Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Dominican Republic instead of Panama, you would:
Health
be 18.4% less likely to be obese
In Panama, 37.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Dominican Republic, that number is 30.8% of people as of 2024.
have 49.3% more doctors per person
Panama has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Dominican Republic has 24.3 as of 2023.
live 5.9 years less
In Panama, the average life expectancy is 80 years (77 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024. In Dominican Republic, that number is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024.
see 64.8% less spent on your healthcare
Panama spends $3,318 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Dominican Republic spends $1,169 as of 2023.
be 27.7% more likely to die by suicide
Panama has a suicide rate of 3.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Dominican Republic, it is 4.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 39.1% less likely to be unemployed
In Panama, 8.4% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Dominican Republic, that number is 5.1% as of 2025.
be 20.3% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Panama, 21.7% live below the poverty line as of 2023. In Dominican Republic, however, that number is 17.3% as of 2025.
make 44.1% less money
Panama has a GDP per capita of $19,790 as of 2025, while in Dominican Republic, the GDP per capita is $11,059 as of 2025.
Life
have 11.0% more children
In Panama, there are approximately 15.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Dominican Republic, there are 17.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 3.4 times 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 Dominican Republic, 124.0 women do as of 2023.
be 2.3 times more 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 Dominican Republic, on the other hand, 27.7 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 25.1% more likely to have internet access
In Panama, approximately 72.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Dominican Republic, about 91.0% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 44.8% less on healthcare
Panama spends 8.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Dominican Republic, that number is 4.6% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 52.2% more on education
Panama spends 2.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Dominican Republic spends 3.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 48.3% less coastline
Panama has a total of 2,490 km of coastline. In Dominican Republic, that number is 1,288 km.
Safety
be 3.8 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Panama, road accidents kill 7.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Dominican Republic, they kill 27.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 38.2% less home broadband
Panama has 18.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Dominican Republic has 11.2 as of 2024.
live with 43.9 times more strain on fresh water
Panama withdraws 1% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Dominican Republic withdraws 40% as of 2022.
use 31.2% less electricity
Panama uses 2,715 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Dominican Republic uses 1,867 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 58.8% more likely to die from air pollution
In Panama, air pollution causes 17.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Dominican Republic, it causes 27.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Panama vs. Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic: At a glance
How big is Dominican Republic compared to Panama? See an in-depth size comparison.