Costa Rica
Safe to drink. At 71/100 the public supply is treated to a high standard and safe to drink straight from the tap. WHO/UNICEF monitoring puts safely-managed drinking water at 80.5% of the population.
Can you…
Source → Tap
Modern network · well-maintainedCan you drink the tap water in Costa Rica?
Last reviewed September 2026
Costa Rica scores 71/100 on our water-safety index — safe to drink. At 71/100 the public supply is treated to a high standard and safe to drink straight from the tap. WHO/UNICEF monitoring puts safely-managed drinking water at 80.5% of the population. Scores above 70 mean tap water is generally safe to drink. 40–69 means treat it with caution — filtering or bottled water is wise. Below 40 means it’s best avoided straight from the tap.
Ice, brushing your teeth & cooking: what’s safe in Costa Rica?
- Drinkable?
- Yes — tap water is safe to drink straight from the faucet.
- Brush teeth?
- Yes — brushing your teeth with tap water is perfectly fine.
- Ice?
- Yes — ice made from tap water is safe.
- Cooking?
- Yes — cooking and rinsing produce with tap water is safe.
Should you boil the tap water in Costa Rica?
In Costa Rica there's no routine reason to boil tap water before drinking it. Keep boiling in reserve for an official advisory or water drawn from a well rather than the public supply. More on what boiling does and doesn’t remove.
Do you need bottled water or a filter in Costa Rica?
There's no safety reason to buy bottled water in Costa Rica; the tap is fine and a refillable bottle saves money and plastic. People who buy it do so for taste or convenience.
You won't need a filter for safety in Costa Rica — the water's already drinkable. A basic carbon filter is purely a taste upgrade if chlorine bothers you.
Waterborne illness risk in Costa Rica
In Costa Rica, the mains water is very unlikely to be what makes you ill — illness, when it happens, usually traces to food rather than the tap. See CDC food & water precautions.
Worried about a specific tap? How to tell if your tap water is contaminated.
Water treatment & pipe infrastructure in Costa Rica
Costa Rica relies on modern treatment + strict monitoring, delivered through a modern network — well-maintained. That puts the practical contamination risk between source and tap at low. Even where water leaves the plant clean, aging mains and rooftop storage are where quality most often slips.
Common questions about tap water in Costa Rica
Can you drink tap water in Costa Rica?+
Costa Rica scores 71/100 on our water-safety index — safe to drink. Yes — tap water is safe to drink straight from the faucet.
Is it safe to brush your teeth with tap water in Costa Rica?+
Yes — brushing your teeth with tap water is perfectly fine.
Is ice safe to use in drinks in Costa Rica?+
Yes — ice made from tap water is safe.
Is tap water in Costa Rica safe for cooking?+
Yes — cooking and rinsing produce with tap water is safe.
Data & sources
Official monitoring (WHO/UNICEF JMP, 2024) puts safely-managed drinking water access in Costa Rica at 80.5%. Access to a safe source isn’t the same as tap-drinkability for visitors — our 71/100 score weights traveler drinkability, informed by this data.
- WHO/UNICEF JMP — 80.5% safely managed (2024)
- World Bank · safely managed drinking water (SH.H2O.SMDW.ZS)
- CDC · food & water safety for travelers
Read the full methodology — how the 0–100 score is built and what it does (and doesn’t) mean.
Tap water in Costa Rica’s cities & destinations
More countries in North America & Caribbean
See the full North America ranking — all 10 countries, safest to least safe.