Costa Rica has landed on a new international list of the most sought-after places for North Americans who want to live abroad, as demand from US citizens for foreign residency and citizenship climbs to record levels.
A recent report from Condé Nast Traveler, built on data from Henley & Partners — a global firm that helps people obtain residency and citizenship in other countries, often through investment — places Costa Rica among the 16 leading destinations worldwide for people relocating their lives and assets in 2026. Our country appears alongside long-established favorites such as Portugal, Italy, Greece and Malta, plus several other spots in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The figures point to a sharp shift. According to the report, American demand for residency or citizenship abroad nearly doubled over the past year, part of a broader trend of people looking for stability and a different quality of life outside the United States. The Costa Rican outlets Infobae and El Observador both reported the findings this week.
For Costa Rica, the appeal is familiar to anyone already living here. The reports point a long democratic tradition, closeness to the United States, an established foreign community that makes arriving easier, access to decent healthcare, and a lifestyle built around the outdoors. Those same reasons led Forbes to include Costa Rica on its own 2026 list of preferred places for Americans to relocate, noting that Costa Rica is home to one of the largest US expat communities in Latin America.
That community is substantial. US State Department figures cited in the coverage show roughly 120,000 American citizens were living in Costa Rica as of December 2024, many of them retirees.
What the Rankings Do and Don’t Mean
A spot on a list is good publicity for Costa Rica, but it doesn’t change what it actually takes to move here. Residency categories, income requirements and enrollment in the public healthcare system, the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (Caja), still depend on each applicant’s nationality, finances and personal situation. The lists measure interest and attractiveness, not how easy the paperwork is.
It’s also worth keeping the source in mind. Henley & Partners works in investment migration, so its data leans toward people with the means to relocate or invest. The broader takeaway holds, though: more Americans are looking abroad, and Costa Rica keeps coming up.
Our reputation for hospitality is part of the draw. Condé Nast Traveler named Costa Rica the most welcoming country in the world over the past year, a recognition based on travelers’ own experiences with locals — the kind of soft factor that often tips a decision from visiting to staying.
