Best time to visit San José
Costa Rica · 20-year averages
February is the best month in San José, scoring 89 out of 100, with November the weakest at 65. The 24-point spread means timing is worth planning around without being decisive. The good window runs January to March — 3 months within ten points of the best.
April is the warmest month at 28 °C and October the coolest at 22.6 °C — a 5.4 °C spread across the year.
There is a real wet season here. May to October carry the rain — up to 27 wet days in a month — while January to March drop as low as 7. That 20-day gap is the biggest single difference between a good month and a bad one in San José, and it moves further than the temperature does.
Daylight barely moves: about 12.7 hours whatever the month, which removes one variable from the decision entirely.
The three strongest months are February, March, January. The one to think twice about is November. Each month below has its own page with rainfall reliability, extremes, daylight and crowd levels.
San José month by month
| Month | High °C | Low °C | Rain days | Daylight h | Score | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 24.4 | 16 | 9 | 11.6 | 84 | Prime time |
| February | 26 | 16.3 | 7 | 11.8 | 89 | Prime time |
| March | 27.9 | 17.2 | 7 | 12.1 | 85 | Prime time |
| April | 28 | 18 | 13 | 12.3 | 72 | A good month |
| May | 25.7 | 18.2 | 24 | 12.6 | 65 | A good month |
| June | 23.9 | 18 | 25 | 12.7 | 65 | A good month |
| July | 23.9 | 17.6 | 24 | 12.7 | 65 | A good month |
| August | 23.9 | 17.6 | 24 | 12.5 | 65 | A good month |
| September | 23.3 | 17.5 | 27 | 12.2 | 65 | A good month |
| October | 22.6 | 17.5 | 26 | 11.9 | 65 | A good month |
| November | 23 | 16.9 | 22 | 11.7 | 65 | A good month |
| December | 23.7 | 16.2 | 14 | 11.5 | 76 | A good month |
Planning the rest of the trip
- Flight time to San José how long you are actually in the air
- San José time zone and the difference from home
- Days until your trip count down to the departure date