Population Statistics
Home › World › Costa Rica

Costa Rica: cities by population

By James Burfield, SEO consultant, Bath · Page updated · UN World Population Prospects

Costa Rica has a population of 5,174,789 (UN estimate, 2026), with San Jose as its capital. The 50 largest of its 115 recorded towns and cities, ranked.

+31%
since 2000 (3,937,739)
+3%
projected by 2050 (5,354,150)
101
people per km²
19501975200020252050 927k 5.4M
UN estimates to 2026; the dashed line is the medium-variant projection to 2050, a forecast rather than a measurement. Source: World Population Prospects 2024.
Full UN series, 1950 to 2050
YearPopulation
1950926,758
19752,092,719
20003,937,739
20054,261,240
20104,555,962
20154,818,038
20205,034,320
20255,152,950
20265,174,789
2030 projected5,251,497
2050 projected5,354,150

Medium variant. Figures from 2026 onward are projections, not measurements.

Figures are the latest available in GeoNames (CC BY 4.0), which draws on national censuses of varying dates — treat them as recent, not same-year. Country totals are UN World Population Prospects 2024 (medium variant) where the UN lists the country separately; the handful it reports under a parent state keep a GeoNames figure and are marked as such. Sources & method.

Largest cities in Costa Rica

#PlaceRegionPopulation
1San JoséSan José335,007
2LimónLimón Province63,081
3AlajuelaAlajuela Province47,494
4LiberiaGuanacaste Province45,380
5ParaísoCartago Province39,702
6PuntarenasPuntarenas Province35,650
7San IsidroSan José34,877
8CurridabatSan José34,586
9San VicenteSan José34,447
10San Vicente de MoraviaSan José34,447
11San JoséAlajuela Province31,430
12PurralSan José30,034
13TurrialbaCartago Province28,955
14San MiguelSan José28,827
15San PedroSan José27,477
16San Rafael AbajoSan José27,419
17QuesadaAlajuela Province27,310
18CartagoCartago Province26,594
19ChacaritaPuntarenas Province26,354
20San JuanSan José26,047
21GuadalupeSan José26,005
22AserríSan José25,874
23San RafaelSan José25,410
24San FelipeSan José24,985
25PatarráSan José23,983
26TejarSan José22,433
27HerediaHeredia Province21,947
28San PabloHeredia Province21,662
29CañasGuanacaste Province20,306
30GuápilesLimón Province19,092
31SiquirresLimón Province18,231
32San DiegoCartago Province16,991
33EsparzaPuntarenas Province15,575
34San Juan de DiosSan José15,469
35NicoyaGuanacaste Province15,313
36San Rafael ArribaSan José15,051
37DesamparadosAlajuela Province14,448
38ConcepciónCartago Province14,000
39AlajuelitaSan José13,845
40SabanillaSan José13,251
41Santa CruzGuanacaste Province12,281
42San JosecitoHeredia Province12,195
43EscazúSan José12,071
44NaranjoAlajuela Province11,853
45Buenos AiresPuntarenas Province11,680
46San AntonioHeredia Province10,938
47San RamónAlajuela Province10,765
48Tres RíosCartago Province10,430
49Río SegundoAlajuela Province9,853
50ColónSan José9,687

Twenty years earlier: Costa Rica in the 2005 World Gazetteer — population then 4,301,172.

Common questions

What is the population of Costa Rica?
Costa Rica has a population of 5,174,789, the UN World Population Prospects estimate for 2026. The UN's medium-variant projection for 2050 is 5,354,150 — a forecast, not a measurement.
What is the capital of Costa Rica?
San Jose. The largest place we record there is San José, with 335,007 people.

Go deeper

San José
The largest place we record in Costa Rica: 335,007 people
Costa Rica in 2005
The World Gazetteer's archive edition: 4,301,172 then
All 246 countries
Every country and territory, ranked by population