The Model Index
World/North America
AI access, cost and use · Central America · North America · data read 1 Oct 2026

Costa Rica

In Costa Rica, a $20-a-month AI plan costs 3.6% of the median living standard, 4.5 times the share it takes in the United States; for 10% of people it is over a tenth of what they live on. Claude, OpenAI's API and Gemini are all officially offered. 87% of people use the internet, and Claude use per working-age person is 1.57 times the world average.

3.6%of the median living standard for a $20 planNorth America median 6.4% · United States 0.79%
10%of people for whom the plan is over a tenth of their living standardabout 516k people
3of 3leading services officially offeredClaude · OpenAI · Gemini
87%of people use the internetworld 74% · 5.2 m people

The figuresCosta Rica

People5.2 m
Median living standard$6,679a year per person · income
A $20 plan takes3.6%of that · 4.5× the US share
For whom it is over a tenth10%of people
Survey2025revalued at 2025 prices
GNI per person$17,930plan is 1.3% of it
Claude use per person1.57×world average = 1
Notable AI models built here0

Officially offered here3 of 3

Run it yourself →
Claude · claude.ai appYes
OpenAI · APIYes
Gemini · web appYes

From each lab's own published list: Anthropic's Claude.ai countries, OpenAI's API countries and Google's Gemini web app countries. Not listed means not officially served; open-weight models can be run anywhere.

Against North America and the worldregional figures are medians or population-weighted

MeasureCosta RicaNorth AmericaWorld
A $20 plan ÷ median living standard3.6%6.4%9.9%
People for whom it is over a tenth10%12%63%
Plan price ÷ GNI per person1.3%1.3%2.9%
People using the internet87%88%74%
Claude use per working-age person1.57×3.32×1.00×
Notable AI models built07521,256

What it is used forCosta Rica against the world

Report ↗
Costa Rica
Work 45%
Personal 33%
Coursework 21%
The world
Work 42%
Personal 41%
Coursework 17%
Share of the world's Claude use0.13%0.06% of the world's people
Work45%world 42%
Personal33%world 41%
Coursework21%world 17%
Handed over to the model (automation)49%world 48%

Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026: Claude.ai conversations by country. One product from one lab, so read it as a signal of who is using frontier models, not a census.

What people make with itshare of conversations

Document or report15%
Explanation or answer15%
Advice or recommendation9%
App or website5%

The most common things people in Costa Rica ask Claude to produce.

NeighboursCentral America · lightest burden first

CountryPeopleOnline$20 plan ÷ median living standardOver a tenthClaude use per personOfficial lists
Costa Rica5.2 m87%3.6%10%1.57×3 of 3
Panama4.6 m73%6.0%29%1.28×3 of 3
Mexico132 m83%6.6%27%0.63×3 of 3
Belize423k80%6.8%29%not reported3 of 3
El Salvador6.4 m66%9.9%50%0.59×3 of 3
Honduras11 m59%14%64%0.26×3 of 3
Guatemala19 m60%14%67%0.37×3 of 3
Nicaragua7.0 m61%no estimate–not reported3 of 3
All countries →

The foundationsCosta Rica against the world

World Bank ↗
People using the internet
87%world 74%
People with electricity
100%world 92%
Mobile subscriptions per 100 people
136world 112
Fixed broadband lines per 100 people
23.3world 20.1
Enrolled in university-level education
55%world 44%
Research spending, share of GDP
0.34%world 2.6%
Researchers per million people
508world 1,652
Secure internet servers per million people
2,000world 16,381

The latest World Bank figure for each measure. The tick marks the world figure.

A $20-a-month plan ($240 a year, US list price) against the median household living standard per person in each country. The median is from the latest national household survey (World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform), revalued from 2021 purchasing-power dollars into US dollars at recent prices and official exchange rates, assuming real living standards have not changed since the survey. Some surveys measure income and others consumption, which includes food people grow and housing they own, so this is a living standard, not cash to spare. Countries with no survey since 2015 or no defensible exchange rate are left blank.

World Bank household surveys ↗Anthropic countries ↗OpenAI countries ↗Gemini countries ↗Anthropic Economic Index ↗Epoch AI notable models ↗