Cost of living comparison

Panama

compared to

Laos

Laos vs. Panama Cost of Living Summary

Laos is 6.1% cheaper than Panama overall.

Restaurants: pay 59.5% less in Laos
Groceries: pay 11.5% less in Laos
Transportation: pay 36.3% more in Laos
Housing: pay 5.2% less in Laos
Childcare: pay 18.0% more in Laos
Entertainment and Sports: pay 38.1% less in Laos
Clothing: pay 17.3% more in Laos

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

Laos vs. Panama Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Laos instead of Panama, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 59.5% less for restaurants

	Panama	Laos
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.45 PAB8.45	$1.90 LAK40,847	-77.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.90 PAB7.90	$4.20 LAK90,527	-46.8%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.54 PAB1.54	$0.69 LAK14,865	-55.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.17 PAB1.17	$0.49 LAK10,455	-58.4%
Average			-59.5%

Panama vs. Laos - Cost of restaurants

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pay 11.5% less for groceries

	Panama	Laos
Bread 1 loaf	$2.19 PAB2.19	$1.00 LAK21,581	-54.2%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.66 PAB5.66	$13.03 LAK280,576	+130.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.43 PAB6.43	$6.40 LAK137,807	-0.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.53 PAB2.53	$2.06 LAK44,457	-18.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.54 PAB3.54	$2.07 LAK44,571	-41.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.12 PAB2.12	$0.75 LAK16,042	-64.8%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.61 PAB0.61	$0.74 LAK15,971	+21.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.29 PAB1.29	$0.96 LAK20,612	-25.8%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.16 PAB1.16	$1.29 LAK27,757	+11.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.98 PAB0.98	$0.70 LAK14,965	-29.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.01 PAB1.01	$0.45 LAK9,733	-55.1%
Average			-11.5%

Panama vs. Laos - Cost of groceries

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pay 36.3% more for transportation

	Panama	Laos
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.92 PAB3.92	$4.61 LAK99,159	+17.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$25.00 PAB25.00	$53.85 LAK1,159,444	+115.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$18,916.67 PAB18,916.67	$28,167.89 LAK606,454,659	+48.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$16.61 PAB16.61	$10.57 LAK227,648	-36.4%
Average			+36.3%

Panama vs. Laos - Cost of transportation

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pay 5.2% less for housing

	Panama	Laos
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$47.61 PAB47.61	$8.98 LAK193,415	-81.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$747.76 PAB747.76	$993.83 LAK21,397,116	+32.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$567.84 PAB567.84	$809.30 LAK17,424,306	+42.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$69.20 PAB69.20	$58.85 LAK1,266,944	-15.0%
Average			-5.2%

Panama vs. Laos - Cost of housing

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pay 18.0% more for childcare

	Panama	Laos
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$302.08 PAB302.08	$291.32 LAK6,272,218	-3.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,548.17 PAB6,548.17	$9,140.14 LAK196,787,306	+39.6%
Average			+18.0%

Panama vs. Laos - Cost of childcare

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pay 38.1% less for entertainment and sports

	Panama	Laos
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.95 PAB1.95	$1.11 LAK23,811	-43.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.39 PAB3.39	$1.62 LAK34,857	-52.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.38 PAB5.38	$1.78 LAK38,418	-66.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$57.20 PAB57.20	$66.31 LAK1,427,693	+15.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.33 PAB5.33	$2.97 LAK63,987	-44.3%
Average			-38.1%

Panama vs. Laos - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 17.3% more for clothing

	Panama	Laos
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$47.41 PAB47.41	$78.60 LAK1,692,221	+65.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$34.81 PAB34.81	$61.45 LAK1,322,958	+76.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$81.21 PAB81.21	$65.22 LAK1,404,175	-19.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$100.42 PAB100.42	$46.67 LAK1,004,805	-53.5%
Average			+17.3%

Panama vs. Laos - 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: July 2025

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