Cost of living comparison
compared to
Panama vs. Puerto Rico Cost of Living Summary
Panama is 11.3% cheaper than Puerto Rico overall.
Panama vs. Puerto Rico Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Panama instead of Puerto Rico, you would:
pay 22.7% less for restaurants
|
Puerto Rico
|
Panama
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$15.10
|
$8.35
PAB8.35
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.01
|
$7.75
PAB7.75
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.58
|
$1.37
PAB1.37
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.35
|
$1.21
PAB1.21
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Panama - Cost of restaurants
pay 17.4% less for groceries
|
Puerto Rico
|
Panama
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.18
|
$2.21
PAB2.21
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.16
|
$6.02
PAB6.02
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.11
|
$6.86
PAB6.86
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.34
|
$2.47
PAB2.47
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.76
|
$3.58
PAB3.58
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.50
|
$2.13
PAB2.13
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.06
|
$0.60
PAB0.60
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.54
|
$1.40
PAB1.40
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.84
|
$1.51
PAB1.51
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.65
|
$0.96
PAB0.96
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.04
|
$0.99
PAB0.99
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Panama - Cost of groceries
pay 15.0% more for transportation
|
Puerto Rico
|
Panama
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.65
|
$3.87
PAB3.87
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$35.20
|
$23.75
PAB23.75
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,700.00
|
$23,416.67
PAB23,416.67
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$9.22
|
$20.20
PAB20.20
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Panama - Cost of transportation
pay 20.3% less for housing
|
Puerto Rico
|
Panama
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.46
|
$48.39
PAB48.39
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$800.93
|
$765.94
PAB765.94
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$580.00
|
$630.77
PAB630.77
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$242.07
|
$89.09
PAB89.09
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Panama - Cost of housing
pay 11.8% less for childcare
|
Puerto Rico
|
Panama
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$453.00
|
$363.00
PAB363.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,760.00
|
$9,411.11
PAB9,411.11
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Panama - Cost of childcare
pay 15.3% less for entertainment and sports
|
Puerto Rico
|
Panama
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.73
|
$1.95
PAB1.95
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.38
|
$3.54
PAB3.54
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.21
|
$5.48
PAB5.48
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.37
|
$51.47
PAB51.47
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.90
|
$5.97
PAB5.97
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Panama - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.5% less for clothing
|
Puerto Rico
|
Panama
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$42.97
|
$43.33
PAB43.33
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$54.22
|
$34.17
PAB34.17
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$81.06
|
$80.40
PAB80.40
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$96.00
|
$106.46
PAB106.46
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. Panama - Cost of clothing
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: June 2026
Change currency:
Compare further: Puerto Rico vs. Panama
Salary Calculator · Free tool
What salary would you need in Panama?
→
Quality of Life Comparison · 9 statistics
Make 16.7% less money in Panama
→
Size Comparison · See true size
Puerto Rico is about 8 times smaller than Panama.
→
Moving from Puerto Rico to Panama · UN DESA 2020
865 people born in Puerto Rico live in Panama.
→
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 Panama or Puerto Rico. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.