Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Panama instead of Cuba, you would:
Health
live 1.5 years longer
In Cuba, the average life expectancy is 78 years (76 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In Panama, that number is 80 years (77 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024.
see 28.8% more spent on your healthcare
Cuba spends $2,575 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Panama spends $3,318 as of 2023.
be 76.1% less likely to die by suicide
Cuba has a suicide rate of 13.8 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Panama, it is 3.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 83.3% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Cuba, 0.6% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Panama, that number is 1.1% of people as of 2024.
be 64.1% more likely to be obese
In Cuba, 23.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Panama, that number is 37.7% of people as of 2024.
have 83.0% fewer doctors per person
Cuba has 95.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Panama has 16.2 as of 2022.
Economy
be 4.8 times more likely to be unemployed
In Cuba, 1.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Panama, that number is 8.4% as of 2025.
Life
have 84.1% more children
In Cuba, there are approximately 8.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Panama, there are 15.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 76.5% more likely to die during infancy
In Cuba, approximately 6.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Panama, on the other hand, 12.0 children do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 70.7% less on education
Cuba spends 8.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Panama spends 2.5% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 11.2% less on healthcare
Cuba spends 9.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Panama, that number is 8.3% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 33.3% less coastline
Cuba has a total of 3,735 km of coastline. In Panama, that number is 2,490 km.
Safety
be 35.2% more likely to die in a road accident
In Cuba, road accidents kill 5.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Panama, they kill 7.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 5.9 times more home broadband
Cuba has 3.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Panama has 18.1 as of 2023.
live with 96.2% less strain on fresh water
Cuba withdraws 24% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Panama withdraws 1% as of 2022.
use 85.7% more electricity
Cuba uses 1,462 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Panama uses 2,715 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 45.2% less likely to die from air pollution
In Cuba, air pollution causes 31.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Panama, it causes 17.0 as of 2019.
emit 43.5% more CO2
Cuba emits 1.9 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Panama emits 2.7 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Cuba vs. Panama
Panama: At a glance
How big is Panama compared to Cuba? See an in-depth size comparison.