San José
2 km around San José
Air quality now
AQI 51
13.4%
tree cover
52.1K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
North America · air quality report · 5 cities
Costa Rica air quality today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now the 5 cities Airleaf measures in Costa Rica average AQI 33 (good). The worst air is in Puntarenas, at AQI 32, and the cleanest in Liberia, at AQI 9.
None of the 5 measured cities is over AQI 100 today, and 60% have Good air.
Average right now
AQI 33
Good
US EPA index, across 5 cities
- cities measured
- 5
- worst air: Puntarenas
- 32
- cleanest air: Liberia
- 9
- average tree cover
- 33.0%
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Costa Rica · average AQI 33
Air quality right now in all 5 cities in Costa Rica
Moderate
Limón
2 km around Limón
Air quality now
AQI 20
36.6%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Liberia
2 km around Provincia de Guanacaste
Air quality now
AQI 9
34.6%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Paraíso
2 km around Cartago Province
Air quality now
AQI 51
36.9%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Puntarenas
2 km around Puntarenas Province
Air quality now
AQI 32
43.7%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Across the country
How clean is the air across Costa Rica today?
None of the 5 measured cities is over AQI 100 today, and 60% have Good air. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
5 measured cities
- Good3 (60%)
- Moderate2 (40%)
Every measured city, including model estimates where no ground station is near.
Against everywhere else
How does Costa Rica compare with other countries?
Right now the cities of Costa Rica average cleaner air than 82% of the 171 countries Airleaf has enough cities to average, and more tree cover than 74%.
Cleaner air than…
- Costa Rica
- Beats 82%
More tree cover than…
- Costa Rica
- Beats 74%
See the most polluted and cleanest air rankings for every country.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Costa Rica lost?
Since 2001, Costa Rica has lost about 270,000 hectares of forest (about 2,700 km²): 7.7% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (92%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 270,000 haabout 2,700 km²
- Share of its forest
- 7.7%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 249,000 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 12,500 ha | 395 ha | 12,900 ha |
| 2002 | 10,600 ha | 308 ha | 10,900 ha |
| 2003 | 7,340 ha | 325 ha | 7,660 ha |
| 2004 | 8,620 ha | 392 ha | 9,010 ha |
| 2005 | 15,100 ha | 421 ha | 15,500 ha |
| 2006 | 8,240 ha | 298 ha | 8,540 ha |
| 2007 | 10,100 ha | 467 ha | 10,600 ha |
| 2008 | 19,900 ha | 784 ha | 20,700 ha |
| 2009 | 18,000 ha | 956 ha | 18,900 ha |
| 2010 | 12,000 ha | 588 ha | 12,600 ha |
| 2011 | 9,070 ha | 564 ha | 9,630 ha |
| 2012 | 7,720 ha | 439 ha | 8,160 ha |
| 2013 | 6,980 ha | 644 ha | 7,620 ha |
| 2014 | 9,990 ha | 766 ha | 10,800 ha |
| 2015 | 3,010 ha | 112 ha | 3,120 ha |
| 2016 | 12,000 ha | 1,170 ha | 13,200 ha |
| 2017 | 14,900 ha | 5,840 ha | 20,700 ha |
| 2018 | 10,400 ha | 916 ha | 11,300 ha |
| 2019 | 9,800 ha | 1,040 ha | 10,800 ha |
| 2020 | 6,920 ha | 733 ha | 7,650 ha |
| 2021 | 6,720 ha | 722 ha | 7,440 ha |
| 2022 | 7,390 ha | 729 ha | 8,120 ha |
| 2023 | 7,780 ha | 827 ha | 8,600 ha |
| 2024 | 7,150 ha | 912 ha | 8,070 ha |
| 2025 | 6,580 ha | 795 ha | 7,370 ha |
Forest loss is slowing down: about 7,920 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 12,700 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2017, when about 20,700 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Costa Rica?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good91% · 245,000 ha
- Shifting farmingcan grow back3.9% · 10,400 ha
- Storms, floods and other natural causescan grow back1.7% · 4,470 ha
Also: towns and roads, wildfires, logging, mining and energy, unknown causes.
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
Source: Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA, Global Forest Change (GFC-2025-v1.13); causes: WRI/Google DeepMind drivers of forest loss; both CC BY 4.0, summed by Airleaf for each area. How it's measured
Costa Rica as a whole
59.1% of Costa Rica was forested as of 2024, against a 30% benchmark. That already clears the benchmark — the city reports above show where cover is still thin locally. Source: World Bank (FAO).
Build your own
Compare Costa Rica with another country
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Costa Rica
Clean-air buying guides
Cleaner air at home in Costa Rica
Picked by tested clean-air delivery rate (CADR), noise and running cost, from independent test labels. No brand pays to be listed.
- The best air purifiers for wildfire smoke and smog
Air purifiers that keep up with wildfire smoke and winter smog, ranked by verified smoke CADR, with the room each one clears on a smoky day.
- The best air purifiers under $200
Good HEPA air purifiers under $200 at the makers' own prices, compared on verified clean air, room size and what the filters cost each year.
- NIOSH-approved N95 masks for smoke and smog
NIOSH-approved N95 masks and P100 respirators for smog and smoke, and how to get the fit right. Cloth and surgical masks do little against PM2.5.
Frequently asked
Air quality in Costa Rica: your questions answered
What is the air quality in Costa Rica today?
Right now the 5 cities Airleaf measures in Costa Rica average AQI 33 (good). The worst air is in Puntarenas, at AQI 32, and the cleanest in Liberia, at AQI 9. None of the 5 measured cities is over AQI 100 today, and 60% have Good air.
Which city in Costa Rica has the worst air right now?
Puntarenas, at AQI 32 (Good) on the US EPA index. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Which city in Costa Rica has the cleanest air right now?
Liberia, at AQI 9 (Good). Both lists rank current readings, from ground stations wherever Costa Rica has at least three cities with one.
Is the air in Costa Rica safe to breathe today?
It depends on the city. 3 cities are Good, 2 cities are Moderate. At the national average of AQI 33: Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
How much forest has Costa Rica lost since 2001?
About 270,000 ha from 2001 to 2025, 8% of the forest it had in 2000, from the University of Maryland's yearly satellite maps of forest loss. 249,000 ha of it was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
How does Airleaf measure air quality in Costa Rica?
Each city's reading is the US EPA air quality index, from ground monitoring stations where one has reported recently nearby, and from the CAMS atmospheric model elsewhere; each city's report says which. Tree cover is measured over the same 2 km radius in every city, so the cities compare like for like.
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