Cost of living comparison

Panama

compared to

Panama City, Panama

Panama City vs. Panama Cost of Living Summary

Panama City is 19.0% more expensive than Panama overall.

Restaurants: pay 24.9% more in Panama City
Groceries: pay 4.9% more in Panama City
Transportation: pay 0.3% less in Panama City
Housing: pay 29.1% more in Panama City
Childcare: pay 49.8% more in Panama City
Entertainment and Sports: pay 15.2% more in Panama City
Clothing: pay 9.6% more in Panama City

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

Panama City vs. Panama Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 24.9% more for restaurants

	Panama	Panama City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.45 PAB8.45	$13.25 PAB13.25	+56.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.90 PAB7.90	$8.00 PAB8.00	+1.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.54 PAB1.54	$1.86 PAB1.86	+20.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.17 PAB1.17	$1.41 PAB1.41	+20.9%
Average			+24.9%

Panama vs. Panama City - Cost of restaurants

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pay 4.9% more for groceries

	Panama	Panama City
Bread 1 loaf	$2.19 PAB2.19	$2.51 PAB2.51	+14.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.66 PAB5.66	$6.39 PAB6.39	+12.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.43 PAB6.43	$6.80 PAB6.80	+5.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.53 PAB2.53	$2.68 PAB2.68	+5.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.54 PAB3.54	$3.41 PAB3.41	-3.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.12 PAB2.12	$1.48 PAB1.48	-30.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.61 PAB0.61	$0.72 PAB0.72	+18.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.29 PAB1.29	$1.24 PAB1.24	-3.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.16 PAB1.16	$1.40 PAB1.40	+20.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.98 PAB0.98	$0.98 PAB0.98	+0.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.01 PAB1.01	$1.15 PAB1.15	+13.8%
Average			+4.9%

Panama vs. Panama City - Cost of groceries

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pay 0.3% less for transportation

	Panama	Panama City
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.92 PAB3.92	$3.69 PAB3.69	-5.9%
Monthly public transit pass	$25.00 PAB25.00	$25.00 PAB25.00
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$18,916.67 PAB18,916.67	$19,750.00 PAB19,750.00	+4.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$16.61 PAB16.61	$16.71 PAB16.71	+0.6%
Average			-0.3%

Panama vs. Panama City - Cost of transportation

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pay 29.1% more for housing

	Panama	Panama City
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$47.61 PAB47.61	$52.10 PAB52.10	+9.4%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$747.76 PAB747.76	$1,023.81 PAB1,023.81	+36.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$567.84 PAB567.84	$755.88 PAB755.88	+33.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$69.20 PAB69.20	$94.84 PAB94.84	+37.1%
Average			+29.1%

Panama vs. Panama City - Cost of housing

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pay 49.8% more for childcare

	Panama	Panama City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$302.08 PAB302.08	$439.17 PAB439.17	+45.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,548.17 PAB6,548.17	$10,092.67 PAB10,092.67	+54.1%
Average			+49.8%

Panama vs. Panama City - Cost of childcare

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pay 15.2% more for entertainment and sports

	Panama	Panama City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.95 PAB1.95	$3.00 PAB3.00	+53.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.39 PAB3.39	$3.59 PAB3.59	+6.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.38 PAB5.38	$5.50 PAB5.50	+2.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$57.20 PAB57.20	$47.27 PAB47.27	-17.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.33 PAB5.33	$7.00 PAB7.00	+31.3%
Average			+15.2%

Panama vs. Panama City - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 9.6% more for clothing

	Panama	Panama City
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$47.41 PAB47.41	$53.91 PAB53.91	+13.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$34.81 PAB34.81	$37.78 PAB37.78	+8.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$81.21 PAB81.21	$87.62 PAB87.62	+7.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$100.42 PAB100.42	$108.75 PAB108.75	+8.3%
Average			+9.6%

Panama vs. Panama City - 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: May 2025

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