Offshore Software Development in

Costa Rica

2100

Developers

4

Partners

High

Software Outsourcing Readiness

Overview

Once regarded simply as a tropical holiday destination, Costa Rica is now recognized as an attractive outsourcing destination due to its location, stability and highly-qualified programmers familiar with Western business practices and standards.

About Costa Rica

Talent Pool & Education

On a mission to become a completely bilingual nation in the next decade, Costa Rica is encouraging students to pursue careers in the technology sector – and the results so far are impressive. The country ranks third in Latin America on Coursera’s index of coding and programming skills, and provides outsourcing teams to 20 Fortune 100 companies. Costa Rica has also caught the eye of the Inter-American Development Bank, which predicts San José will become one of the most important centers in Latin America for the development of the ICT and software industries.

Language

Spanish is the primary language; however English is taught in all schools and spoken fluently with a “clean” accent that is easy to understand.

Economic Outlook

Costa Rica has shown a steady economic growth over the past 25 years, based on openness to foreign investment and gradual trade liberalization. While its economy took an initial hit from the pandemic, economic forecasts are positive with GDP growth of 2.6% expected this year, accelerating to 3.3% in 2022. Costa Rica’s recent inclusion in the OECD will help the country build on its program of reforms already underway and reinforce prospects for growth. A global leader for its environmental policies, Costa Rica aims to reduce net carbon emissions to zero by 2050, and its thriving tourism industry contributes $1.7 billion to the economy per annum. 

Political Conditions

Historically an outpost of political and economic stability in an often-turbulent region, Costa Rica is a democracy with universal healthcare, and life expectancy is higher than in many other OECD nations. Center-left President Carlos Alvarado has maintained strong commercial ties with the US and pushed for new investments in infrastructure, education and training.