Cost of living comparison

Sao Tome and Principe

compared to

Panama

Panama City vs. Sao Tome Cost of Living Summary

Panama City is 63.0% more expensive than Sao Tome.

Restaurants: pay 16.1% more in Panama City
Groceries: pay 2.3% more in Panama City
Transportation: pay 22.3% less in Panama City
Housing: pay 3.0 times more in Panama City
Childcare: pay 3.2 times more in Panama City
Entertainment and Sports: pay 23.7% more in Panama City
Clothing: pay 98.1% more in Panama City

The cost of childcare, housing, clothing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and groceries in Panama City are more expensive than in Sao Tome. Notably, childcare, housing, and clothing are significantly more expensive in Panama City.

Planning a move to Panama? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Panama City vs. Sao Tome Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Panama City instead of Sao Tome, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 16.1% more for restaurants

	Sao Tome	Panama City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.96 STD200K	$11.50 PAB11.50	+28.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.89 STD176K	$8.00 PAB8.00	+1.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.84 STD41,004	$1.97 PAB1.97	+7.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.25 STD27,770	$1.60 PAB1.60	+28.4%
Average			+16.1%

Sao Tome vs. Panama City - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.3% more for groceries

	Sao Tome	Panama City
Bread 1 loaf	$1.00 STD22,187	$2.52 PAB2.52	+152.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$9.80 STD218K	$6.18 PAB6.18	-36.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.87 STD131K	$7.09 PAB7.09	+20.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.85 STD108K	$2.75 PAB2.75	-43.4%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$8.89 STD198K	$3.07 PAB3.07	-65.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.70 STD37,881	$1.87 PAB1.87	+10.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.79 STD17,644	$0.82 PAB0.82	+4.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.63 STD36,419	$1.92 PAB1.92	+17.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.57 STD34,958	$1.86 PAB1.86	+18.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.31 STD29,299	$1.55 PAB1.55	+17.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.08 STD23,986	$1.96 PAB1.96	+81.8%
Average			+2.3%

Sao Tome vs. Panama City - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 22.3% less for transportation

	Sao Tome	Panama City
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$6.46 STD144K	$4.62 PAB4.62	-28.4%
Monthly public transit pass	??	$21.00 PAB21.00
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$24,634.18 STD549M	$21,262.00 PAB21,262.00	-13.7%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$22.43 STD500K	$16.98 PAB16.98	-24.3%
Average			-22.3%

Sao Tome vs. Panama City - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 3.0 times more for housing

	Sao Tome	Panama City
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$66.91 STD1M	$48.70 PAB48.70	-27.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$284.91 STD6M	$1,262.50 PAB1,262.50	+343.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$195.02 STD4M	$874.18 PAB874.18	+348.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$174.83 STD4M	$100.29 PAB100.29	-42.6%
Average			+199.3%

Sao Tome vs. Panama City - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 3.2 times more for childcare

	Sao Tome	Panama City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$228.62 STD5M	$543.33 PAB543.33	+137.7%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$2,194.77 STD49M	$9,641.50 PAB9,641.50	+339.3%
Average			+223.1%

Sao Tome vs. Panama City - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 23.7% more for entertainment and sports

	Sao Tome	Panama City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.70 STD37,799	$3.30 PAB3.30	+94.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.26 STD50,442	$4.11 PAB4.11	+81.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.26 STD50,420	$6.00 PAB6.00	+165.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$33.92 STD756K	$46.40 PAB46.40	+36.8%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$20.16 STD449K	$8.50 PAB8.50	-57.8%
Average			+23.7%

Sao Tome vs. Panama City - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 98.1% more for clothing

	Sao Tome	Panama City
Regular jeans Levi's brand	??	$66.67 PAB66.67
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$75.02 STD2M	$48.43 PAB48.43	-35.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	??	$94.62 PAB94.62
Men's business shoes (leather)	$18.36 STD409K	$111.67 PAB111.67	+508.1%
Average			+98.1%

Sao Tome vs. Panama City - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Sao Tome vs. Panama City

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Panama City?

More cost comparisons

Sao Tome vs.

Reykjavik

Sao Tome vs.

Beijing

Sao Tome vs.

Canberra

Sao Tome vs.

Vienna

Sao Tome vs.

Ottawa

Sao Tome vs.

Quito

Sao Tome vs.

London

Sao Tome vs.

Berlin

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Sao Tome and Principe vs. Panama. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Sao Tome and Principe and 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

Add prices for Sao Tome

Add prices for Panama City

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Panama City or Sao Tome. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.