Suicide Hotlines and Crisis Lines in Costa Rica

A helpline is a place to talk to someone when you are struggling, before or instead of a crisis. The lines on this page are answered by licensed psychologists. If you are not in Costa Rica, the worldwide list is organised by country.

What you share is kept private in almost all cases; if a counsellor believes a life is in immediate danger, they may arrange urgent help. What each service costs, and when it is answered, is set out beside it below.

TherapyRoute is a directory. We do not answer calls or messages ourselves, so please use the numbers below rather than contacting us if you need someone now.

CRISIS LINES, SUICIDE HOTLINES, AND HELPLINES IN COSTA RICA

Each number below was checked in September 2026 at the operating organisation's own website, or at the Costa Rican government page that runs the service.

Notice an error or a missing service? Please tell us so we can correct it.

Emergency numbers, and what 9-1-1 is for

Aquí Estoy, the national crisis line (800-AQESTOY)

Línea Aquí Estoy of the Ministry of Education, for students and their families

While you are waiting to be answered

If you are worried about someone else

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Emergency numbers, and what 9-1-1 is for

Costa Rica has a single emergency number, run by the Sistema de Emergencias 9-1-1.

All emergencies: 9-1-1

The system's own site states that it "has coverage across the entire national territory" and exists "to guarantee the life, safety and liberty of citizens". Both crisis lines on this page give the same instruction on their own sites: in case of emergency, call 9-1-1 immediately.

9-1-1 is the emergency number, not a counselling line. The staffed psychological-support desk that used to answer mental-health calls at 9-1-1 closed on 30 November 2022, and the Ministry of Health's closure notice states that 9-1-1 "will continue to answer calls where a person's life is at imminent risk". If a life is in danger, call it.

Aquí Estoy, the national crisis line (800-AQESTOY)

Aquí Estoy is run by the Colegio de Profesionales en Psicología de Costa Rica (CPPCR), the country's professional college of psychology. Its own site describes it as "a free service for attending to psychological and emotional urgencies such as anger, burnout, stress, anxiety, depression, situations of intra-family or partner violence among others, as well as addressing suicidal ideation or risk of suicidal behaviour". The Colegio states that calls are answered by "psychology professionals, duly registered with the Colegio".

The line is national: in the Colegio's own words, it "allows any person in the national territory to access, at no cost, a crisis-attention service". Since 2023 it answers on the number below, which replaced its previous number.

The line is not open around the clock. Its published hours are below, and its own site instructs: "In case of emergency call 9-1-1 immediately." Outside its hours, dial 9-1-1 or go to a hospital emergency department.

Tel: 800-AQESTOY, which dials as 800-2737869

Hours: Monday to Friday, 2:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., and Saturdays, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Cost: free, in the Colegio's own words: "atención gratuita", free attention.

Languages: not published. The service's own pages are in Spanish throughout.

Línea Aquí Estoy of the Ministry of Education, for students and their families

The Ministry of Public Education (MEP) runs a separate telephone service that shares the Aquí Estoy name but is a different line with different staff. It is for students enrolled in the Costa Rican education system and their families, and it is answered by MEP psychologists trained in psychological first aid.

The MEP's page states that it attends anxiety crises, signs of depression, situations of violence, changes in mood and difficulties in interpersonal relationships, and that it "also offers attention to those presenting self-inflicted injuries or risk of attempted suicide". It runs on weekday office hours only, and the same page routes after-hours callers to 9-1-1 and to the CPPCR line above.

Tel: 2459-1598

Tel: 2459-1599

Hours: Monday to Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Cost: free, in the ministry's own words: "un servicio de atención telefónica gratuita", a free telephone attention service.

Languages: not published.

While you are waiting to be answered

A line that is open can still be busy, and neither line above answers overnight or on Sunday. If you are waiting, try to stay with someone you trust, or ask someone to sit with you until the call connects.

If you have anything near you that you could use to harm yourself, put it somewhere harder to reach, or ask someone else to hold it for you. Distance and time both help.

If waiting is not possible, dial 9-1-1 or go to a hospital emergency department. You do not need an appointment and you do not need to explain yourself well.

If you are worried about someone else

Ask them directly. Asking someone whether they are thinking of suicide does not put the idea there, and it often comes as a relief to be asked plainly.

Listen more than you advise. You do not need the right words, and you are not expected to fix anything.

If they are willing, offer to sit with them while they call one of the numbers above, or to make the call together. If they are in immediate danger, treat it as you would any medical emergency.

Supporting someone through this is heavy, and it is reasonable to want support of your own. The Aquí Estoy line is for any person in the country, including someone worried about somebody else, and if the person you are worried about is a student, the MEP line includes their family.

For services in other countries, see the list of helplines and suicide hotlines worldwide.

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