Cost of living comparison

Cook Islands

compared to

Panama

Panama vs. Cook Islands Cost of Living Summary

Panama is 62.2% more expensive than Cook Islands overall.

Restaurants: pay 24.9% less in Panama
Groceries: pay 13.7% less in Panama
Transportation: pay 25.3% less in Panama
Housing: pay 2.4 times more in Panama
Childcare: pay 4.6 times more in Panama
Entertainment and Sports: pay 6.1% less in Panama
Clothing: pay 3.8% more in Panama

The cost of childcare, housing, and clothing in Panama are more expensive than in Cook Islands. Expenses including transportation, restaurants, groceries, and entertainment and sports are lower in Panama. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in Panama.

Panama vs. Cook Islands Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Panama instead of Cook Islands, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 24.9% less for restaurants

	Cook Islands	Panama
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.96 NZ$15.63	$8.45 PAB8.45	-5.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.21 NZ$14.33	$7.90 PAB7.90	-3.8%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.84 NZ$4.95	$1.54 PAB1.54	-45.7%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.09 NZ$3.65	$1.17 PAB1.17	-44.2%
Average			-24.9%

Cook Islands vs. Panama - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 13.7% less for groceries

	Cook Islands	Panama
Bread 1 loaf	$3.22 NZ$5.62	$2.19 PAB2.19	-31.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.15 NZ$8.99	$5.66 PAB5.66	+9.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.63 NZ$13.32	$6.43 PAB6.43	-15.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$5.76 NZ$10.06	$2.53 PAB2.53	-56.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.52 NZ$6.15	$3.54 PAB3.54	+0.6%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.35 NZ$2.35	$2.12 PAB2.12	+57.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.08 NZ$1.89	$0.61 PAB0.61	-43.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.62 NZ$2.82	$1.29 PAB1.29	-20.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$2.84 NZ$4.96	$1.16 PAB1.16	-59.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.08 NZ$1.89	$0.98 PAB0.98	-9.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.85 NZ$1.49	$1.01 PAB1.01	+18.1%
Average			-13.7%

Cook Islands vs. Panama - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 25.3% less for transportation

	Cook Islands	Panama
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$6.79 NZ$11.86	$3.92 PAB3.92	-42.2%
Monthly public transit pass	??	$25.00 PAB25.00
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$11,944.29 NZ$20,845.19	$18,916.67 PAB18,916.67	+58.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$212.01 NZ$370.00	$16.61 PAB16.61	-92.2%
Average			-25.3%

Cook Islands vs. Panama - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.4 times more for housing

	Cook Islands	Panama
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$104.21 NZ$181.87	$47.61 PAB47.61	-54.3%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$155.28 NZ$270.99	$747.76 PAB747.76	+381.6%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$155.28 NZ$270.99	$567.84 PAB567.84	+265.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$79.92 NZ$139.48	$69.20 PAB69.20	-13.4%
Average			+144.9%

Cook Islands vs. Panama - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 4.6 times more for childcare

	Cook Islands	Panama
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	??	$302.08 PAB302.08
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$1,433.32 NZ$2,501.42	$6,548.17 PAB6,548.17	+356.9%
Average			+356.9%

Cook Islands vs. Panama - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 6.1% less for entertainment and sports

	Cook Islands	Panama
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.23 NZ$9.12	$1.95 PAB1.95	-62.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.83 NZ$6.69	$3.39 PAB3.39	-11.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$14.93 NZ$26.06	$5.38 PAB5.38	-64.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$24.88 NZ$43.43	$57.20 PAB57.20	+129.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.87 NZ$11.99	$5.33 PAB5.33	-22.3%
Average			-6.1%

Cook Islands vs. Panama - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 3.8% more for clothing

	Cook Islands	Panama
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$66.89 NZ$116.73	$47.41 PAB47.41	-29.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	??	$34.81 PAB34.81
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	??	$81.21 PAB81.21
Men's business shoes (leather)	$73.46 NZ$128.20	$100.42 PAB100.42	+36.7%
Average			+3.8%

Cook Islands vs. Panama - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: March 2025

More cost comparisons

Cook Islands vs.

United States

Cook Islands vs.

Italy

Cook Islands vs.

Egypt

Cook Islands vs.

Austria

Cook Islands vs.

Poland

Cook Islands vs.

Ireland

Cook Islands vs.

Australia

Cook Islands vs.

United Kingdom

Share this

Compare by city

For example, try comparing the cost of living in Avarua vs. Panama City

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Add prices for Cook Islands

Add prices for Panama

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Panama or Cook Islands. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.