Cost of living comparison

Saint Lucia

compared to

Panama

Panama City vs. Castries Cost of Living Summary

Panama City is 30.5% more expensive than Castries.

Restaurants: pay 14.5% more in Panama City
Groceries: pay 19.0% less in Panama City
Transportation: pay 19.4% less in Panama City
Housing: pay 2.2 times more in Panama City
Childcare: pay 2.6 times more in Panama City
Entertainment and Sports: pay 15.7% more in Panama City
Clothing: pay 10.1% less in Panama City

The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Panama City are more expensive than in Castries. Expenses including transportation, groceries, and clothing are lower in Panama City. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in Panama City.

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Panama City vs. Castries Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Panama City instead of Castries, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 14.5% more for restaurants

	Castries	Panama City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$9.25 EC$25.00	$11.50 PAB11.50	+24.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.33 EC$22.50	$8.00 PAB8.00	-3.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.94 EC$5.25	$1.97 PAB1.97	+1.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.97 EC$2.62	$1.60 PAB1.60	+64.7%
Average			+14.5%

Castries vs. Panama City - Cost of restaurants

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pay 19.0% less for groceries

	Castries	Panama City
Bread 1 loaf	$1.86 EC$5.02	$2.52 PAB2.52	+35.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.61 EC$15.17	$6.18 PAB6.18	+10.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.75 EC$20.95	$7.09 PAB7.09	-8.6%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.61 EC$12.47	$2.75 PAB2.75	-40.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.10 EC$11.09	$3.07 PAB3.07	-25.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.89 EC$10.50	$1.87 PAB1.87	-51.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.75 EC$2.02	$0.82 PAB0.82	+10.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$3.70 EC$10.00	$1.92 PAB1.92	-48.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$6.66 EC$18.00	$1.86 PAB1.86	-72.1%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.54 EC$4.17	$1.55 PAB1.55	+0.2%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.93 EC$2.50	$1.96 PAB1.96	+111.6%
Average			-19.0%

Castries vs. Panama City - Cost of groceries

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pay 19.4% less for transportation

	Castries	Panama City
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.83 EC$15.75	$4.62 PAB4.62	-20.7%
Monthly public transit pass	??	$21.00 PAB21.00
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$25,901.46 EC$70,000.00	$21,262.00 PAB21,262.00	-17.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	??	$16.98 PAB16.98
Average			-19.4%

Castries vs. Panama City - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.2 times more for housing

	Castries	Panama City
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$48.60 EC$131.33	$48.70 PAB48.70	+0.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$456.36 EC$1,233.33	$1,262.50 PAB1,262.50	+176.6%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$345.35 EC$933.33	$874.18 PAB874.18	+153.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$94.32 EC$254.90	$100.29 PAB100.29	+6.3%
Average			+119.9%

Castries vs. Panama City - Cost of housing

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pay 2.6 times more for childcare

	Castries	Panama City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$212.76 EC$575.00	$543.33 PAB543.33	+155.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	??	$9,641.50 PAB9,641.50
Average			+155.4%

Castries vs. Panama City - Cost of childcare

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pay 15.7% more for entertainment and sports

	Castries	Panama City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.78 EC$7.50	$3.30 PAB3.30	+18.9%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.70 EC$10.00	$4.11 PAB4.11	+11.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$9.25 EC$25.00	$6.00 PAB6.00	-35.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$41.63 EC$112.50	$46.40 PAB46.40	+11.5%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.55 EC$15.00	$8.50 PAB8.50	+53.1%
Average			+15.7%

Castries vs. Panama City - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 10.1% less for clothing

	Castries	Panama City
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$83.25 EC$225.00	$66.67 PAB66.67	-19.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$50.88 EC$137.50	$48.43 PAB48.43	-4.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$111.01 EC$300.00	$94.62 PAB94.62	-14.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$111.01 EC$300.00	$111.67 PAB111.67	+0.6%
Average			-10.1%

Castries vs. Panama City - Cost of clothing

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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