Costa Rica colon Explained

Ashly Chole Senior Finance Researcher

Last Updated 26 March 2024

Costa Rica, colon

The Costa Rican colon is used as money. The Banco Central de Costa Rica (BCC) is the issuer of the nation's coinage, and it also produces the country's banknotes. 100 centavos, each of which is further split into 10 céntimos, make up the colón. The name 'Colón' stems from Christopher Columbus, who found what would become known as America and brought it back to Europe. He was given the title of this new sort of currency in honor of all that he accomplished for our nation, as well as the fact that it sounds lovely. Since its introduction, the colón has been in use. The colon took the place of Costa Rica's previous currency, the Spanish peso.

Costa Rica prints two different kinds of coins

A metal coin called a colón is used in Costa Rica. It is legal money in Costa Rica and has a value of one thousand colons. There are two different types of coins used in Costa Rica. The smaller than five-cent pieces that were produced have been melted down for their silver content and are no longer considered legal currency under Costa Rican law. Yet, some coin collectors continue to do so since they might be worthwhile to acquire if one can discover one in good condition (like nickels). In order to prevent losing them, these should be stored in a person's wallet or pocketbook.

A new series of coins using a copper and nickel composition was released by Costa Rica. Despite the fact that all denominations have been demonetized by law, they are nevertheless all in use today but are no longer accepted as payment. Moreover, Costa Rica doesn't use paper money. Only coins, including ones for 1 colon and 5 colones, are produced by the nation's central bank. The other side of the coin is the one that is most frequently encountered in daily life. A colón is worth one dollar in American currency (USD). The colón is Costa Rica's official currency.

The denominations of Costa Rican coins are 1, 5, 10, and 50 colones

1 colon, 5 colones, 10 colones, and 50 colones (colón) are the coin denominations used in Costa Rica. Coins with a face value of one colon to one hundred colones are the most prevalent variety. Former President Laura Chinchilla picked this design after traveling to Panama's Pacific coast, where the Guanacaste tree is a common sight. The artwork on the coin's obverse side depicts a Guanacaste tree with its leaves used as money, which symbolizes power and perseverance.

Juan Santamara y Pavón, who died defending Costa Rica against the U.S.-supported filibuster, is depicted on the reverse side riding a horse and soaring above San José while holding a sword pointed upward. The 10,000 colon note and the 500 colon note are the two most prevalent denominations of currency in use. A portrait may be seen on the bill's obverse side. An influential figure in Costa Rica's rise to independence as a politician and lawyer. Once the military regime was overthrown, he was also a key player in the nation's transition to democracy. Costa Rica's national slogan is encircled by a map of the country on the bill's reverse side.

The Banco Central of Costa Rica prints denominations of banknotes

The 1, 5, 10, and 50 colon banknotes are printed by the Banco Central de Costa Rica. Moreover, banknotes can be exchanged for their corresponding face values at any branch of the Banco de Costa Rica or one of its subsidiaries (Banco Minero). The diameter of the coins produced by the central bank ranges from 27 to 29 mm, and they are all constructed of steel with copper plating. They don't have dates on them, but they do have holographic stamping and serial numbers that start with '01,' followed by two digits that indicate the year and month, followed by two digits that indicate the day.

In Costa Rica, five-coin notes are accepted as payment

The currency of Costa Rica is coins. For minor transactions like buying a cup of coffee, they are employed. Coins cannot be exchanged for any other money and have no intrinsic worth. In significant transactions or as change when making purchases at merchants that do not take credit or debit cards, coins with metallic content (gold, silver) are frequently utilized. A sort of currency known as a 'barril' is also available in addition to these metal coins; it is made of glass but has also been found to contain gold. A country can only accept currency that was issued there.

A bank is a place where one may exchange money

One cannot travel to another country with their colón and expect that they will accept it since one must use the money of the nation in which it was issued. Furthermore, even if a person were to acquire any Costa Rican money there (and they would likely just let trade happen), they might not be able to convert the colón back into US dollars or euros, which implies that nobody will ever take a person's dollars or euros.

The usage of US dollars or euros as colones has occasionally been attempted by tourists to Costa Rica. This is absolutely not acceptable and will likely result in some very irate Costa Ricans reminding the offender that they only accept their own cash. If you're going to Costa Rica, bring enough cash in colones to get by throughout the vacation. If a person wants more cash than some ATMs can distribute, it's preferable to visit a bank. Some ATMs may have a restriction on the quantity of money they can dispense.