List of 40 best universities in San Jose, Costa Rica

Updated: March 02, 2025

Ranking by academic field

Top 40 universities in San Jose ranked by EduRank based on research outputs, non-academic prominence, and alumni influence. The rankings are determined by analyzing 330K citations received by 42.8K academic publications made by 40 universities from San Jose, the popularity of 86 recognized alumni, and the largest reference database available.

1. University of Costa Rica

#1 in Costa Rica

#27 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 40%
Enrollment: 30,436
Founded: 1940

2. University of Medical Sciences, Costa Rica

#6 in Costa Rica

#426 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 30%
Founded: 1999

3. University for International Cooperation

#8 in Costa Rica

#651 in Latin America

Enrollment: 3,000
Founded: 1994

4. Veritas University

#9 in Costa Rica

#667 in Latin America

Founded: 1976

5. Latin American University of Science and Technology

#10 in Costa Rica

#682 in Latin America

Enrollment: 2,559
Founded: 1987

6. Hispano-American University

#12 in Costa Rica

#816 in Latin America

Founded: 1992

7. Cenfotec University

#13 in Costa Rica

#832 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 89%
Enrollment: 1,500
Founded: 2000

8. LEAD University

#15 in Costa Rica

#878 in Latin America

Enrollment: 1,500

9. International University of the Americas

#17 in Costa Rica

#957 in Latin America

Founded: 1986

10. Catholic University of Costa Rica

#19 in Costa Rica

#1070 in Latin America

Founded: 1993

11. La Salle University of Costa Rica

#20 in Costa Rica

#1075 in Latin America

Enrollment: 3,000
Founded: 1994

12. University of Ibero-America

#21 in Costa Rica

#1086 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Founded: 1995

13. Creative University

#22 in Costa Rica

#1094 in Latin America

Enrollment: 2,000
Founded: 2000

14. Latin American Biblical University

#23 in Costa Rica

#1123 in Latin America

Enrollment: 1,000
Founded: 1997

15. American University, Costa Rica

#24 in Costa Rica

#1151 in Latin America

Founded: 1997

16. San Marcos University

#26 in Costa Rica

#1225 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Enrollment: 5,000
Founded: 1996

17. Free University Law School

#27 in Costa Rica

#1247 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

18. Central American University of Social Sciences

#28 in Costa Rica

#1252 in Latin America

Founded: 2000

19. Business University of Costa Rica

#29 in Costa Rica

#1270 in Latin America

Enrollment: 1,000
Founded: 1992

20. International Polytechnic University

#30 in Costa Rica

#1288 in Latin America

Enrollment: 3,000
Founded: 1998

21. Free University of Costa Rica

#31 in Costa Rica

#1298 in Latin America

Enrollment: 1,500
Founded: 1993

22. Autonomous University of Monterrey

#32 in Costa Rica

#1317 in Latin America

Enrollment: 5,000
Founded: 1994

23. Castro Carazo University

#33 in Costa Rica

#1319 in Latin America

Enrollment: 2,000
Founded: 1996

24. Continental University of Arts and Sciences

#35 in Costa Rica

#1343 in Latin America

Founded: 1999

25. Isaac Newton University

#36 in Costa Rica

#1348 in Latin America

Founded: 1995

26. John Paul II University

#37 in Costa Rica

#1372 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

27. Santa Paula University

#38 in Costa Rica

#1377 in Latin America

Founded: 1994

28. Costa Rican University of Technology

#39 in Costa Rica

#1392 in Latin America

Enrollment: 10,000
Founded: 1999

29. University of Science and Art of Costa Rica

#41 in Costa Rica

#1409 in Latin America

Founded: 1981

30. Federated University of Costa Rica

#43 in Costa Rica

#1427 in Latin America

Founded: 1992

31. Southern Christian University

#44 in Costa Rica

#1470 in Latin America

Founded: 1998

32. Panamerican University, Costa Rica

#45 in Costa Rica

#1504 in Latin America

Founded: 1988

33. University of San Jose

#47 in Costa Rica

#1523 in Latin America

Enrollment: 2,500
Founded: 1992

34. Central University, Costa Rica

#48 in Costa Rica

#1527 in Latin America

Enrollment: 15,000
Founded: 1990

35. Santa Lucia University

#49 in Costa Rica

#1573 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

36. University of Tourism

#50 in Costa Rica

#1581 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

37. Braulio Carrillo University

#51 in Costa Rica

#1583 in Latin America

Founded: 1994

38. Evangelical University of the Americas

#52 in Costa Rica

#1615 in Latin America

Founded: 1992

39. Independent University of Costa Rica

#53 in Costa Rica

#1697 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

40. San Juan de la Cruz University

#54 in Costa Rica

#1700 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

Universities near San Jose

Distance, km 📏 km	University	Country rank 🏆	City
0	Autonomous University of Centro America	11	Cipreses de Curridabat
3	Fidelitas University	14	San Pedro
3	Magister University	34	San Pedro
4	Latin University of Costa Rica	7	San Pedro
8	National University, Costa Rica	2	Heredia
17	Adventist University of Central America	25	Alajuela
17	University of Business Sciences	46	Alajuela
19	Fundepos Alma Mater University	16	Uruca
20	Florencio del Castillo University of Cartago	18	Cartago
21	Costa Rica Institute of Technology	3	Cartago