GB | 30 Days | $44.80 | $2.24 | Expensive | Get |
| 53 | Textr | 20 GB | 30 Days | $46.24 | $2.31 | Expensive | Get |
| 54 | eSIMzio Coupon: WATCHDOG15 |
10 GB | 30 Days | $23.50 | $2.35 | Expensive | Get |
| 55 | AdventureSIMs Charged in AUD Coupon: WATCHDOG |
20 GB | 30 Days | $47.31 | $2.37 | Expensive | Get |
| 56 | Wanderly Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOGWILDCARD |
20 GB | 30 Days | $48.99 | $2.45 | Expensive | Get |
| 57 | SparkRoam Coupon: ESIMWATCHDOG5 |
10 GB | 30 Days | $24.65 | $2.46 | Expensive | Get |
| 58 | Travel eSIM | 10 GB | 30 Days | $24.78 | $2.48 | Expensive | Get |
| 59 | Nomad | 10 GB | 30 Days | $25.00 | $2.50 | Expensive | Get |
| 60 | Soovia | 20 GB | 30 Days | $49.90 | $2.50 | Expensive | Get |
636 of these 1225 plans were checked against the seller's own shop on 17 October 2026. The rest come from the seller's own feed or plan pages and are not yet independently checked.
The Watchdog Pick is chosen automatically: the lowest real price per GB of the 1225 plans in this view. Bulk data pools above 50 GB cannot win it, because their per GB rate only exists if you use data no traveller uses. Providers cannot pay for it, and a commission never changes the ranking. Prices are shown in USD and can change at checkout.
Price per GB counts only data you can use inside the validity, at most 3 GB a day, so a big pool on a short validity cannot buy the top spot. Every provider's best two plans come first, then the rest. A plan marked Unverified price undercuts every other provider here by more than half and waits at the end until we have checked it on the seller's site. How we rank
Unlimited rows show the daily amount at full speed. Some rows also show the speed after that amount. A row with no speed does not mean the plan stays fast, so check the plan on the seller's site.
Some links here earn us a commission. It never changes the order. How we make money The row marked Sponsored is a paid placement shown above the ranking, not part of it. Advertise here.
Crossing borders on this trip? Compare multi country North America eSIM plans that keep one line working across several destinations.
Cheapest eSIM for Costa Rica: the numbers
As of 17 October 2026, 06:01 GMT, the cheapest eSIM for Costa Rica is MobiMatter with 50 GB for 30 Days at $39.99. That is $0.80 per GB, the best rate of the 1225 plans we compare from 58 providers. 469 plans include 5G. 438 support top ups. That timestamp is the exact moment of our latest price check, and the table above always shows the live order.
Which is the best eSIM for Costa Rica?
There is no single best eSIM for Costa Rica, because the right plan depends on how long you stay and how much data you use. What we can do is rank the 1225 plans on the numbers, as they stand on 17 October 2026:
- Best value overall MobiMatter, 50 GB for 30 Days at $39.99. That is $0.80 per GB, the lowest real rate of every Costa Rica plan we track.
- Best for a short trip Horizon eSIM, 1 GB for 7 Days at $1.71. The cheapest ticket that still gives you at least 1 GB for a week or less.
- Highest daily cap on an unlimited plan Roamix, 365 Days at $26,904.10, full speed up to 10 GB a day. Set that daily cap against the fixed plan above before you pay for the word unlimited.
None of these picks is chosen by a person. Each one is the first row of a sort on live prices, so it changes whenever a provider moves a price, and MobiMatter did not pay to be named here.
Which mobile networks does Costa Rica have?
Kolbi's network reaches roughly 95% of Costa Rica, the widest of the three. 5G only arrived in 2025 and is still limited to the most populated areas.
- Kolbi: Kolbi, the state owned ICE brand, has the widest coverage in Costa Rica, reaching about 95% of the country including national parks and rural back roads.
