Costa Rica in Spring
In spring (September, October and November), Costa Rica sees average daytime highs around 31°C and overnight lows near 20°C, with 370 mm of rain over about 49 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the 2nd-wettest season.
Across spring, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 31°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 31% of the time across spring, and the air most often feels muggy.
Spring is Costa Rica's 3rd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Costa Rica's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 31°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 20°C
- Rainfall
- 370 mm
- 49 wet days
- Avg wind
- 8 km/h
- Travel score
- 3.9
- 3rd-best season
- Months
- Sep · Oct · Nov
Temperature in Costa Rica in Spring
Across spring, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 31°C.
A typical spring day in Costa Rica reaches about 31°C and drops to 20°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is September, the coolest September.
How spring really feels in Costa Rica
Once humidity and wind are folded in, spring brings about 11 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in spring is heat — humidity pushes the afternoon "feels like" well above the raw temperature.
Costa Rica weather by month
How the three spring months (September, October and November) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29° / 21° | 256 | 26.2 | 13 | 3.3 |
| Feb | 29° / 21° | 215 | 23.6 | 12.6 | 3.3 |
| Mar | 30° / 21° | 181 | 23.8 | 12.1 | 3.6 |
| Apr | 29° / 20° | 81 | 12.4 | 11.6 | 5.0 |
| May | 28° / 18° | 39 | 5.7 | 11.1 | 7.0 |
| Jun | 28° / 17° | 18 | 2.4 | 10.9 | 7.9 |
| Jul | 28° / 16° | 11 | 1.4 | 11 | 7.6 |
| Aug | 30° / 18° | 17 | 2.5 | 11.4 | 6.0 |
| Sep | 31° / 20° | 67 | 8.7 | 11.9 | 4.5 |
| Oct | 31° / 21° | 129 | 18.5 | 12.4 | 3.7 |
| Nov | 30° / 21° | 175 | 22.2 | 12.9 | 3.5 |
| Dec | 29° / 21° | 217 | 25.6 | 13.1 | 3.4 |
Cloud cover in Spring
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 31% of the time across spring.
Chance of precipitation in Spring
Costa Rica gets around 370 mm of rain over 49 wet days across spring. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Spring
Most of spring feels muggy — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Spring
Winds average 8 km/h across spring.
Sunrise & sunset in Spring
Daylight runs from about 11 h 36 min in early September to 13 hours by late November. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Spring
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across spring, about 5.9 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Costa Rica
In spring, Costa Rica overlaps its monsoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.
Costa Rica's monsoon runs October–March, when most of the year's rain falls.
Is spring a good time to visit Costa Rica?
Our two travel scores rate spring for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
spring is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Costa Rica.
What to pack for Costa Rica in Spring
From spring's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In spring, Costa Rica sees daytime highs around 31°C and nights near 20°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 49 days see rain.
UV index in Costa Rica in Spring
Clear-sky midday UV across spring averages around 11 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Costa Rica peaks around January 22 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 21 at about 7 (very high).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 15 | 15 | 14 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 13 | 14 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 15 | Extreme |
| Feb | 15 | Extreme |
| Mar | 14 | Extreme |
| Apr | 11 | Extreme |
| May | 8 | Very high |
| Jun | 7 | Very high |
| Jul | 8 | Very high |
| Aug | 9 | Very high |
| Sep | 9 | Very high |
| Oct | 10 | Extreme |
| Nov | 13 | Extreme |
| Dec | 14 | Extreme |
Air quality in Costa Rica in Spring
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where spring falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Costa Rica is worst in September — around 24 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 5.2× the cleanest month (June, 5 µg/m³).
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 7 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 24 | 12 | 6 | 6 |
| Level | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7 | Good |
| Feb | 7 | Good |
| Mar | 6 | Good |
| Apr | 5 | Good |
| May | 5 | Good |
| Jun | 5 | Good |
| Jul | 8 | Good |
| Aug | 10 | Good |
| Sep | 24 | Moderate |
| Oct | 12 | Moderate |
| Nov | 6 | Good |
| Dec | 6 | Good |
Where is Costa Rica?
Costa Rica sits at 18.5°S, 53.1°W, 646 m above sea level, in Brazil. The nearest listed city is Chapadão do Sul, 60 km away.
Topography around Costa Rica
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Costa Rica.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Costa Rica has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 160 m around an average of 655 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 307 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 616 m.
The land around Costa Rica is covered by grassland (39%) and trees (22%) within 3 km, cropland (41%), grassland (28%) and trees (27%) within 16 km, and cropland (42%), grassland (31%) and trees (23%) within 80 km.
Brazil travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type C / N
- 127 / 220 V · 60 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 46% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $10,713
- 2025
- Happiness
- 6.6 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 89%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 19.3
- per 100k, 2023
- Road deaths
- 16
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 482
- Religion
Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.
Data sources
Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Costa Rica (-18.5439°, -53.1292°, elevation 646 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google.