Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Colombia instead of Panama, you would:
Health
be 45.5% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Panama, 1.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Colombia, that number is 0.6% of people as of 2024.
be 34.0% less likely to be obese
In Panama, 37.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Colombia, that number is 24.9% of people as of 2024.
have 56.0% more doctors per person
Panama has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Colombia has 25.4 as of 2023.
live 1.9 years less
In Panama, the average life expectancy is 80 years (77 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024. In Colombia, that number is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
see 47.0% less spent on your healthcare
Panama spends $3,318 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Colombia spends $1,758 as of 2024.
be 50.8% more likely to die by suicide
Panama has a suicide rate of 3.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Colombia, it is 5.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 46.5% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Panama, 21.7% live below the poverty line as of 2023. In Colombia, however, that number is 31.8% as of 2024.
make 56.7% less money
Panama has a GDP per capita of $19,790 as of 2025, while in Colombia, the GDP per capita is $8,562 as of 2025.
Life
be 12.5% less likely to die during infancy
In Panama, approximately 12.0 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Colombia, on the other hand, 10.5 children do as of 2024.
be 59.5% more likely to die during childbirth
In Panama, approximately 37.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Colombia, 59.0 women do as of 2023.
have 16.5% fewer children
In Panama, there are approximately 15.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Colombia, there are 13.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 2.1 times more on education
Panama spends 2.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Colombia spends 5.3% of total GDP on education as of 2020.
Geography
see 28.8% more coastline
Panama has a total of 2,490 km of coastline. In Colombia, that number is 3,208 km.
Safety
be 2.1 times more likely to be murdered
Panama has a homicide rate of 11.7 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Colombia, that number is 24.9 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 2.2 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Panama, road accidents kill 7.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Colombia, they kill 16.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 4.0 times more strain on fresh water
Panama withdraws 1% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Colombia withdraws 4% as of 2022.
use 42.9% less electricity
Panama uses 2,715 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Colombia uses 1,551 kWh as of 2024.
Environment
emit 34.3% less CO2
Panama emits 2.7 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Colombia emits 1.8 tonnes as of 2024.
be 41.2% more likely to die from air pollution
In Panama, air pollution causes 17.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Colombia, it causes 24.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Panama vs. Colombia
Colombia: At a glance
How big is Colombia compared to Panama? See an in-depth size comparison.