Cost of living comparison

Panama

compared to

Papua New Guinea

Port Moresby vs. Panama City Cost of Living Summary

Port Moresby is 3.9% cheaper than Panama City.

Restaurants: pay 38.6% less in Port Moresby
Groceries: pay 4.1% more in Port Moresby
Transportation: pay 26.1% more in Port Moresby
Housing: pay 6.8% less in Port Moresby
Childcare: pay 0.3% less in Port Moresby
Entertainment and Sports: pay 3.1% less in Port Moresby
Clothing: pay 9.3% less in Port Moresby

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

Planning a move to Papua New Guinea? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Port Moresby vs. Panama City Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Port Moresby instead of Panama City, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 38.6% less for restaurants

	Panama City	Port Moresby
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$11.50 PAB11.50	$7.78 PGK35.37	-32.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.00 PAB8.00	$5.56 PGK25.27	-30.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.97 PAB1.97	$0.75 PGK3.41	-62.0%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.60 PAB1.60	$0.67 PGK3.03	-58.3%
Average			-38.6%

Panama City vs. Port Moresby - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 4.1% more for groceries

	Panama City	Port Moresby
Bread 1 loaf	$2.52 PAB2.52	$1.52 PGK6.91	-39.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.18 PAB6.18	$4.32 PGK19.64	-30.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.09 PAB7.09	$7.10 PGK32.28	+0.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.75 PAB2.75	$3.69 PGK16.78	+34.4%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.07 PAB3.07	$2.58 PGK11.75	-15.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.87 PAB1.87	$1.95 PGK8.88	+4.5%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.82 PAB0.82	$1.44 PGK6.57	+75.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.92 PAB1.92	$3.29 PGK14.97	+71.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.86 PAB1.86	$2.92 PGK13.29	+57.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.55 PAB1.55	$1.51 PGK6.88	-2.2%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.96 PAB1.96	$1.31 PGK5.96	-33.1%
Average			+4.1%

Panama City vs. Port Moresby - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 26.1% more for transportation

	Panama City	Port Moresby
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.62 PAB4.62	$3.78 PGK17.18	-18.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$21.00 PAB21.00	$22.22 PGK101.06	+5.8%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$21,262.00 PAB21,262.00	$50,004.77 PGK227K	+135.2%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$16.98 PAB16.98	$23.34 PGK106.12	+37.4%
Average			+26.1%

Panama City vs. Port Moresby - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 6.8% less for housing

	Panama City	Port Moresby
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$48.70 PAB48.70	$91.68 PGK416.89	+88.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,262.50 PAB1,262.50	$1,603.86 PGK7,293.44	+27.0%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$874.18 PAB874.18	$555.61 PGK2,526.59	-36.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$100.29 PAB100.29	$89.65 PGK407.67	-10.6%
Average			-6.8%

Panama City vs. Port Moresby - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 0.3% less for childcare

	Panama City	Port Moresby
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$543.33 PAB543.33	$842.47 PGK3,831.07	+55.1%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$9,641.50 PAB9,641.50	$6,176.41 PGK28,086.83	-35.9%
Average			-0.3%

Panama City vs. Port Moresby - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 3.1% less for entertainment and sports

	Panama City	Port Moresby
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.30 PAB3.30	$3.00 PGK13.64	-9.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.11 PAB4.11	$2.47 PGK11.24	-39.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$6.00 PAB6.00	$6.45 PGK29.31	+7.4%
Monthly membership at local gym	$46.40 PAB46.40	$61.49 PGK279.61	+32.5%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.50 PAB8.50	$8.89 PGK40.43	+4.6%
Average			-3.1%

Panama City vs. Port Moresby - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 9.3% less for clothing

	Panama City	Port Moresby
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$66.67 PAB66.67	$32.73 PGK148.82	-50.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$48.43 PAB48.43	$31.67 PGK144.02	-34.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$94.62 PAB94.62	$136.12 PGK619.02	+43.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$111.67 PAB111.67	$163.90 PGK745.35	+46.8%
Average			-9.3%

Panama City vs. Port Moresby - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

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: Panama City vs. Port Moresby

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Port Moresby?

More cost comparisons

Panama City vs.

Rome

Panama City vs.

Madrid

Panama City vs.

Paris

Panama City vs.

Reykjavik

Panama City vs.

Warsaw

Panama City vs.

London

Panama City vs.

Moscow

Panama City vs.

Hanoi

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Panama vs. Papua New Guinea. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Panama and Papua New Guinea.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Add prices for Panama City

Add prices for Port Moresby

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Port Moresby or Panama City. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.