Coffee in Costa Rica

Costa Rica has grown coffee since about 1780, and by 1830 it was the country’s biggest crop. It still covers about 83,000 hectares of its volcanic highlands, from Tarrazú in the south to the West Valley around Naranjo. Today the country grows a little over a million bags a year, almost all washed arabica, and is known for small, carefully processed lots from hundreds of micro-mills. Here’s how much, where, when and where it goes.

The short version

• About 1.2 million bags a year, all arabica.
• Eight regions; Los Santos (Tarrazú) has about a third of the coffee land.
• Harvest mostly November to February.
• Micro-mills: 307 mills in 2024/25, up from 216 a decade earlier.
• Fewer growers: 24,653, down 48% in ten years.
• Exports go mainly to the United States (about 40%) and Europe.

How much coffee does Costa Rica grow?

About 1.2 million bags, USDA says, for a coffee year from October to September:

Coffee year	Production	Exports
2024/25	1.32 million	1.10 million (US$459.3m)
2025/26 (estimate)	1.16 million	1.02 million
2026/27 (forecast)	1.20 million	1.06 million

Source: USDA, May 2026, with ICAFE data. 60 kg bags.

The biggest worry is not the weather but the currency. The colón has risen about 35% against the dollar since mid-2022, so even at high world prices growers earn less in colones, and many may skimp on fertiliser, ICAFE, the Costa Rican Coffee Institute, says. A likely El Niño in late 2026 could cut rainfall by up to 30% in some areas.

Where is coffee grown in Costa Rica?

ICAFE recognises eight coffee regions. Their planted area, from its 2018 and 2022 surveys:

Region	Area, 2018	Area, 2022	Change
Los Santos (Tarrazú)	27,944 ha	28,519 ha	+2.1%
West Valley (Valle Occidental)	21,992 ha	18,640 ha	−15.2%
Central Valley (with Tres Ríos)	13,327 ha	11,493 ha	−13.8%
Pérez Zeledón (Brunca)	13,315 ha	10,617 ha	−20.3%
Coto Brus (Brunca)	10,261 ha	8,810 ha	−14.1%
Turrialba (with Orosi)	4,917 ha	3,386 ha	−31.1%
Northern Zone (Guanacaste)	1,942 ha	1,075 ha	−44.6%
Total	93,697 ha	82,539 ha	−11.9%

Source: ICAFE, via USDA.

Only Los Santos grew. By canton, Tarrazú produced the most coffee for the eighth year running in 2024/25, 15.9% of the crop, followed by Pérez Zeledón with 12.4%. Shares by region are less certain:

Region	Share of the crop	Source
Tarrazú	40%	Royal New York
Tarrazú canton alone	15.9% (2024/25)	ICAFE
West Valley	21%	Royal New York
Brunca	20%	Royal New York
Central Valley	15%	Royal New York

Royal New York, a green-coffee importer, also calls the West Valley the largest region by area, which ICAFE’s survey does not bear out.

The coffee

All arabica, mostly Caturra and Catuaí, with Villa Sarchí and Villa Lobos, two varieties that originated in Costa Rica, and increasingly Geisha and SL28 on farms making speciality lots, Royal New York says. In the 2026 Cup of Excellence, every winning coffee came from Los Santos, the West Valley or Pérez Zeledón, and Geisha and the local San Roque Línea Típica won many of the places. The classic process is washed, but water laws pushed mills to water-saving eco-pulpers, and many micro-mills now make honey, natural and anaerobic coffees.

When is coffee harvested in Costa Rica?

Mostly from November to February, USDA says. The harvest starts around August in low areas in the south and can last until about May in the highest. The trees flower in about April and May, as the rains arrive, Royal New York notes. Most of the picking is done by Ngäbe-Buglé workers from Panama, with some Nicaraguans. Cherries are measured by volume, not weight, in boxes called fanegas, each made up of 24 cajuelas.

Who grows Costa Rican coffee?

Fewer and fewer people. ICAFE counted 24,653 growers in 2024/25, down from 25,549 the year before and 48% fewer than ten years earlier, as low prices, ageing farmers and rising land prices near towns took their toll. 85% produce fewer than 100 bags on farms under 10 hectares. To capture more of the price, many process their own coffee: mills grew from 216 in 2014/15 to 307 in 2024/25, many of them micro-mills serving a handful of farms. There were 99 exporters and 49 roasters.

Where does Costa Rican coffee go?

Destination	Bags, 2024/25
United States	454,266 (39.6%)
Belgium	269,551
Germany	57,089
South Korea	32,658
China	29,025
Finland	25,875

Source: ICAFE, via USDA. Total 1,102,439 bags.

Coffee is Costa Rica’s third agricultural export by value, after pineapples and bananas, and 2.1% of all its exports. Because its coffee sells at a premium, Costa Rica has imported coffee since about 2008 to drink at home, 54% of it from Nicaragua and 36% from Honduras in 2024/25. Costa Ricans drink about 320,000 bags a year, often brewed in a chorreador.

A short history

• About 1780: coffee growing begins in the Central Valley, Royal New York says.
• After independence from Spain: San José hands out seed and land to anyone willing to plant coffee.
• 1830: coffee is the biggest crop, ahead of cacao, sugar cane and tobacco.
• 1832: the first coffee reaches England, via Chile.
• 1933: ICAFE is founded to help growers through the Depression.
• 2000: La Candelilla opens one of the first micro-mills; more than 150 follow.
• 2019: Café Tarrazú becomes a denomination of origin.
• 2024/25: 24,653 growers, 48% fewer than ten years earlier.

Costa Rican coffee and other origins

• Coffee in Nicaragua: the neighbour that supplies much of Costa Rica’s home coffee.
• Coffee in Honduras: the other main source of its imports.
• The atlas: Costa Rica’s growing regions on the map.