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This paper addresses the estimation of vertical vegetation density profiles from multibaseline interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) data from the AirSAR aircraft at C band over primary, secondary, and abandoned‐pasture stands at La Selva Biological Station, Costa Rica in 2004. Profiles were also estimated from field data taken in 2006 and lidar data taken with the LVIS, 25 m spot instrument in 2005. After motivating the study of tropical forest profiles based on their role in the global carbon cycle, ecosystem state, and biodiversity, this paper describes the InSAR, field, and lidar data acquisitions and analyses. Beyond qualitative agreement between profiles from the 3 measurement techniques, results show that InSAR and lidar profile‐averaged mean height have RMS scatters about field‐measured means of 3.4 m and 3.2 m, 16% and 15% of the average mean height, respectively. InSAR and lidar standard …