Shopping For A Credit Card? Read The Fine Print
If you are shopping for a credit card in Costa Rica, it is wise to read the fine print and compare products. Credomatic and Bancredito are top two card issuers, with 66 products, in the country in a market that offer 311 different credit card products.

Interest rates are a major influencing factor in when deciding on a card issuer and can range from a low of 24.75% to 50.40% per annum.

The state banks,  Banco de Costa Rica and Banco Nacional have the lowest interest rates, according to a study by the Ministerio de Economía.

However, what credit card customers have to watch out for is annual fees, which some credit card issuers charge their customers.

For example, CoopeSanRamón charges its customers ¢2.000 colones to issue a classiv Visa credit card, while Credomatic charges ¢98.600 (us$200) to issue its customers an American Express Platinum card.

Annual renewal fees can also add to the cost of carrying plastic. Coopegrecia charges Classic Visa cardholders a ¢1.750 colones renewal fee, while Credomatic charges ¢61.625 renewal for American Express Platinum cards.

Using a credit card at ATM's (automated teller machines) can also be costly, as some credit card companies charge between a 3% and 5% commission on cash withdrawls.

The credit card market is so big now in Costa Rica that several banks, like Banex is enticing customers of other banks to sign up with their products and is will to pay off the other bank in the process.

In Costa Rica, only Credomatic can issue American Express and Mastercard cards, in addition to Visa, while private and state banks can only issue Visa credit cards.  This is due to franchise agreements with Amex and Mastercard.

According to the Superintendencia General de Entidades Financieras, plastic is the cause of 90% of Costa Ricans going into debt, one of the highest levels in Central America.