Tap water safety in Costa Rica ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ท

๐Ÿ‘ In general, the water may be safe to drink in Costa Rica.

World Health Organization (WHO)

According to the WHO, tap water is safe for consumption for 94% of the country.

There is a divide between rural and urban areas, tap water is safe to drink in 96% of urban areas, while it's only safe to drink in 84% of rural areas.

Lonely Planet

Itโ€™s generally safe to drink tap water in Costa Rica, except in the most rural and undeveloped parts of the country. However, if you prefer to be cautious, buying bottled water is your best bet. If you have the means, vigorous boiling for one minute is the most effective means of water purification. At altitudes greater than 2000m, boil for three minutes. Another option is to disinfect water with iodine pills: add 2% tincture of iodine to 1L of water (five drops to clear water, 10 drops to cloudy water) and let stand for 30 minutes. If the water is cold, longer times may be required. Alternatively, carry a SteriPen that destroys most bacteria, viruses and protozoa with UV light.

Centers for disease control and prevention (CDC)

According to the CDC tap water is generally safe for consumption.

Numbeo

According to the Numbeo water drinkability and accessibility index, tap water has a score of 81.02 / 100 (100 being best).

Numbeo considers this score to be "Very high"

Advantages of drinking (filtered) tap water

1 adult could save about 1679$ per year in Costa Rica by drinking tap water instead of buying bottled water.

๐Ÿณ Drinking tap water would also help with reducing your plastic footprint and improve environmental pollution.

Warning

Even though drinking water might be considered safe, if you plan to travel to Costa Rica, consider talking to your local contact to verify that. Old pipes could be leaking toxic material or water in that specific location could contain heavy metals or bacteria.

Explore places in Costa Rica

Like in most countries, water quality and accessibility differs from location to location, therefore it's the best to check the information available on that place.