Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in British Virgin Islands instead of Panama, you would:

Health

live 2.3 years less

In Panama, the average life expectancy is 80 years (77 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024. In British Virgin Islands, that number is 77 years (75 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.

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Life

have 48.2% fewer children

In Panama, there are approximately 15.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In British Virgin Islands, there are 8.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 28.3% more on education

Panama spends 2.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. British Virgin Islands spends 3.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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Geography

see 96.8% less coastline

Panama has a total of 2,490 km of coastline. In British Virgin Islands, that number is 80 km.

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Infrastructure

find 37.4% more home broadband

Panama has 18.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. British Virgin Islands has 24.9 as of 2024.

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Environment

emit 15.0% less CO2

Panama emits 2.7 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. British Virgin Islands emits 2.3 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2023–2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Compare further: Panama vs. British Virgin Islands

Cost of Living Comparison · 7 categories - 2026 data
British Virgin Islands is 56.7% more expensive than Panama overall
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Size Comparison · See true size
Panama is about 499 times bigger than British Virgin Islands.
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Moving from Panama to British Virgin Islands · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
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British Virgin Islands: At a glance

British Virgin Islands (sometimes abbreviated BVI) is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 151 sq km. First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency.
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How big is British Virgin Islands compared to Panama? See an in-depth size comparison.

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