- Liberty: Liberty took over Movistar's Costa Rica business, offers fast city speeds, and launched the first commercial phase of its 5G network in March 2026 with a focus on tourist zones in Guanacaste, the Central Pacific and the Northern Zone.
- Claro: Claro runs the most advanced 4G and 5G network in the country and has extended 5G into all seven provinces, concentrated around the Greater Metropolitan Area.
The eSIM plans we compare on this page connect to:
The list above is Costa Rica's operator market. The badges are the networks our tracked plans actually roam onto, which can be a subset of it, and the same network is sometimes sold to roaming partners under a different brand name. So a guide praising an operator you do not see badged here is describing a local SIM, not the travel eSIMs compared above.
Is 5G available in Costa Rica?
Liberty and Claro launched 5G first, from mid 2025 into 2026, mainly around San Jose and key tourist regions. Coverage is growing in Guanacaste, Puntarenas and Limon but rural 5G is not there yet.
How much data do you need in Costa Rica?
Light use is about 500 MB a day. That covers maps, messages, and some browsing. Normal use with photos, social apps, and short videos runs 1 to 1.5 GB a day. Streaming and hotspot use can eat 2 to 3 GB a day. Here is what each size costs in Costa Rica right now:
Are unlimited eSIMs for Costa Rica really unlimited?
Not always. 550 of the 1225 plans above are sold as unlimited, and most of them carry a daily fair use cap. A further 5 plans are unlimited in a different way: one capped speed for the whole plan, shown next to the word Unlimited in the table. For Costa Rica the caps we can see published are 0.5 to 10 GB a day: past that the speed drops, often to 1 Mbps or less, until the clock resets. That is fine for messages and maps, slow for video. At $0.80 per GB from MobiMatter, a fixed plan often works out cheaper than unlimited unless you genuinely burn several GB a day. That is why we rank by price per GB and not by the word on the label.
Here is what each seller on this page actually allows per day before it slows you down. No seller publishes this next to its rivals, which is exactly why it is worth showing.
Every seller that publishes a daily allowance is listed on our daily data caps page, with the cheapest plan at each one. The gap between the top and bottom of that table is the whole point. Two plans both sold as unlimited can differ several times over in what you actually get at full speed, and the cheaper one is not always the smaller allowance.
eSIM or a local SIM card at the airport in Costa Rica?
An eSIM is ready before you land. No queue, no shop, no handing over your passport at a counter for a tourist SIM card. Data for Costa Rica starts at $1.45 on this page, which is hard for airport kiosks to beat. A local SIM still makes sense if you need a local phone number or plan to stay for months. For a normal trip, the eSIM wins on price and effort.
Setting up your Costa Rica eSIM
Pick the plan, not the brandThe cheapest rate in Costa Rica today is $0.80 per GB from MobiMatter, against a median of $3.83. The QR code arrives by email within minutes of paying.
Install before you flyScan the QR code on wifi at home. Installation needs a connection, and the one thing you will not have when you land in Costa Rica is a working connection.
Turn it on when you landEnable the eSIM and turn on data roaming for it, then give it a minute to attach to CLARO, Claro, Claro CR, LIBERTY, movistar. Expect 5G where the network reaches, 4G everywhere else.
Know what happens when it runs out438 of the 1225 plans here can be topped up, so running out is not the end of the trip. If you would rather over buy than top up, the cheapest plan with at least 5 GB is nadanada at $7.99.
Good to know before you land in Costa Rica
All prepaid SIMs must be registered with the regulator SUTEL, so you need your passport to buy one.
At San Jose SJO there is a Kolbi kiosk near baggage claim, though travelers report it is often unstaffed, plus vending machines in arrivals. A SIM itself costs about 2 to 3 dollars, with data packages such as 18 dollars for 2 GB plus local calls.
Choose Kolbi if your itinerary is beaches, volcanoes and national parks, since it holds signal where the others fade. Liberty and Claro are faster inside cities.
Costa Rica Travel eSIM FAQ
Everything you need to know about using an eSIM in Costa Rica
What is the cheapest eSIM for Costa Rica?
