Cost of living comparison

compared to

North Carolina vs. Panama Cost of Living Summary

North Carolina is 72.5% more expensive than Panama overall.

Restaurants: pay 64.1% more in North Carolina
Groceries: pay 41.5% more in North Carolina
Transportation: pay 43.7% more in North Carolina
Housing: pay 73.3% more in North Carolina
Childcare: pay 3.0 times more in North Carolina
Entertainment and Sports: pay 70.4% more in North Carolina
Clothing: pay 9.6% more in North Carolina

The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, transportation, and groceries in North Carolina are more expensive than in Panama. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in North Carolina.

North Carolina vs. Panama Cost Breakdown

If you lived in North Carolina instead of Panama, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 64.1% more for restaurants

	Panama	North Carolina
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.35 PAB8.35	$17.06	+104.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.75 PAB7.75	$10.47	+35.1%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.37 PAB1.37	$2.28	+66.3%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.21 PAB1.21	$1.82	+50.8%
Average			+64.1%

Panama vs. North Carolina - Cost of restaurants

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pay 41.5% more for groceries

	Panama	North Carolina
Bread 1 loaf	$2.21 PAB2.21	$3.79	+71.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.02 PAB6.02	$6.80	+12.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.86 PAB6.86	$3.73	-45.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.47 PAB2.47	$3.98	+61.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.58 PAB3.58	$5.20	+45.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.13 PAB2.13	$2.47	+15.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.60 PAB0.60	$0.71	+17.8%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.40 PAB1.40	$2.20	+56.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.51 PAB1.51	$2.38	+58.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.96 PAB0.96	$1.74	+81.2%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.99 PAB0.99	$1.80	+81.7%
Average			+41.5%

Panama vs. North Carolina - Cost of groceries

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pay 43.7% more for transportation

	Panama	North Carolina
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.87 PAB3.87	$2.98	-23.0%
Monthly public transit pass	$23.75 PAB23.75	$60.67	+155.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$23,416.67 PAB23,416.67	$33,588.64	+43.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$20.20 PAB20.20	$19.99	-1.0%
Average			+43.7%

Panama vs. North Carolina - Cost of transportation

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pay 73.3% more for housing

	Panama	North Carolina
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$48.39 PAB48.39	$72.77	+50.4%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$765.94 PAB765.94	$1,488.15	+94.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$630.77 PAB630.77	$1,261.77	+100.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$89.09 PAB89.09	$132.31	+48.5%
Average			+73.3%

Panama vs. North Carolina - Cost of housing

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pay 3.0 times more for childcare

	Panama	North Carolina
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$363.00 PAB363.00	$1,261.89	+247.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$9,411.11 PAB9,411.11	$24,633.15	+161.7%
Average			+204.6%

Panama vs. North Carolina - Cost of childcare

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pay 70.4% more for entertainment and sports

	Panama	North Carolina
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.95 PAB1.95	$5.12	+162.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.54 PAB3.54	$4.82	+36.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.48 PAB5.48	$7.77	+41.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$51.47 PAB51.47	$48.40	-6.0%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.97 PAB5.97	$12.98	+117.6%
Average			+70.4%

Panama vs. North Carolina - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 9.6% more for clothing

	Panama	North Carolina
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$43.33 PAB43.33	$49.30	+13.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$34.17 PAB34.17	$37.76	+10.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$80.40 PAB80.40	$88.37	+9.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$106.46 PAB106.46	$111.01	+4.3%
Average			+9.6%

Panama vs. North Carolina - 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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