Network Costa Rica
Qualitative market research agency in Costa Rica
MindMarket is a market research agency that runs qualitative studies in Costa Rica, from in-depth interviews and focus groups to UX research and shop-alongs, with moderators who live in the country and one project manager for your whole study. Costa Rica has 5.16 million people with a median age of 35.2, and 92.6 per cent of them use the internet (DataReportal, Digital 2026). It is the most connected country in Central America, and most of its people live in the Central Valley around San José. Payments there run through the phone, so a new product is judged against services that already work.
AT A GLANCE
Costa Rica at a glance for researchers
- Population. 5.16 million people, median age 35.2, 83.8 per cent in urban areas (DataReportal, Digital 2026). Costa Rica is older and more urban than its neighbours. San José, Alajuela, Heredia and Cartago form one metropolitan area in the Central Valley, where most of the country lives. Liberia, Limón and Puntarenas are the main towns outside it.
- Languages. Spanish, in every session, with the local forms of address: usted is common even between friends. English is widely spoken in tourism and in the service centres of international companies. Our moderators live in Costa Rica, and your team follows through simultaneous interpretation.
- Internet and mobile. 4.78 million internet users, 92.6 per cent of the population, and 7.47 million mobile connections (DataReportal, Digital 2026). Social media counts 4.06 million user identities, 78.7 per cent of the population, and the median fixed download speed is 147.14 Mbps against 55.57 Mbps on mobile (same source). Video interviews and remote usability tests are routine.
- Where fieldwork happens. San José and the Central Valley first, then Liberia in Guanacaste for the Pacific north and Limón for the Caribbean side. Coastal towns that live from tourism are fielded with the season in mind.
- Data protection. Law No. 8968, on the protection of individuals in the handling of their personal data, applies. Nothing is recorded until the participant has heard what it is for and has agreed.
- Timing. Holy Week empties the Central Valley for the beaches, and the weeks from mid-December to early January are quiet. 25 July and 15 September are public holidays. The rainy season, from May to November, rarely stops fieldwork in the cities.
IN THE FIELD
How does an interview run in Costa Rica?
In Costa Rica, people pay each other and many shops by phone number, through the instant transfer service SINPE Móvil. A checkout or an app that leaves it out is noticed at once by the people who test it. A study in Costa Rica tests the purchase all the way to the payment screen.
- Test with the payments people use. Usability sessions include SINPE Móvil and local cards beside any international method. Participants use their own phone and their own banking app, and the moderator watches where the flow asks for something they do not have. Sessions follow the purchase to the confirmation screen, because that is where most problems appear.
- Valley and coasts. Most buyers live in the Central Valley. Guanacaste and the Caribbean coast differ in income, retail and the weight of tourism, and they are recruited on purpose when the product is sold there. Online sessions reach both without travel.
- Professionals in Spanish or English. Costa Rica hosts service and technology centres of many international companies. B2B interviews with their staff run in Spanish or English, booked around the working day, with role and seniority checked before the session. The same direct approach reaches procurement, finance and IT managers.
- A written choice before the discussion. In groups, each participant writes down a choice before anyone speaks. The moderator then asks what they would change, so that a polite first answer is never the last word on a concept.
RECRUITMENT
How do you recruit participants in Costa Rica?
- We recruit through local partners in San José and the Central Valley, by canton, household, income and category use. Each participant is confirmed by phone or message the day before the session. Quotas are agreed with you before the first call.
- Business audiences are approached directly, and their role is checked before the interview is booked. Frequent study participants are screened out of consumer groups.
- MindMarket pays every participant's incentive itself. You never handle it.
METHODS
Which methods work in Costa Rica?
Most studies in Costa Rica run as in-depth interviews and focus groups, with UX research, shop-alongs or online diaries when the question needs them.
| Method | Works well when | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| In-depth interviews | Finance, health, telecoms and B2B audiences, by video or in person | A professional interviewed in a second language when Spanish would say more |
| Focus groups | Concepts, food, drink and communications in San José | The first polite answer taken as the final one |
| UX research | Banking, retail and delivery apps on the participant's own phone | A checkout without SINPE Móvil |
| Shop-alongs | Supermarkets, neighbourhood shops and farmers' markets | Weekend markets, which draw a different shopper from the weekday supermarket |
| Online diaries | Routines and product use over one or two weeks | Tasks too long for a phone screen |
QUESTIONS
Questions buyers ask about research in Costa Rica
How much does market research cost in Costa Rica?
A full-service qualitative study with MindMarket starts at $40,000 for the first market, and Costa Rica added to a multi-country study starts from $8,000. B2B audiences and sessions outside the Central Valley move the price more than the number of interviews. Every quote is itemised and follows within 48 hours of a first call. Estimate your study.
How do I choose a market research agency in Costa Rica?
Choose by what the study has to decide. A Costa Rican fieldwork company fits a survey or a tracker. A qualitative specialist such as MindMarket fits a brand from outside Costa Rica that needs local people heard in their own language, by moderators who live there, with one team across every country. Read how to choose a global qualitative research agency.
Can you run UX research in Costa Rica?
Yes. Sessions run remotely or in person, on the participant's own phone, with the payment methods people use there, SINPE Móvil included. 92.6 per cent of the population uses the internet (DataReportal, Digital 2026), so recruitment for digital products is quick, and your team watches live with simultaneous interpretation.
Is San José enough for research in Costa Rica, or should I add other places?
San José and the Central Valley are enough for most consumer decisions, because most buyers live there. Add Guanacaste or Limón when the product is sold on the coasts or depends on tourism. Online sessions reach both without travel. Guanacaste is fielded outside the peak weeks of the visitor season when the study is about residents.
Can sessions in Costa Rica run in English?
With professionals in international companies and in tourism, yes. For consumer subjects we recommend Spanish, where everyday detail comes more easily. Our moderators live in Costa Rica and work in both, and your team follows Spanish sessions through simultaneous interpretation.
Can you help us decide, not only run the interviews?
Yes. Beyond the fieldwork, our Customer-Led Strategy work turns what people in Costa Rica told us into a recommendation: what to do, what not to do, and why. We form the hypotheses, test them with your customers and recommend from their words. If you already work with strategy consultants, we work alongside them.
NEXT