Skip down to today’s detailed weather and forecasts for each region of Costa Rica.
General Costa Rica Weather Trends
Costa Rica’s dry season started right on schedule at the end of December 2017.
The rainy season started early and intense in May 2018 but by September things were back to normal with rains on the Pacific and the Caribbean drying out.
There is currently no El Niño or La Niña – this is the condition known as La Nada – but NOAA is predicting that by early 2019 there’s a good chance of El Niño developing. This typically reduces rainfall on the Pacific side and may mean a possibility of an early start to the dry season.
Current Costa Rica Weather Maps and Predictions
The data for the weather map (and in fact all online weather maps and forecasts for Costa Rica) is pulled from a network of automated remote sensing weather stations. Click or tap a symbol on the weather map for rainfall, clouds, wind, temperature and humidity. More stations will appear if you zoom in on a region.
If something seems a bit weird it probably is. When looking at the raw data feed I can see that some stations sometimes only update every 24 hours instead of hourly and sometimes they get stuck on the same value for a week or more. If you’re sitting in Alajuela looking out the window and it’s sunny but the map shows rain this is probably why.
One more note about the current weather map. Several people have pointed out the there is a station way up by the Nicaraguan border named San Jose and asked us to fix this mistake. It’s not a mistake, the station is located in the tiny community of San Jose de Upala.
Costa Rica Weather Forecasts
The weather forecasts at the bottom are for the three general climate regions – The mountains and central valley (San Jose), Guancaste and the Nicoya Peninsula, and Limon and the Caribbean side. Longer range weather patterns are available on the pages showing typical conditions for any month of the year in Costa Rica.
We’ve also created nifty maps that show historical rainfall, high and low temperatures and average local hours of sunshine data by month for every region. These resources are helpful in planning the best time to visit Costa Rica.
If you’re really interested in the weather in Costa Rica we’ve worked out some instructions for creating your own weather forecast (often better than the automated ones) and a detailed graphical description of how the climate in Costa Rica is affected by global heating, wind and ocean currents.
Weather Underground
Regional forecasts from weatherunderground are the best we’ve found, but remember that a rain shower or two every day is normal in many places much of the year. You’re probably still going to need the sunscreen more than your umbrella.
San José and the Central Valley Region
Liberia, Guanacaste and the Nicoya Peninsula
Palmar Sur, Central Pacific and Northern Osa Peninsula
Osa Peninsula, Golfito, Burica and North Pacific Panama
Tortuguero, Barra Del Colorado and Southeast Nicaragua
Limón, Tortuguero and Caribbean
Caribbean, Puerto Viejo, Manzanillo, and Northern Panama