Cost of living comparison

Panama City, Panama

compared to

Seoul, South Korea

Seoul vs. Panama City Cost of Living Summary

Seoul is 14.2% more expensive than Panama City.

Restaurants: pay 29.8% less in Seoul
Groceries: pay 56.4% more in Seoul
Transportation: pay 21.7% more in Seoul
Housing: pay 16.4% less in Seoul
Childcare: pay 46.9% more in Seoul
Entertainment and Sports: pay 9.1% more in Seoul
Clothing: pay 11.7% more in Seoul

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

Seoul vs. Panama City Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 29.8% less for restaurants

	Panama City	Seoul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$13.25 PAB13.25	$7.88 ₩11,196	-40.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.00 PAB8.00	$6.09 ₩8,652	-23.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.86 PAB1.86	$1.59 ₩2,255	-14.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.41 PAB1.41	$0.84 ₩1,195	-40.4%
Average			-29.8%

Panama City vs. Seoul - Cost of restaurants

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pay 56.4% more for groceries

	Panama City	Seoul
Bread 1 loaf	$2.51 PAB2.51	$3.10 ₩4,399	+23.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.39 PAB6.39	$6.52 ₩9,272	+2.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.80 PAB6.80	$8.06 ₩11,452	+18.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.68 PAB2.68	$3.06 ₩4,346	+14.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.41 PAB3.41	$4.74 ₩6,731	+39.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.48 PAB1.48	$3.30 ₩4,687	+122.5%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.72 PAB0.72	$1.55 ₩2,202	+114.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.24 PAB1.24	$2.44 ₩3,469	+96.8%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.40 PAB1.40	$2.68 ₩3,816	+92.1%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.98 PAB0.98	$1.73 ₩2,459	+75.9%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.15 PAB1.15	$1.39 ₩1,971	+21.0%
Average			+56.4%

Panama City vs. Seoul - Cost of groceries

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pay 21.7% more for transportation

	Panama City	Seoul
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.69 PAB3.69	$4.59 ₩6,521	+24.3%
Monthly public transit pass	$25.00 PAB25.00	$44.40 ₩63,107	+77.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$19,750.00 PAB19,750.00	$27,023.07 ₩38,404,776	+36.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$16.71 PAB16.71	$8.02 ₩11,400	-52.0%
Average			+21.7%

Panama City vs. Seoul - Cost of transportation

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pay 16.4% less for housing

	Panama City	Seoul
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$52.10 PAB52.10	$22.27 ₩31,655	-57.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,023.81 PAB1,023.81	$883.18 ₩1,255,161	-13.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$755.88 PAB755.88	$490.54 ₩697,147	-35.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$94.84 PAB94.84	$133.35 ₩189,519	+40.6%
Average			-16.4%

Panama City vs. Seoul - Cost of housing

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pay 46.9% more for childcare

	Panama City	Seoul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$439.17 PAB439.17	$385.48 ₩547,839	-12.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$10,092.67 PAB10,092.67	$20,782.92 ₩29,536,370	+105.9%
Average			+46.9%

Panama City vs. Seoul - Cost of childcare

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pay 9.1% more for entertainment and sports

	Panama City	Seoul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.00 PAB3.00	$3.58 ₩5,089	+19.4%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.59 PAB3.59	$3.60 ₩5,119	+0.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.50 PAB5.50	$3.22 ₩4,580	-41.4%
Monthly membership at local gym	$47.27 PAB47.27	$53.73 ₩76,359	+13.7%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$7.00 PAB7.00	$10.74 ₩15,268	+53.5%
Average			+9.1%

Panama City vs. Seoul - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 11.7% more for clothing

	Panama City	Seoul
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$53.91 PAB53.91	$59.13 ₩84,031	+9.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.78 PAB37.78	$46.64 ₩66,290	+23.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$87.62 PAB87.62	$86.69 ₩123,207	-1.1%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$108.75 PAB108.75	$124.89 ₩177,493	+14.8%
Average			+11.7%

Panama City vs. Seoul - 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: April 2025

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