List of 40 best universities in San Jose, Costa Rica

Updated: July 18, 2023

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 195K citations received by 33.3K academic publications made by 40 universities from San Jose, the popularity of 77 recognized alumni, and the largest reference database available.

1. University of Costa Rica

#1 in Costa Rica

#26 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 25%
Enrollment: 30,436
Founded: 1940

2. University of Medical Sciences, Costa Rica

#6 in Costa Rica

#422 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 30%
Founded: 1999

3. Latin American University of Science and Technology

#7 in Costa Rica

#447 in Latin America

Enrollment: 2,559
Founded: 1987

4. Veritas University

#9 in Costa Rica

#666 in Latin America

Founded: 1976

5. University for International Cooperation

#11 in Costa Rica

#777 in Latin America

Enrollment: 3,000
Founded: 1994

6. Hispano-American University

#12 in Costa Rica

#795 in Latin America

Founded: 1992

7. Cenfotec University

#13 in Costa Rica

#841 in Latin America

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

8. LEAD University

#15 in Costa Rica

#921 in Latin America

Enrollment: 1,500

9. International University of the Americas

#17 in Costa Rica

#1045 in Latin America

Founded: 1986

10. La Salle University of Costa Rica

#18 in Costa Rica

#1046 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 76%
Enrollment: 3,000
Founded: 1994

11. Catholic University of Costa Rica

#19 in Costa Rica

#1066 in Latin America

Founded: 1993

12. American University, Costa Rica

#20 in Costa Rica

#1100 in Latin America

Founded: 1997

13. Creative University

#21 in Costa Rica

#1107 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 56%
Enrollment: 2,000
Founded: 2000

14. San Marcos University

#23 in Costa Rica

#1152 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 80%
Enrollment: 5,000
Founded: 1996

15. University of Ibero-America

#24 in Costa Rica

#1159 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 78%
Founded: 1995

16. Latin American Biblical University

#25 in Costa Rica

#1170 in Latin America

Enrollment: 1,000
Founded: 1997

17. Central American University of Social Sciences

#26 in Costa Rica

#1203 in Latin America

Founded: 2000

18. Business University of Costa Rica

#27 in Costa Rica

#1216 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 46%
Enrollment: 1,000
Founded: 1992

19. Free University Law School

#28 in Costa Rica

#1217 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

20. International Polytechnic University

#29 in Costa Rica

#1221 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 29%
Enrollment: 3,000
Founded: 1998

21. Autonomous University of Monterrey

#31 in Costa Rica

#1248 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 46%
Enrollment: 5,000
Founded: 1994

22. Free University of Costa Rica

#32 in Costa Rica

#1252 in Latin America

Enrollment: 1,500
Founded: 1993

23. Castro Carazo University

#33 in Costa Rica

#1274 in Latin America

Enrollment: 2,000
Founded: 1996

24. Santa Paula University

#35 in Costa Rica

#1326 in Latin America

Founded: 1994

25. Continental University of Arts and Sciences

#36 in Costa Rica

#1343 in Latin America

Founded: 1999

26. Isaac Newton University

#38 in Costa Rica

#1367 in Latin America

Founded: 1995

27. University of Science and Art of Costa Rica

#39 in Costa Rica

#1384 in Latin America

Founded: 1981

28. Costa Rican University of Technology

#40 in Costa Rica

#1389 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 12%
Enrollment: 10,000
Founded: 1999

29. Federated University of Costa Rica

#41 in Costa Rica

#1390 in Latin America

Founded: 1992

30. John Paul II University

#42 in Costa Rica

#1392 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Founded: 1996

31. Southern Christian University

#43 in Costa Rica

#1463 in Latin America

Founded: 1998

32. University of San Jose

#45 in Costa Rica

#1495 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 68%
Enrollment: 2,500
Founded: 1992

33. Central University, Costa Rica

#46 in Costa Rica

#1523 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 25%
Enrollment: 15,000
Founded: 1990

34. Panamerican University, Costa Rica

#47 in Costa Rica

#1531 in Latin America

Founded: 1988

35. Santa Lucia University

#48 in Costa Rica

#1538 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

36. Evangelical University of the Americas

#49 in Costa Rica

#1550 in Latin America

Founded: 1992

37. University of Tourism

#50 in Costa Rica

#1569 in Latin America

Acceptance Rate: 36%
Founded: 1996

38. Braulio Carrillo University

#51 in Costa Rica

#1576 in Latin America

Founded: 1994

39. San Juan de la Cruz University

#53 in Costa Rica

#1687 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

40. Independent University of Costa Rica

#54 in Costa Rica

#1716 in Latin America

Founded: 1996

Universities near San Jose

Distance, km 📏 km	University	Country rank 🏆	City
0	Autonomous University of Centro America	10	Cipreses de Curridabat
3	Latin University of Costa Rica	8	San Pedro
3	Fidelitas University	14	San Pedro
3	Magister University	30	San Pedro
8	National University, Costa Rica	2	Heredia
17	Adventist University of Central America	37	Alajuela
17	University of Business Sciences	44	Alajuela
19	Fundepos Alma Mater University	16	Uruca
20	Florencio del Castillo University of Cartago	22	Cartago
21	Costa Rica Institute of Technology	3	Cartago