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- San José, Costa Rica
How walkable is San José, Costa Rica?
By Oscar Higson-Spence. Updated
San José, Costa Rica has a walkability score of 79 out of 100 across the 5 km around its centre, which makes it very walkable: most errands can be done on foot. It ranks joint 141st of 690 cities worldwide.
What's within walking distance of the centre
1,534 shops, restaurants, parks and other everyday places are mapped within a 30 minute walk of central San José, Costa Rica. The nearest grocery is about 9 minutes away on foot. It earns full or nearly full points for restaurants & bars, shopping, coffee, banks, parks, schools, books & libraries and culture & entertainment.
Groceries
- Fresh Market, 9 min
- Cuesta de Moras Supermarket, 10 min
Restaurants & bars
- Epocas, 2 min
- Bar La Estación - La Corte, 2 min
Shopping
- Nova Studio Odontología Cosmética y Spa, 2 min
- I.S. Corporación, 3 min
Coffee
- Santa Callejera, 8 min
- 13'30, 10 min
Banks
- Banco Nacional, 4 min
- Coopenae, 4 min
Parks
- Parque Italia, 5 min
- Plaza de la Democracia y de la Abolición del Ejército, 7 min
Schools
- Colegio Sagrado Corazón, 4 min
- Centro Infantil Del Poder Judicial, 4 min
Books & libraries
- Libreria y Editorial Juricentro, 5 min
- Biblioteca Mastatal, 8 min
Culture & entertainment
- Chietón Morén Museo y Mercadito de Artesanías, 5 min
- Teatro el Triciclo, 6 min
Measured from the centre at 9.9300, -84.0689, the point near San José, Costa Rica's middle with the most places in walking range. Walking times assume 80 m per minute along an estimated street route.
Street layout
Within 800 m of the centre there are about 132 street intersections per km², and blocks average 84 m long. That is a well-connected street grid, so the score is not reduced.
How far walkability reaches
San José, Costa Rica's score of 79 is the average across the 5 km around its centre, the point with the most everyday places within a walk. Walkability averages 96 within 1 km of the centre, 86 from 1 to 3 km out and 73 from 3 to 5 km out. 78% of the sampled area scores 70 or more, where most errands can be done on foot.
- 90+
- 70–89
- 50–69
- 25–49
- 0–24
Each hexagon is the score at a point, 1 km from its neighbours, across the 5 km around central San José, Costa Rica. Rings mark 1, 3 and 5 km from the centre. Gaps are water or land without streets.
| Area | Score | Scoring 70+ |
|---|---|---|
| Centre | 94 | 100% |
| Within 1 km | 96 | 100% |
| 1 to 3 km out | 86 | 100% |
| 3 to 5 km out | 73 | 62% |
Nearby cities
| City | Distance | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Managua, Nicaragua | 340 km | 61 |
| Panama City, Panama | 512 km | 70 |
| Tegucigalpa, Honduras | 573 km | 49 |
| San Salvador, El Salvador | 696 km | 66 |
| San Pedro Sula, Honduras | 754 km | 52 |
Questions about walking in San José, Costa Rica
Is San José, Costa Rica a walkable city?
Around its centre, yes. San José, Costa Rica has a walkability score of 79 out of 100 across the 5 km around its centre, which makes it very walkable: most errands can be done on foot. Its centre scores 94. The score covers about 80 km² around the busiest point rather than the whole city, and suburbs further out are usually less walkable, so check a specific address on the map. It ranks joint 141st of 690 cities worldwide on How Walkable.
How does San José, Costa Rica compare with nearby cities?
San José, Costa Rica is more walkable than its nearest ranked neighbours: it scores 79, against Managua (61, 340 km away), Panama City (70, 512 km away) and Tegucigalpa (49, 573 km away).
Which part of San José, Costa Rica is most walkable?
The streets just around San José's centre are its most walkable, averaging 96 within 1 km. The centre itself, the point with the most places in walking range, scores 94. Beyond 2.5 km, it holds up best to the north-east (averaging 86) and falls most to the north-west (66).
How is San José, Costa Rica's walkability score calculated?
For San José, Costa Rica it is the average of 90 points spaced 1 km apart within 5 km of its busiest point, leaving out water and land without streets; 70 of them score 70 or more. Each point counts groceries, restaurants, shops, cafés, banks, parks, schools, libraries and cultural venues within a 30 minute walk, gives nearer places more weight, and loses up to 20% where streets are sparse or blocks are long, using open map data from Overture Maps (release 2026-09-23.1) and OpenStreetMap. It measures what is within a walk, not what the walk is like: pavements, traffic, safety, hills and heat are not part of the score.
This page is generated from open map data with a published walkability method, explained in the methodology. Places from Overture Maps release 2026-09-23.1. City position and population from GeoNames.
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