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Expanding Freedom and Democracy
Freedom on the Net 2025

Costa Rica

Free
86
100
A Obstacles to Access 22 25
B Limits on Content 32 35
C Violations of User Rights 32 40
Last Year's Score & Status
85 100 Free
Scores are based on a scale of 0 (least free) to 100 (most free). See the methodology and report acknowledgements.
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header1 Key Developments, June 1, 2024 – May 31, 2025

Internet freedom in Costa Rica improved slightly during the coverage period. The country remained one of the world’s most open online environments, where users enjoyed unfettered access to content and their rights to free expression were largely protected by the laws and the courts. However, under President Rodrigo Chaves Robles, who took office in 2022, worsening online intimidation directed at critical journalists posed a threat to the country’s strong tradition of press freedom.1

  • Concerns about politicization in the allocation of state advertising persisted during the coverage period, affecting both online and offline media outlets. A legislative commission that investigated the National Radio and Television System concluded in June 2024 that the government had used its advertising arm to funnel state contracts to progovernment outlets (B6).2
  • During the coverage period, electoral authorities fined digital media outlets for allegedly publishing prohibited electoral propaganda. The Supreme Electoral Tribunal, for example, imposed a fine of 924,400 colones ($1,800) on Acontecer.co.cr for a 2021 social media post that asked users whom they would vote for if elections were held that day.3 Two other outlets that published content online faced similar sanctions, though these were reversed in January 2025 (C3).4
  • The government took some steps that could expand its surveillance powers. In July 2024, President Chaves signed a law that increased the number of crimes for which courts were allowed to authorize the interception of communications, and extended the period during which such interception could take place.5 A November 2024 government decree authorized the Special Intervention Unit—which operates under the Ministry of the Presidency and has traditionally focused on counterterrorism and combating drug trafficking—to collect “data and information prior to the execution of operations, using appropriate technological means.”6 A constitutional appeal against the decree appeared to be pending during the coverage period (C5).7

header2 Political Overview

Costa Rica has a long history of democratic stability, with a multiparty political system and regular rotations of power through credible elections. Freedoms of expression and association are robust. The rule of law is generally strong, though presidents have often been implicated in corruption scandals. Among other ongoing concerns, violence related to drug trafficking and organized crime is rising sharply.

This report has been abridged for Freedom on the Net 2025 due to ongoing budget constraints. Please consider making a donation to support future editions of this vital resource.

For additional background information, see last year’s full report.

A Obstacles to Access

A1 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Do infrastructural limitations restrict access to the internet or the speed and quality of internet connections? 6.006 6.006

Score Change: The score improved from 5 to 6 because mobile connection speeds increased, according to some measurement sources.1

A2 1.00-3.00 pts0-3 pts
Is access to the internet prohibitively expensive or beyond the reach of certain segments of the population for geographical, social, or other reasons? 2.002 3.003
A3 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Does the government exercise technical or legal control over internet infrastructure for the purposes of restricting connectivity? 6.006 6.006
A4 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Are there legal, regulatory, or economic obstacles that restrict the diversity of service providers? 4.004 6.006
A5 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Do national regulatory bodies that oversee service providers and digital technology fail to operate in a free, fair, and independent manner? 4.004 4.004

B Limits on Content

B1 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Does the state block or filter, or compel service providers to block or filter, internet content, particularly material that is protected by international human rights standards? 6.006 6.006
B2 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Do state or nonstate actors employ legal, administrative, or other means to force publishers, content hosts, or digital platforms to delete content, particularly material that is protected by international human rights standards? 4.004 4.004
B3 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Do restrictions on the internet and digital content lack transparency, proportionality to the stated aims, or an independent appeals process? 4.004 4.004
B4 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Do online journalists, commentators, and ordinary users practice self-censorship? 3.003 4.004
B5 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Are online sources of information controlled or manipulated by the government or other powerful actors to advance a particular political interest? 3.003 4.004
B6 1.00-3.00 pts0-3 pts
Are there economic or regulatory constraints that negatively affect users’ ability to publish content online? 2.002 3.003
B7 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Does the online information landscape lack diversity and reliability? 4.004 4.004
B8 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Do conditions impede users’ ability to mobilize, form communities, and campaign, particularly on political and social issues? 6.006 6.006

C Violations of User Rights

C1 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Do the constitution or other laws fail to protect rights such as freedom of expression, access to information, and press freedom, including on the internet, and are they enforced by a judiciary that lacks independence? 6.006 6.006
C2 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Are there laws that assign criminal penalties or civil liability for online activities, particularly those that are protected under international human rights standards? 3.003 4.004
C3 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Are individuals penalized for online activities, particularly those that are protected under international human rights standards? 5.005 6.006
C4 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Does the government place restrictions on anonymous communication or encryption? 3.003 4.004
C5 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Does state surveillance of internet activities infringe on users’ right to privacy? 5.005 6.006
C6 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Does monitoring and collection of user data by service providers and other technology companies infringe on users’ right to privacy? 5.005 6.006
C7 1.00-5.00 pts0-5 pts
Are individuals subject to extralegal intimidation or physical violence by state authorities or any other actor in relation to their online activities? 3.003 5.005
C8 1.00-3.00 pts0-3 pts
Are websites, governmental and private entities, service providers, or individual users subject to widespread hacking and other forms of cyberattack? 2.002 3.003

On Costa Rica

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Country Facts

  • Population

    5,181,000

  • Global Freedom Score

    91 100 free

  • Internet Freedom Score

    86 100 free

  • Freedom in the World Status

    Free

  • Networks Restricted

    No

  • Websites Blocked

    No

  • Pro-government Commentators

    No

  • Users Arrested

    No