Cost of living comparison

Panama

compared to

Cook Islands

Cook Islands vs. Panama Cost of Living Summary

Cook Islands is 67.7% more expensive than Panama overall.

Restaurants: pay 43.3% more in Cook Islands
Groceries: pay 35.6% more in Cook Islands
Transportation: pay 5.0 times more in Cook Islands
Housing: pay 4.4% less in Cook Islands
Childcare: pay 78.1% less in Cook Islands
Entertainment and Sports: pay 66.3% more in Cook Islands
Clothing: pay 7.2% more in Cook Islands

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

Cook Islands vs. Panama Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 43.3% more for restaurants

	Panama	Cook Islands
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.45 PAB8.45	$8.96 NZ$15.67	+6.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.90 PAB7.90	$8.21 NZ$14.36	+4.0%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.54 PAB1.54	$2.84 NZ$4.96	+84.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.17 PAB1.17	$2.09 NZ$3.66	+79.1%
Average			+43.3%

Panama vs. Cook Islands - Cost of restaurants

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pay 35.6% more for groceries

	Panama	Cook Islands
Bread 1 loaf	$2.19 PAB2.19	$3.22 NZ$5.63	+46.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.66 PAB5.66	$5.15 NZ$9.01	-9.0%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.43 PAB6.43	$7.63 NZ$13.35	+18.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.53 PAB2.53	$5.76 NZ$10.08	+128.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.54 PAB3.54	$3.52 NZ$6.16	-0.6%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.12 PAB2.12	$1.35 NZ$2.36	-36.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.61 PAB0.61	$1.08 NZ$1.90	+77.0%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.29 PAB1.29	$1.62 NZ$2.83	+25.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.16 PAB1.16	$2.84 NZ$4.98	+146.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.98 PAB0.98	$1.08 NZ$1.90	+10.2%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.01 PAB1.01	$0.85 NZ$1.49	-15.3%
Average			+35.6%

Panama vs. Cook Islands - Cost of groceries

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pay 5.0 times more for transportation

	Panama	Cook Islands
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.92 PAB3.92	$6.79 NZ$11.88	+73.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$25.00 PAB25.00	??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$18,916.67 PAB18,916.67	$11,944.29 NZ$20,894.41	-36.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$16.61 PAB16.61	$212.01 NZ$370.88	+1176.1%
Average			+404.1%

Panama vs. Cook Islands - Cost of transportation

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pay 4.4% less for housing

	Panama	Cook Islands
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$47.61 PAB47.61	$104.21 NZ$182.30	+118.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$747.76 PAB747.76	$155.28 NZ$271.63	-79.2%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$567.84 PAB567.84	$155.28 NZ$271.63	-72.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$69.20 PAB69.20	$79.92 NZ$139.81	+15.5%
Average			-4.4%

Panama vs. Cook Islands - Cost of housing

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pay 78.1% less for childcare

	Panama	Cook Islands
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$302.08 PAB302.08	??
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,548.17 PAB6,548.17	$1,433.32 NZ$2,507.33	-78.1%
Average			-78.1%

Panama vs. Cook Islands - Cost of childcare

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pay 66.3% more for entertainment and sports

	Panama	Cook Islands
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.95 PAB1.95	$5.23 NZ$9.14	+168.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.39 PAB3.39	$3.83 NZ$6.70	+13.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.38 PAB5.38	$14.93 NZ$26.12	+177.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$57.20 PAB57.20	$24.88 NZ$43.53	-56.5%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.33 PAB5.33	$6.87 NZ$12.01	+28.8%
Average			+66.3%

Panama vs. Cook Islands - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 7.2% more for clothing

	Panama	Cook Islands
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$47.41 PAB47.41	$66.89 NZ$117.01	+41.1%
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)	$100.42 PAB100.42	$73.46 NZ$128.50	-26.8%
Average			+7.2%

Panama vs. Cook Islands - 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: March 2025

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