Cost of living comparison

compared to

Barbados vs. Panama Cost of Living Summary

Barbados is 41.4% more expensive than Panama overall.

Restaurants: pay 96.1% more in Barbados
Groceries: pay 75.9% more in Barbados
Transportation: pay 68.8% more in Barbados
Housing: pay 18.7% more in Barbados
Childcare: pay 25.1% less in Barbados
Entertainment and Sports: pay 46.5% more in Barbados
Clothing: pay 8.6% more in Barbados

The cost of restaurants, groceries, transportation, entertainment and sports, housing, and clothing in Barbados are more expensive than in Panama. Notably, restaurants and groceries are significantly more expensive in Barbados.

Barbados vs. Panama Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 96.1% more for restaurants

	Panama	Barbados
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.35 PAB8.35	$31.67 BBD63.33	+279.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.75 PAB7.75	$11.42 BBD22.83	+47.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.37 PAB1.37	$1.87 BBD3.74	+36.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.21 PAB1.21	$1.47 BBD2.94	+21.7%
Average			+96.1%

Panama vs. Barbados - Cost of restaurants

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pay 75.9% more for groceries

	Panama	Barbados
Bread 1 loaf	$2.21 PAB2.21	$2.88 BBD5.77	+30.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.02 PAB6.02	$3.66 BBD7.33	-39.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.86 PAB6.86	$13.79 BBD27.57	+101.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.47 PAB2.47	$5.88 BBD11.75	+138.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.58 PAB3.58	$6.08 BBD12.15	+69.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.13 PAB2.13	$2.01 BBD4.01	-6.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.60 PAB0.60	$1.44 BBD2.89	+141.0%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.40 PAB1.40	$2.77 BBD5.55	+97.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.51 PAB1.51	$2.63 BBD5.26	+74.7%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.96 PAB0.96	$2.27 BBD4.53	+136.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.99 PAB0.99	$1.90 BBD3.79	+91.5%
Average			+75.9%

Panama vs. Barbados - Cost of groceries

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pay 68.8% more for transportation

	Panama	Barbados
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.87 PAB3.87	$7.80 BBD15.61	+101.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$23.75 PAB23.75	$26.00 BBD52.00	+9.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$23,416.67 PAB23,416.67	$43,750.00 BBD87,500.00	+86.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$20.20 PAB20.20	$35.77 BBD71.55	+77.1%
Average			+68.8%

Panama vs. Barbados - Cost of transportation

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pay 18.7% more for housing

	Panama	Barbados
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$48.39 PAB48.39	$65.83 BBD131.67	+36.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$765.94 PAB765.94	$726.53 BBD1,453.07	-5.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$630.77 PAB630.77	$651.39 BBD1,302.78	+3.3%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$89.09 PAB89.09	$125.22 BBD250.44	+40.6%
Average			+18.7%

Panama vs. Barbados - Cost of housing

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pay 25.1% less for childcare

	Panama	Barbados
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$363.00 PAB363.00	$302.50 BBD605.00	-16.7%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$9,411.11 PAB9,411.11	$6,250.00 BBD12,500.00	-33.6%
Average			-25.1%

Panama vs. Barbados - Cost of childcare

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pay 46.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Panama	Barbados
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.95 PAB1.95	$2.67 BBD5.33	+36.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.54 PAB3.54	$4.82 BBD9.65	+36.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.48 PAB5.48	$7.87 BBD15.73	+43.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$51.47 PAB51.47	$74.38 BBD148.75	+44.5%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.97 PAB5.97	$10.25 BBD20.50	+71.8%
Average			+46.5%

Panama vs. Barbados - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 8.6% more for clothing

	Panama	Barbados
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$43.33 PAB43.33	$57.92 BBD115.83	+33.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$34.17 PAB34.17	$35.83 BBD71.67	+4.9%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$80.40 PAB80.40	$98.61 BBD197.22	+22.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$106.46 PAB106.46	$78.06 BBD156.11	-26.7%
Average			+8.6%

Panama vs. Barbados - Cost of clothing

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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

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