We’ve given you a lot of detail about the weather in Costa Rica, but here’s what you really need to know. Eight to 10 inches spread out over the course of a month isn’t really that much, especially when you consider that one storm event can drop an inch or two. Keep in mind, though, that like we said, rain often comes all at once in a short burst of time. The rain then really picks up in May, drops slightly in July, and then intensifies in September and October. Similar to previous chart, this one shows December to April seeing very little rain. Here’s another chart with more detail on what you can expect for rainfall each month. Other times it can be cloudy and trying to rain all day but never really amount to a storm. A storm might last only an hour or two, but it could dump a couple of inches in that time. The truth is that when it rains in Costa Rica, it can come down very hard but it usually doesn’t last for too long.Ī typical day in the rainy season starts off beautiful and sunny, with clouds starting to build around mid-day, and then heavy rain or thunderstorms come in the late afternoon or evening. People know it is going to rain but want to know if their whole day or week will be wasted. But how much rain can you expect? We get this question all the time. If your visit coincides with the rainier months of May to November, chances are you are going to get a little wet.

If you are used to scattered showers where you live, it’s the same idea. We’ll be getting drenched at home with rain coming over the mountain, while just 20 minutes away, our friends near the beach are enjoying the sunset or vice-versa. An air current crossing the mountains or a sea breeze might bring rain to one town or neighborhood while another one nearby stays dry. But this is also true on a much smaller scale. While it might be raining in one area of Costa Rica, other areas could be bone dry. Location, Location, LocationĪnother thing the chart shows is that location makes a big difference with rainfall. One exception is the Caribbean coast (in yellow), which has its own unique weather patterns with more consistent year-round rain. That means it is virtually dry in most areas of the country from December to April. Each line represents a different area of the country and its corresponding days of rainfall per month.īasically, for about five months of the year, most locations see less than five or so days with rain. To really get a sense of the seasonality of rainfall, check out this chart we made with data from Costa Rica’s National Meteorological Institute. During the months of December to April, the dry season, much of the country experiences little if any rain. Costa Rica’s SeasonsĬosta Rica has two seasons: the dry season and the rainy or “green” season. This is one reason why your weather app often gives you an extended forecast that shows a chance of thunderstorms and rain for several days in a row. The problem is that those clouds change quickly, especially over ocean and mountain, so forecasting their direction more than a day in advance is a real challenge. Unlike other countries where radar towers pick up every drop of precipitation, meteorologists here analyze satellite images of cloud cover instead. There is also very limited weather infrastructure in Costa Rica. All of these factors make forecasting difficult. This tiny country is located very close to the equator, is nestled between two churning oceans, and has several steep mountain ranges down the center. Forecasting the weather in Costa Rica is a complicated job. In this post, we’ll take a look at how the weather is predicted, discuss the different seasons, and let you know as best as we can what to expect for your trip. Before you start canceling plans or stocking up on ponchos, there are a few things you need to know about the weather in Costa Rica. You’ve already spent a lot on plane tickets, hotels, and everything else, and you don’t want your trip to be a washout. So your favorite weather app is telling you that in Costa Rica, it is pouring buckets and shooting lightning bolts every single day.

Beautiful weather and no plans