Map of Puntarenas, Costa Rica

Puntarenas is the administrative centre of Puntarenas Province, Costa Rica, with a population of about 35,650. It lies at 9.9769°N, 84.8379°W. Puntarenas is about 83 km (51 mi) west of San José, the capital. The nearest city on our map is Alajuela, 69 km to the east.

Puntarenas at a glance

Where is Puntarenas?

• The 6th largest city in Costa Rica by recorded population.
• Located in the Northern and Western hemispheres.
• Daylight ranges from about 11 h 32 min on the shortest day to 12 h 42 min on the longest day (around 21 December and 21 June).

Cities near Puntarenas

• Alajuela — 69 km east
• San José — 83 km east
• San Vicente — 86 km east
• Curridabat — 88 km east
• Liberia — 98 km northwest
• Paraíso — 108 km east
• San Isidro — 142 km southeast
• Nueva Guinea — 195 km north, Nicaragua
• Limón — 197 km east
• Granada — 249 km northwest, Nicaragua

Largest cities in Costa Rica

• San José — 335,007
• Limón — 63,081
• Alajuela — 47,494
• Liberia — 45,380
• Paraíso — 39,702
• San Isidro — 34,877
• Curridabat — 34,586
• San Vicente — 34,447

Map of Costa Rica and all its cities →

Sources: place names, coordinates, populations and time zones from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0, data retrieved October 2026). Population figures are the latest values recorded in GeoNames; depending on the country they refer to the city proper, a municipality or a wider urban area, so they can differ from census or metro-area figures. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.