Cost of living comparison

compared to

New Zealand vs. Panama Cost of Living Summary

New Zealand is 55.5% more expensive than Panama overall.

Restaurants: pay 44.5% more in New Zealand
Groceries: pay 18.8% more in New Zealand
Transportation: pay 68.7% more in New Zealand
Housing: pay 29.4% more in New Zealand
Childcare: pay 82.7% more in New Zealand
Entertainment and Sports: pay 2.2 times more in New Zealand
Clothing: pay 22.9% more in New Zealand

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

New Zealand vs. Panama Cost Breakdown

If you lived in New Zealand instead of Panama, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 44.5% more for restaurants

	Panama	New Zealand
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.45 PAB8.45	$13.47 NZ$23.51	+59.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.90 PAB7.90	$8.81 NZ$15.37	+11.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.54 PAB1.54	$2.16 NZ$3.78	+40.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.17 PAB1.17	$1.94 NZ$3.39	+66.6%
Average			+44.5%

Panama vs. New Zealand - Cost of restaurants

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pay 18.8% more for groceries

	Panama	New Zealand
Bread 1 loaf	$2.19 PAB2.19	$1.86 NZ$3.25	-14.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.66 PAB5.66	$3.77 NZ$6.58	-33.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.43 PAB6.43	$6.55 NZ$11.42	+1.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.53 PAB2.53	$5.92 NZ$10.34	+134.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.54 PAB3.54	$4.25 NZ$7.42	+20.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.12 PAB2.12	$1.15 NZ$2.00	-45.8%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.61 PAB0.61	$1.04 NZ$1.82	+70.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.29 PAB1.29	$1.31 NZ$2.28	+1.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.16 PAB1.16	$2.31 NZ$4.03	+99.6%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.98 PAB0.98	$0.90 NZ$1.57	-8.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.01 PAB1.01	$0.83 NZ$1.45	-17.5%
Average			+18.8%

Panama vs. New Zealand - Cost of groceries

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pay 68.7% more for transportation

	Panama	New Zealand
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.92 PAB3.92	$6.26 NZ$10.93	+59.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$25.00 PAB25.00	$69.15 NZ$120.69	+176.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$18,916.67 PAB18,916.67	$24,735.85 NZ$43,169.03	+30.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$16.61 PAB16.61	$17.90 NZ$31.24	+7.7%
Average			+68.7%

Panama vs. New Zealand - Cost of transportation

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pay 29.4% more for housing

	Panama	New Zealand
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$47.61 PAB47.61	$51.16 NZ$89.28	+7.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$747.76 PAB747.76	$1,007.66 NZ$1,758.58	+34.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$567.84 PAB567.84	$809.64 NZ$1,412.98	+42.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$69.20 PAB69.20	$91.68 NZ$159.99	+32.5%
Average			+29.4%

Panama vs. New Zealand - Cost of housing

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pay 82.7% more for childcare

	Panama	New Zealand
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$302.08 PAB302.08	$611.89 NZ$1,067.87	+102.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,548.17 PAB6,548.17	$10,661.07 NZ$18,605.71	+62.8%
Average			+82.7%

Panama vs. New Zealand - Cost of childcare

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pay 2.2 times more for entertainment and sports

	Panama	New Zealand
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.95 PAB1.95	$6.10 NZ$10.64	+212.6%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.39 PAB3.39	$3.30 NZ$5.76	-2.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.38 PAB5.38	$22.88 NZ$39.93	+325.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$57.20 PAB57.20	$38.53 NZ$67.24	-32.6%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.33 PAB5.33	$10.92 NZ$19.05	+104.7%
Average			+121.6%

Panama vs. New Zealand - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 22.9% more for clothing

	Panama	New Zealand
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$47.41 PAB47.41	$65.31 NZ$113.97	+37.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$34.81 PAB34.81	$40.78 NZ$71.18	+17.1%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$81.21 PAB81.21	$93.71 NZ$163.54	+15.4%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$100.42 PAB100.42	$121.74 NZ$212.47	+21.2%
Average			+22.9%

Panama vs. New Zealand - 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: March 2025

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