Cost of living comparison

compared to

Panama City vs. Vientiane Cost of Living Summary

Panama City is 87.1% more expensive than Vientiane.

Restaurants: pay 2.9 times more in Panama City
Groceries: pay 60.3% more in Panama City
Transportation: pay 6.0% more in Panama City
Housing: pay 2.2 times more in Panama City
Childcare: pay 54.5% more in Panama City
Entertainment and Sports: pay 2.0 times more in Panama City
Clothing: pay 75.9% more in Panama City

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

Panama City vs. Vientiane Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Panama City instead of Vientiane, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 2.9 times more for restaurants

	Vientiane	Panama City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$2.31 LAK50,054	$10.00 PAB10.00	+333.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.54 LAK120,129	$8.00 PAB8.00	+44.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.62 LAK13,442	$1.70 PAB1.70	+173.9%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.42 LAK9,010	$1.33 PAB1.33	+221.3%
Average			+193.2%

Vientiane vs. Panama City - Cost of restaurants

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pay 60.3% more for groceries

	Vientiane	Panama City
Bread 1 loaf	$1.17 LAK25,309	$2.56 PAB2.56	+119.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$13.94 LAK302,259	$5.81 PAB5.81	-58.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.32 LAK158,700	$6.82 PAB6.82	-6.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.81 LAK39,281	$2.84 PAB2.84	+57.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.99 LAK64,879	$3.29 PAB3.29	+10.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.90 LAK19,424	$1.65 PAB1.65	+83.8%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.50 LAK10,847	$0.70 PAB0.70	+40.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.94 LAK20,357	$1.40 PAB1.40	+48.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.61 LAK13,168	$1.46 PAB1.46	+140.7%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.74 LAK16,044	$1.00 PAB1.00	+34.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.47 LAK10,090	$1.37 PAB1.37	+193.5%
Average			+60.3%

Vientiane vs. Panama City - Cost of groceries

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pay 6.0% more for transportation

	Vientiane	Panama City
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.18 LAK112,301	$3.44 PAB3.44	-33.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$50.18 LAK1,088,125	$22.50 PAB22.50	-55.2%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$28,736.24 LAK623,136,050	$19,750.00 PAB19,750.00	-31.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$10.86 LAK235,461	$26.50 PAB26.50	+144.1%
Average			+6.0%

Vientiane vs. Panama City - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.2 times more for housing

	Vientiane	Panama City
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$11.39 LAK246,932	$49.20 PAB49.20	+332.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$866.78 LAK18,795,832	$1,164.71 PAB1,164.71	+34.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$784.74 LAK17,016,800	$953.85 PAB953.85	+21.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$55.21 LAK1,197,166	$95.90 PAB95.90	+73.7%
Average			+115.4%

Vientiane vs. Panama City - Cost of housing

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pay 54.5% more for childcare

	Vientiane	Panama City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$338.54 LAK7,341,095	$476.00 PAB476.00	+40.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$9,334.55 LAK202,416,649	$15,733.33 PAB15,733.33	+68.5%
Average			+54.5%

Vientiane vs. Panama City - Cost of childcare

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pay 2.0 times more for entertainment and sports

	Vientiane	Panama City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.50 LAK32,535	$3.00 PAB3.00	+100.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$1.73 LAK37,539	$3.61 PAB3.61	+108.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$1.96 LAK42,546	$5.92 PAB5.92	+202.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$50.52 LAK1,095,580	$43.86 PAB43.86	-13.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.56 LAK77,163	$8.00 PAB8.00	+124.8%
Average			+104.4%

Vientiane vs. Panama City - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 75.9% more for clothing

	Vientiane	Panama City
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$27.70 LAK600,645	$50.00 PAB50.00	+80.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$69.25 LAK1,501,613	$47.50 PAB47.50	-31.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$58.22 LAK1,262,426	$89.55 PAB89.55	+53.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$42.19 LAK914,851	$126.88 PAB126.88	+200.7%
Average			+75.9%

Vientiane vs. Panama City - 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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