The Best Place for Digital Nomads in Costa Rica—Hands F**king Down

Hey, fellow digital nomad!!!!

You and I are cut from the same (delicious linen) cloth: like you, I’m also a digital nomad—I’ve been blogging at The Middle Finger Project and traveling the world full-time for 13 years now 🤯—and I also happen to have made Costa Rica one of my home bases (because, of course, I fell in love). (Don’t tell him, though: ten years later, I’m still playing hard to get. 😉)

As a digital nomad, you’ve got NEEDS.

Big, juicy WIFI needs.

(Trust me, I know: I have not one, but two internet providers hooked up to my apartment, just in case one goes kaput. 😂)

And so let me start with the good news: the connection in Costa Rica is really freaking great. Pretty much anywhere you go, they’re going to have free WIFI—and that includes to the tiny little sodas you stop at along the road. The only exception to this is if you’re venturing off into the mountains, wayyyyy off the beaten path, in which case you probably don’t care about WIFI anyway.

Even better news? Speed isn’t bad, either! I regularly give live webinars, with hundreds of people watching, from my apartment—which actually sounds really creepy now that I say it aloud, but you know what I mean. (I’m a creative writer, so I do workshops on that.) I’ve even imported a ring light, a teleprompter, and photography backdrops so I can make a little studio. And, I do tons of podcasts from here, too. And it’s all good.

Personally, we stream Netflix all the damn time without any problem—and also Outlander on Starz. 🙌🏻 (In fact, we became so obsessed with Outlander a few years ago that my tico partner, Carlos, and I actually flew from Costa Rica to Scotland—direct to Glasgow—and went to visit the castle. #NERDALERT 🤓.)

All of this has been my experience here in Manuel Antonio, where we live. I’ve also traveled all over the country and can report that quality is high across the board. I’ve taken Skype phone calls in Jacó, talked to my company lawyers in San José, given webinars in Puerto Viejo, and even did an interview with Jenny McCarthy in Santa Teresa. 💀 I’ve even streamed from allllllllll the way down in Corcovado. You’ll be grand in all of these places, though I’ll say this: the biggest digital nomad vibes are in Tamarindo, Santa Teresa, Jacó, and Manuel Antonio. (Though the internet is worse in Santa Teresa—it is, by far, the most remote. But it’s also FULL of young digital nomads, and you should probably go there, anyway.)

So, that’s the good news! Wherever you go, you will be more than FINE. (And also, definitely look into the design-forward Selina hostel brand if you’re looking to make friends—they have a sick network that goes throughout Central and South America and beyond, so it’s common for digital nomads to link up in, say, Selina Tamarindo, then travel together to Selina Jaco, then come down to Selina Manuel Antonio...or maybe even make it all the way to Selina Chile!)

Now, for the two caveats:

The power goes out here intermittently during rainy season—maybe once a week-ish. It doesn’t last long, usually only about an hour until the power company can fix it, but if you do a lot of live work via Zoom and things of that nature? You’re going to have to roll with the punches. Years ago, I even booked myself a conference room at a nearby hotel when I was giving a big presentation online IN THE EVENT THAT the power randomly went out—and sure enough, it freaking did. (I couldn’t believe it.) So, I raced to the hotel, which was powered by generators, and wouldn’t you know? Their generator had malfunctioned. Sooooooooo, basically I had to postpone the entire event and it was super embarrassing and unprofessional but this is just one of the things you’re going to have to get used to. The good news is that the power rarely goes out during the high season. (November - June.)
The speed isn’t going to be wicked, wicked lightning fast like it might be in the United States—and yet, I still don’t find this to be a problem. We have a place in Philly with SUPER DUPER FAST internet that I pay one trillion dollars for, and really, I haven’t noticed much difference. The only time this comes into play is when I need to upload video. If you need to upload a lot of video? You’re going to be screwed. That, I will say. *waves timidly to videographers worldwide* 🎥

All in all, though, my entire life is online and if I’ve been happy here?

You’ll be good, my friend!

Just don’t forget your computer charger—because those are harder to find. 😂