Right now the cheapest option ranked by price per GB is MobiMatter with 50 GB for 30 Days at $39.99. That works out to $0.80 per GB. Prices change often, so the table above is re-sorted at every price check.
Which is the best eSIM for Costa Rica?
It depends on the trip, so we rank rather than pick a favourite. On today's prices the best value for Costa Rica is MobiMatter at $0.80 per GB, the lowest real rate of the 1225 plans we compare. For heavy daily use there are 550 unlimited plans, most with a daily fair use cap, and they only win if you genuinely burn several GB a day. Every pick on this page is the first row of a sort on live prices. No provider can pay to be named best.
Is eSIM available in Costa Rica?
Yes. We track 1225 prepaid travel eSIM plans from 58 providers that work in Costa Rica, roaming onto CLARO, Claro, Claro CR, LIBERTY, movistar. You need a phone that supports eSIM and is not locked to a carrier; most iPhones from the XS onward and most flagship Android phones from 2019 on qualify.
Which networks will my eSIM connect to in Costa Rica?
The plans we compare connect to CLARO, Claro, Claro CR, LIBERTY, movistar. The exact network depends on the plan you pick. Check the plan details before you buy if one network matters to you.
Do Costa Rica eSIMs support 5G?
469 of the 1225 plans we track for Costa Rica include 5G where the local network offers it. The rest run on 4G, which is still fine for maps, calls over apps, and video.
Can I buy a Costa Rica eSIM online before I travel?
Yes, and you should. Every plan on this page is sold online and delivered by email as a QR code within minutes. Install it on wifi at home, leave the line switched off, and turn on data roaming for it when you land in Costa Rica. The validity clock on most plans only starts when the eSIM first connects.
Can I top up my Costa Rica eSIM if I run out?
Yes. 438 of the 1225 plans here support top ups, so you can add data without buying a new eSIM. The rest need a fresh plan once the data ends.
Is an eSIM cheaper than a local SIM card in Costa Rica?
For a trip of days or weeks, usually yes. Data for Costa Rica starts at $1.45 for 500 MB on this page, with no queue, no shop and no passport handed over at a counter. A local SIM card can still win if you stay for months or need a local phone number.
Will I still receive bank SMS and OTP codes?
Yes, if you keep your home SIM active. Travel eSIMs are data only. Your phone can hold both at once, so leave your normal SIM on for SMS and use the eSIM for data. Turn off roaming data on the home SIM to avoid charges.
Do these eSIMs include a phone number or calls?
The plans we compare are data only, so there is no local number. Calls work fine over WhatsApp, FaceTime, or any app that uses data. If you need a real local number, a local SIM is the better tool.
Does a Costa Rica eSIM work on iPhone and Android?
Yes, on any carrier unlocked phone with eSIM support: iPhone XS or newer, Google Pixel 3 or newer, Samsung Galaxy S20 or newer and most recent flagships. The plans are identical on both; only the install steps differ, and both take about a minute on wifi.
How many GB do I need for a week in Costa Rica?
Around 3 to 5 GB covers a week of maps, messaging, and normal browsing. Heavy video or hotspot use needs 1 to 2 GB per day. Today the cheapest plan with at least 5 GB is nadanada at $7.99.
Which Costa Rica eSIM gives the most data per day?
Of the plans sold as unlimited here, Roamix allows the most at full speed, 10 GB a day from $87.00. The smallest allowance on this page is 500 MB a day, from 9 sellers. Every one of them is advertised as unlimited, and past the daily allowance the speed drops, often to 1 Mbps or less, until the next day. Check the allowance, not the word.
Travelling further? Compare nearby destinations
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Or see every country on the cheapest eSIM index and track weekly movement on the eSIM Price Index.
How we rank
Prices last checked on 17 October 2026, 06:01 GMT across 1225 plans. Every plan is ranked by the true cost per gigabyte, not marketing claims. We do not take money for rankings, and providers cannot pay for a higher position. Read the full method on our how we rank page.
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