Quality of life comparison
If you lived in United States instead of Panama, you would:
Health
live 3.0 years longer
In Panama, the average life expectancy is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2022. In United States, that number is 81 years (78 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2022.
be 59.5% more likely to be obese
In Panama, 22.7% of adults are obese as of 2016. In United States, that number is 36.2% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 94.0% more money
Panama has a GDP per capita of $33,300 as of 2022, while in United States, the GDP per capita is $64,600 as of 2022.
be 55.5% less likely to be unemployed
In Panama, 8.2% of adults are unemployed as of 2022. In United States, that number is 3.6% as of 2022.
be 29.8% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Panama, 21.5% live below the poverty line as of 2019. In United States, however, that number is 15.1% as of 2010.
pay a 58.4% higher top tax rate
Panama has a top tax rate of 25.0% as of 2016. In United States, the top tax rate is 39.6% as of 2016.
Life
be 58.0% less likely to die during childbirth
In Panama, approximately 50.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In United States, 21.0 women do as of 2020.
be 68.6% less likely to die during infancy
In Panama, approximately 16.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In United States, on the other hand, 5.2 children do as of 2022.
have 29.9% fewer children
In Panama, there are approximately 17.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In United States, there are 12.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 35.3% more likely to have internet access
In Panama, approximately 68.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In United States, about 92.0% do as of 2021.
Expenditures
spend 56.4% more on education
Panama spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. United States spends 6.1% of total GDP on education as of 2020.
spend 93.8% more on healthcare
Panama spends 9.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In United States, that number is 18.8% of GDP as of 2020.
Geography
see 8.0 times more coastline
Panama has a total of 2,490 km of coastline. In United States, that number is 19,924 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Internal Revenue Service, The World Factbook, General Directorate of Revenues, Panama.
United States: At a glance
How big is United States compared to Panama? See an in-depth size comparison.