Choosing the Best eSIM for Costa Rica (Our Honest Experience)

When we were planning our trip to Costa Rica, we had to figure out how eSIMs worked for the first time. The first step was deciding if an eSIM was actually the right choice for us—the answer was yes.

Our carrier’s international plan was $10 a day (too expensive), our phones don’t accept physical SIM cards, and we needed data the second we landed so we could navigate our 7-hour journey to the coast.

If you’re on the fence, start by weighing your options, checking carrier costs, and verifying that your phone is eSIM compatible.

Once you decide to go the eSIM route, step two is picking the right provider.

A lot of travelers default to Airalo, which works great for standard itineraries. But because we were heading off the beaten path, we needed an eSIM that would work in rural Costa Rica.

That search led us to Roafly, and we were blown away by how well everything worked. We had service the minute we landed, and we had service on remote beaches.

Just in case though, we started with a short 3-day plan so we weren’t locked into something that didn’t work in rural areas.

The ultimate test came when our camera was stolen on the beach in Playa Chiquita. We were in a remote spot that even our local host didn’t have cell service. But our eSIM gave us enough signal to text for help.

To save you hours of scrolling through biased reviews, we scoured Reddit, vetted reviews, and weeded out the spammy affiliate comments to bring you the truth. Here is everything you need to know to choose the best eSIM for your Costa Rica travels!

What is an eSIM and How Does It Work for Travel?

If you’re new to the concept, an eSIM is simply a digital version of the traditional plastic SIM card. Instead of physically removing your home SIM card (and risking losing that tiny piece of plastic in your bag) you download a digital sim through an app, and turn it on when you need it.

Why eSIMs Are Ideal for Slow Travel in Central America:

• No physical card required: Keep your primary home SIM inactive inside your phone while receiving local Costa Rican data.
• Instant connectivity on arrival: Download and install your plan before boarding your flight so you have data when you land.
• Easy border transitions: Multi-country regional plans allow you to cross borders without having to get a new SIM.

Understanding eSIM Coverage in Costa Rica

Before picking an eSIM provider, it helps to understand how the networks operate in Costa Rica. Basically, digital eSIM companies are resellers—they lease access from the three main national telecom companies:

1. Kölbi (ICE): hands-down the best overall coverage across the country. Especially in rural areas.
2. Claro: Strong secondary network with fast 4G/5G speeds in major urban areas, tourist towns, and along main highways.
3. Liberty (formerly Movistar): Reliable in the Central Valley (San José) and major tourist hubs, but notorious for losing signal rapidly once out of the area. This is what most eSim companies lease through.

Best eSIM for Costa Rica: Top 6 Providers Compared

Here is how the main providers stack up based on a standard 10 GB / 30-Day comparison:

Yesim	$25	Claro & Liberty	Budget travelers & multi-device hotspotting
Roafly	$25	Kölbi ICE	Remote, rural & coastal areas
Nomad	$29	Liberty	Central America multi-country travel
JetPac	$33	Claro	Reliable mid-range coverage
Airalo	$38	Liberty	Popular app, but pricier with limited reach
Orange eSIM	$35	Kölbi, Claro & Liberty	Premium multi-network fallback

Provider Breakdown:

2. Yesim – A Good Second Choice

Yesim‘s branding and interface is what first drew us in, but with more research we knew we wanted an eSIM offering coverage through Kölbi. Yesim does offer coverage through 2 different providers, making it a good second choice. The price is also low in comparison.

3. Nomad – Best for Regional Border-Hopping

If Costa Rica is just one leg of a broader Central American journey, Nomad offers incredible multi-country regional packages that cover you seamlessly across borders.

Step-by-Step: How to Setup & Activate Your eSIM

Setting up a digital SIM for the first time can feel intimidating.. like you may somehow lose your number or something. But really it’s super straightforward.

1. Verify Unlocked Status: confirm with your mobile provider before leaving to ensure your phone is 100% carrier-unlocked.
2. Purchase & Install at Home: Buy your desired plan while at home a day or two before departure. Follow the app instructions or scan the provided QR code to install the cellular profile.
3. Label Your Lines: In your phone’s settings, label your home card as “Primary” and your new digital profile as “Costa Rica Data”.
4. Once You Take Off:
   • Turn OFF your Primary home line (and data roaming to prevent unexpected daily roaming charges).
   • Turn ON your new Costa Rica eSIM.
5. Upon Arrival: Once the plane lans turn your phone off and then back on. It will automatically connect to the local network.

Essential Data-Saving Tips for Slow Travel

When working remotely or navigating unfamiliar routes, you can run through data quickly. Here is how we stretch a 10 GB plan as far as possible:

• Download Offline Maps: download offline map regions on Google Maps for all of Costa Rica.
• Toggle Off Background App Refresh: Go into your phone settings and disable background updating for high-consumption apps (so pretty much anything you get notifications from).
• Use Low Data Mode: Turn on “Low Data Mode” in your cellular settings to restrict automatic cloud backups and photo syncing until you are connected to Wi-Fi.

The Bottom Line

We were super happy with our experience using Roafly. Not only for how easy it was to install and top-up data anytime, but most of all for the actual service that we had while traveling.

Our Final Recommendation: Go with Roafly. Test the connection once you get there, and then top up once you know it’s all good!