Compare the best ways to send money from United States to Costa Rica

Comparing providers offering services between the United States and Costa Rica based on your specific transfer amount, is the easiest way to get the best price on your transfer.

For USD/CRC

• We found Wise to be the best and easiest option. Sending 7,000 USD to CRC will cost you $103.11 in fees, and your recipient will get 3,124,877.41 CRC.

• Paysend is the cheapest way to send money to Costa Rica from the United States out of the 6 companies compared.

• Fastest money transfers to Costa Rica from the United States is with Revolut.

We cover the entire USD-CRC market and have compared 6 providers offering services between the United States and Costa Rica.

This ensures you will get the most comprehensive options for sending US Dollar to Costa Rica.

The exchange rate determines the price you will pay when buying Cost Rican Colon in the United States. A better exchange rate means more US Dollars being sent to Costa Rica.

The current rate between the US Dollar and Cost Rican Colon is 454.5355. The USD-CRC exchange rate is always changing.

The total cost of sending money to Costa Rica from the United States is made up of a combination of mid-market, exchange rates and fees.

• The Mid-Market and Exchange Rates: The current mid-market for USD-CRC is 454.5355 CRC per US Dollar.

• Fees: When sending money you may have to pay fees. Paysend costs 0 USD per transfer at the moment, which is the cheapest option of the 6 providers compared. We would recommend searching to ensure you get the correct fee for your transfer amount.

• Amount Received: When comparing providers, the best measure is the amount of Cost Rican Colon eventually received in Costa Rica.

Understanding the average, and then waiting a day or two can help you get more CRC for the same amount of US Dollars - but you might end up worse off.

A safer option if you want to get a particular rate is to use a forward contract. This allows you to lock in an agreed exchange rate between the United States and Costa Rica.

Sending via a bank transfer is the payment method that will get you the best price on a transfer from the United States to Costa Rica.

Here are your options:

Bank transfers

Bank transfers are often the best and easier way to send money from the United States to Costa Rica.

By using a money transfer company such as Revolut for transfers from the United States to Costa Rica, you can send money via a bank transfer and benefit from lower fees and more favorable exchange rates than would be offered by a bank. 


Debit and prepaid cards

Sending money from the United States to Costa Rica with a debit or a prepaid card is easy with Xe.


Xe is a leading money transfer company for debit card payments, and offers transfers from the United States to Costa Rica.

Credit cards

We recommend avoiding credit card transfers due to high fees, and instead, you should consider a bank transfer or a debit card deposit.

However, if you do need to use a credit card to fund your transfer, use our comparison tool to get the latest deal.

and have different financial regulations to be aware of. Ensuring you fully understand these regulations will aid in keeping your money safe.

Our directory of worldwide financial regulators contains details on regulation for money transfers between United States and Costa Rica

Companies offering money transfers between the United States and Costa Rica will have minimum or maximum thresholds on how much you can send or receive across set timeframes.

Exchange rates and fees for different transfer amounts could change and sending regularly could mean losing out.

That’s why it’s best to compare USD-CRC rates for your specific transfer amount.

For regular transfers to Costa Rica to the United States, shopping around each time can make a huge difference.

For sending large amounts of USD to Costa Rica without hitting a threshold, we’d recommended Wise. They offer a combination of rates and fees when sending from the United States to Costa Rica that is the most competitive, even at larger amounts.

Be sure to check with the recipient and understand any declarations needed on large amounts of money entering Costa Rica from the United States.

Options for receiving Cost Rican Colon in Costa Rica include direct bank deposit, cash pickup, a mobile wallet or receiving money into a multi-currency account.

Not all of the 6 providers offering transfers from the United States to Costa Rica will support every method for incoming Cost Rican Colon, so it’s best to check ahead of time.

The most common option is to send directly from the United States to a bank account in Costa Rica. For most part, this is convenient but does have receiving fees to potentially be aware of.

Wise is the best company for bank transfers between United States and Costa Rica.

Cash pickup is popular in some parts of Costa Rica, but not always supported and can be costly compared to cheaper options.

Mobile wallet or P2P services and payment apps like PayPal, Xoom, and CashApp are popular because of convenience, but they come with more limitations and higher costs compared to money transfer providers like Revolut.

When sending Cost Rican Colons to Costa Rica, through a money transfer company, you will need to verify your ID when signing up.

The documents you need can vary and in some cases you might need a couple of options.

Generally, government issued ID such as a passport or driver's license are accepted in the United States. If the recipient needs an ID to collect money in Costa Rica, the same applies there. You may also be able use other ID formats, where these aren’t available.

Large transactions between United States and Costa Rica can be subject to additional checks such as proof of funds for anti-money laundering purposes. This may also require additional ID checks.

One of the reasons Wise as scored so highly for transfers to Costa Rica is their easy sign up process in the United States.

As well as proof of funds, when sending large amounts of money between the United States and Costa Rica there will be tax declarations to consider. This is also potentially due to regular transactions.

Some transfers into Cost Rican Colon may need to be reported to tax authorities in Costa Rica and the United States, particularly where inheritance or property purchases are involved.

Tax limits and personal allowances do change in Costa Rica based on age, income and a few other elements. Everyone’s tax obligations are unique - when in doubt, please contact a tax professional in the United States or Costa Rica.