World Clock
Time in Costa Rica
Shown above is the current time across Costa Rica, alongside the time zone Costa Rica keeps and the live local time in its main cities.
The whole of Costa Rica runs on a single time, CST (UTC-6) — so every city listed on this page reads exactly the same clock.
Costa Rica doesn't observe daylight saving at all — its offset from UTC stays fixed the entire year, so if the gap to another country ever changes, it's that other country moving its own clocks, not this one.
Cities in Costa Rica
| City | Local time | Offset |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose | 10:11 am | UTC-6 |
Questions people ask
How many time zones does Costa Rica actually have?
Just one. The whole of Costa Rica keeps a single national time, UTC-6.
Does Costa Rica observe daylight saving time?
No, the clocks here stay put all year round.
What's the capital of Costa Rica, and what time is it there right now?
San Jose — where the current time is 10:11 am.
What UTC offset does Costa Rica use?
UTC-6, unchanged throughout the year.
What's the current date in Costa Rica?
Right now it's Monday, 7 September 2026 there.
Do all cities in Costa Rica share the same clock?
Yes. Every city in the table reads identically, since the entire country runs on one single zone.
How far apart in time are Costa Rica and my own country?
The time difference calculator will compare them directly, laying out today's gap across the full twenty-four hours.
What are typical working hours like in Costa Rica?
Roughly 9 to 5 local time is standard in most countries, but the working week itself isn't universal — several Gulf countries run Sunday through Thursday instead. Worth checking before assuming Friday is a working day there.
What IANA time zone identifier does Costa Rica use?
America/Costa_Rica, which is the identifier software and calendar apps actually store internally to track the zone.
What time does the sun rise and set across Costa Rica?
It varies city by city, since sunrise follows real coordinates rather than the time zone. The sunrise page for Costa Rica lists today's exact times for every city.