Cost of living comparison

compared to

Seoul vs. Panama City Cost of Living Summary

Seoul is 4.3% more expensive than Panama City.

Restaurants
pay 20.4% less in Seoul
Groceries
pay 49.5% more in Seoul
Transportation
pay 24.9% more in Seoul
Housing
pay 24.0% less in Seoul
Childcare
pay 6.7% more in Seoul
Entertainment and Sports
pay 7.0% more in Seoul
Clothing
pay 13.9% less in Seoul

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

Seoul vs. Panama City Cost Breakdown

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

pay 20.4% less for restaurants

 
Panama City
Seoul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $10.00
PAB10.00
$8.49
₩12,514
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$8.00
PAB8.00
$6.30
₩9,281
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.70
PAB1.70
$1.64
₩2,415

Improve prices ·

pay 49.5% more for groceries

 
Panama City
Seoul
Bread
1 loaf
$2.56
PAB2.56
$3.24
₩4,772
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.81
PAB5.81
$6.79
₩10,011
Milk (1 gallon) $6.82
PAB6.82
$7.85
₩11,566

Improve prices ·

pay 24.9% more for transportation

 
Panama City
Seoul
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.44
PAB3.44
$4.43
₩6,530
Monthly public transit pass $22.50
PAB22.50
$45.99
₩67,782
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $19,750.00
PAB19,750.00
$25,072.36
₩36,951,647

Improve prices ·

pay 24.0% less for housing

 
Panama City
Seoul
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$49.20
PAB49.20
$20.56
₩30,296
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,164.71
PAB1,164.71
$925.55
₩1,364,083
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $953.85
PAB953.85
$559.33
₩824,340

Improve prices ·

pay 6.7% more for childcare

 
Panama City
Seoul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $476.00
PAB476.00
$360.15
₩530,786
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $15,733.33
PAB15,733.33
$21,667.04
₩31,932,878

Improve prices ·

pay 7.0% more for entertainment and sports

 
Panama City
Seoul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $3.00
PAB3.00
$3.54
₩5,214
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.61
PAB3.61
$3.70
₩5,450
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$5.92
PAB5.92
$3.18
₩4,693

Improve prices ·

pay 13.9% less for clothing

 
Panama City
Seoul
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$50.00
PAB50.00
$49.77
₩73,344
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$47.50
PAB47.50
$39.49
₩58,201
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$89.55
PAB89.55
$74.94
₩110,450

Improve prices ·
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Panama vs. South Korea. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Panama and South Korea.

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

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Seoul 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.