Countries

Costa Rica

Also Known As Republic of Costa Rica

Citation Formats

General Reference

Geography Atlas. "Costa Rica." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://geography.interactiveatlas.org/countries/costa-rica.

APA Style

Geography Atlas. (n.d.). Costa Rica. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://geography.interactiveatlas.org/countries/costa-rica

BibTeX

@misc{geographyatlas-costa-rica,
  author = {Geography Atlas},
  title = {Costa Rica},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://geography.interactiveatlas.org/countries/costa-rica},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

Costa Rica is a country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. It gained independence from Spain on 15 September 1821. It is a unitary presidential republic notable for having permanently abolished its army. Its capital is San Jose.

Facts

Capital

San Jose 1

Population

5,044,197 1

2022 census figure, from Costa Rica's own Wikipedia infobox; a rounded 2026 estimate of approximately 5,160,700 also appears on the page.

Population Estimate Year

2022 1

Area (sq km)

51,179.92 1

Independence or Founding Year

1821 1

Costa Rica gained independence from Spain on 15 September 1821, joining the First Mexican Empire and later the Federal Republic of Central America until it separated in 1838.

Cross-Tradition Connections