Cost of living comparison

Panama City, Panama

compared to

Asmara, Eritrea

Asmara vs. Panama City Cost of Living Summary

Asmara is 3.1% more expensive than Panama City.

Restaurants: pay 1.2% more in Asmara
Groceries: pay 22.4% more in Asmara
Transportation: pay 60.8% more in Asmara
Housing: pay 26.3% more in Asmara
Childcare: pay 88.8% less in Asmara
Entertainment and Sports: pay 67.2% less in Asmara
Clothing: pay 66.8% more in Asmara

The cost of clothing, transportation, housing, groceries, and restaurants in Asmara are more expensive than in Panama City. Expenses including childcare and entertainment and sports are lower in Asmara.

Asmara vs. Panama City Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Asmara instead of Panama City, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 1.2% more for restaurants

	Panama City	Asmara
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$13.25 PAB13.25	$18.14 ERN272.04	+36.9%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.00 PAB8.00	$5.99 ERN89.85	-25.1%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.86 PAB1.86	$1.83 ERN27.50	-1.3%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.41 PAB1.41	$1.33 ERN20.00	-5.5%
Average			+1.2%

Panama City vs. Asmara - Cost of restaurants

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pay 22.4% more for groceries

	Panama City	Asmara
Bread 1 loaf	$2.51 PAB2.51	$0.50 ERN7.50	-80.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.39 PAB6.39	$1.50 ERN22.50	-76.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.80 PAB6.80	$6.14 ERN92.11	-9.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.68 PAB2.68	$4.52 ERN67.80	+68.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.41 PAB3.41	$12.17 ERN182.57	+257.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.48 PAB1.48	$5.54 ERN83.16	+274.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.72 PAB0.72	$0.58 ERN8.69	-19.8%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.24 PAB1.24	$0.86 ERN12.85	-30.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.40 PAB1.40	$0.55 ERN8.32	-60.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.98 PAB0.98	$0.80 ERN11.94	-19.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.15 PAB1.15	$0.48 ERN7.26	-57.8%
Average			+22.4%

Panama City vs. Asmara - Cost of groceries

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pay 60.8% more for transportation

	Panama City	Asmara
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.69 PAB3.69	$8.83 ERN132.49	+139.3%
Monthly public transit pass	$25.00 PAB25.00	$8.00 ERN120.00	-68.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$19,750.00 PAB19,750.00	$66,666.00 ERN999,990.00	+237.5%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$16.71 PAB16.71	$5.73 ERN85.99	-65.7%
Average			+60.8%

Panama City vs. Asmara - Cost of transportation

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pay 26.3% more for housing

	Panama City	Asmara
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$52.10 PAB52.10	$200.00 ERN3,000.00	+283.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,023.81 PAB1,023.81	$475.00 ERN7,125.00	-53.6%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$755.88 PAB755.88	$400.00 ERN6,000.00	-47.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$94.84 PAB94.84	$21.03 ERN315.44	-77.8%
Average			+26.3%

Panama City vs. Asmara - Cost of housing

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pay 88.8% less for childcare

	Panama City	Asmara
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$439.17 PAB439.17	$25.00 ERN375.00	-94.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$10,092.67 PAB10,092.67	$1,675.00 ERN25,125.00	-83.4%
Average			-88.8%

Panama City vs. Asmara - Cost of childcare

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pay 67.2% less for entertainment and sports

	Panama City	Asmara
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.00 PAB3.00	$1.00 ERN15.00	-66.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.59 PAB3.59	$0.77 ERN11.58	-78.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.50 PAB5.50	$2.00 ERN30.00	-63.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$47.27 PAB47.27	$27.00 ERN405.00	-42.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$7.00 PAB7.00	$1.10 ERN16.50	-84.3%
Average			-67.2%

Panama City vs. Asmara - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 66.8% more for clothing

	Panama City	Asmara
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$53.91 PAB53.91	$82.50 ERN1,237.50	+53.0%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.78 PAB37.78	$75.00 ERN1,125.00	+98.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$87.62 PAB87.62	$200.00 ERN3,000.00	+128.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$108.75 PAB108.75	$95.00 ERN1,425.00	-12.6%
Average			+66.8%

Panama City vs. Asmara - Cost of clothing

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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: June 2025

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See the cost of living in Panama vs. Eritrea. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Panama and Eritrea.

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