Cost of living comparison
compared to
United States vs. Panama City Cost of Living Summary
United States is 42.1% more expensive than Panama City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 11.7% more in United States
- Groceries
-
pay 14.8% more in United States
- Housing
-
pay 3.6% more in United States
- Childcare
-
pay 2.7 times more in United States
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 16.7% more in United States
- Clothing
-
pay 38.4% more in United States
The cost of childcare, clothing, entertainment and sports, groceries, restaurants, and housing in United States are more expensive than in Panama City. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in United States.
United States vs. Panama City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in United States instead of Panama City, you would:
pay 11.7% more for restaurants
|
Panama City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$19.45
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.50
|
$11.12
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.12
|
$2.56
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.63
|
$2.00
|
|
Panama City vs. United States - Cost of restaurants
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 14.8% more for groceries
|
Panama City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.48
|
$3.56
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.49
|
$6.50
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.38
|
$3.97
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.49
|
$4.27
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.33
|
$5.41
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.99
|
$2.37
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.81
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.20
|
$2.04
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.90
|
$2.21
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.01
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.49
|
$1.38
|
|
Panama City vs. United States - Cost of groceries
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay (unknown) more for transportation
|
Panama City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.89
|
$3.41
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$135.00
|
$65.85
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$23,000.00
|
$32,336.38
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.05
|
$17.61
|
Panama City vs. United States - Cost of transportation
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 3.6% more for housing
|
Panama City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$66.08
|
$68.97
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,700.00
|
$1,664.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,500.00
|
$1,416.15
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$127.80
|
$150.19
|
|
Panama City vs. United States - Cost of housing
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 2.7 times more for childcare
|
Panama City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$400.00
|
$1,387.27
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,338.67
|
$23,196.46
|
|
Panama City vs. United States - Cost of childcare
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 16.7% more for entertainment and sports
|
Panama City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.00
|
$5.84
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.10
|
$5.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.00
|
$9.90
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$40.00
|
$51.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.00
|
$13.64
|
|
Panama City vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 38.4% more for clothing
|
Panama City
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$32.67
|
$51.08
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$35.00
|
$41.81
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$60.00
|
$87.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$85.00
|
$112.04
|
|
Panama City vs. United States - Cost of clothing
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
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
Change currency:
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 United States 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.