Cost of living comparison

Japan

compared to

Panama

Panama vs. Japan Cost of Living Summary

Panama is 13.4% more expensive than Japan overall.

Restaurants: pay 43.1% more in Panama
Groceries: pay 4.4% more in Panama
Transportation: pay 20.9% less in Panama
Housing: pay 42.8% more in Panama
Childcare: pay 8.8% less in Panama
Entertainment and Sports: pay 12.3% less in Panama
Clothing: pay 10.2% more in Panama

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

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Panama vs. Japan Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Panama instead of Japan, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 43.1% more for restaurants

	Japan	Panama
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$6.75 ¥1,066	$8.20 PAB8.20	+21.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.10 ¥805	$8.90 PAB8.90	+74.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.13 ¥179	$1.41 PAB1.41	+24.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.76 ¥120	$1.30 PAB1.30	+72.3%
Average			+43.1%

Japan vs. Panama - Cost of restaurants

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pay 4.4% more for groceries

	Japan	Panama
Bread 1 loaf	$1.53 ¥241	$2.28 PAB2.28	+49.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.55 ¥877	$6.18 PAB6.18	+11.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.56 ¥879	$7.09 PAB7.09	+27.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.01 ¥318	$2.56 PAB2.56	+27.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.85 ¥450	$3.42 PAB3.42	+20.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.16 ¥342	$1.86 PAB1.86	-14.2%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.08 ¥171	$0.59 PAB0.59	-45.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.54 ¥243	$1.76 PAB1.76	+14.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.92 ¥303	$1.67 PAB1.67	-12.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.10 ¥174	$1.09 PAB1.09	-0.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.08 ¥170	$1.14 PAB1.14	+6.2%
Average			+4.4%

Japan vs. Panama - Cost of groceries

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pay 20.9% less for transportation

	Japan	Panama
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.11 ¥649	$4.34 PAB4.34	+5.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$63.20 ¥9,986	$23.00 PAB23.00	-63.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$21,047.50 ¥3M	$23,920.67 PAB23,920.67	+13.7%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$24.65 ¥3,895	$16.62 PAB16.62	-32.6%
Average			-20.9%

Japan vs. Panama - Cost of transportation

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pay 42.8% more for housing

	Japan	Panama
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$33.54 ¥5,300	$49.81 PAB49.81	+48.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$546.58 ¥86,367	$789.50 PAB789.50	+44.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$360.78 ¥57,008	$614.84 PAB614.84	+70.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$113.26 ¥17,897	$96.53 PAB96.53	-14.8%
Average			+42.8%

Japan vs. Panama - Cost of housing

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pay 8.8% less for childcare

	Japan	Panama
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$417.01 ¥65,893	$543.33 PAB543.33	+30.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$11,300.14 ¥2M	$7,213.83 PAB7,213.83	-36.2%
Average			-8.8%

Japan vs. Panama - Cost of childcare

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pay 12.3% less for entertainment and sports

	Japan	Panama
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.57 ¥406	$2.21 PAB2.21	-14.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.06 ¥483	$3.73 PAB3.73	+22.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.83 ¥605	$5.29 PAB5.29	+38.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$53.31 ¥8,424	$50.91 PAB50.91	-4.5%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$11.73 ¥1,853	$6.13 PAB6.13	-47.7%
Average			-12.3%

Japan vs. Panama - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 10.2% more for clothing

	Japan	Panama
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$46.32 ¥7,320	$45.56 PAB45.56	-1.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$31.33 ¥4,950	$36.71 PAB36.71	+17.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$59.45 ¥9,394	$69.81 PAB69.81	+17.4%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$81.04 ¥12,805	$88.33 PAB88.33	+9.0%
Average			+10.2%

Japan vs. Panama - 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

Compare further: Japan vs. Panama

Salary Calculator · Free tool

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Quality of Life Comparison · 22 statistics

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Size Comparison · See true size

Japan is about 5 times bigger than Panama.

Moving from Japan to Panama · UN DESA 2020

446 people born in Japan live in Panama.

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