Cost of Living Comparison Between Costa Rica and Panama Reverse

For major cities in those countries you get more relevant data by specifying cities.
City in Costa Rica:
City in Panama:
Indices DifferenceInfo
Cost of Living in Panama is 12.1% lower than in Costa Rica (without rent)
Cost of Living Including Rent in Panama is 4.4% lower than in Costa Rica
Rent Prices in Panama are 22.1% higher than in Costa Rica
Restaurant Prices in Panama are 12.0% lower than in Costa Rica
Groceries Prices in Panama are 11.5% lower than in Costa Rica
Local Purchasing Power in Panama is 8.5% lower than in Costa Rica
Currency: Sticky Currency      Switch to metric measurement units
Restaurants
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit Difference
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 5,000.00 ₡
(9.78 $)
5,110.65 ₡
(10.00 $)
     +2.2 %
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 30,000.00 ₡
(58.70 $)
25,553.23 ₡
(50.00 $)
     -14.8 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 5,000.00 ₡
(9.78 $)
4,088.52 ₡
(8.00 $)
     -18.2 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 1,500.00 ₡
(2.94 $)
1,022.13 ₡
(2.00 $)
     -31.9 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 2,500.00 ₡
(4.89 $)
2,044.26 ₡
(4.00 $)
     -18.2 %
Cappuccino (regular) 1,973.82 ₡
(3.86 $)
1,779.41 ₡
(3.48 $)
     -9.8 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 1,106.36 ₡
(2.16 $)
787.33 ₡
(1.54 $)
     -28.8 %
Water (12 oz small bottle) 843.53 ₡
(1.65 $)
657.29 ₡
(1.29 $)
     -22.1 %
Markets
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 3,832.02 ₡
(7.50 $)
3,457.87 ₡
(6.77 $)
     -9.8 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 1,423.88 ₡
(2.79 $)
1,115.52 ₡
(2.18 $)
     -21.7 %
Rice (white), (1 lb) 536.20 ₡
(1.05 $)
548.87 ₡
(1.07 $)
     +2.4 %
Eggs (regular) (12) 1,753.36 ₡
(3.43 $)
1,322.72 ₡
(2.59 $)
     -24.6 %
Local Cheese (1 lb) 2,029.66 ₡
(3.97 $)
2,870.99 ₡
(5.62 $)
     +41.5 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 2,178.75 ₡
(4.26 $)
1,669.08 ₡
(3.27 $)
     -23.4 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 3,033.67 ₡
(5.94 $)
2,236.31 ₡
(4.38 $)
     -26.3 %
Apples (1 lb) 1,033.74 ₡
(2.02 $)
875.49 ₡
(1.71 $)
     -15.3 %
Banana (1 lb) 362.10 ₡
(0.71 $)
328.13 ₡
(0.64 $)
     -9.4 %
Oranges (1 lb) 707.11 ₡
(1.38 $)
654.05 ₡
(1.28 $)
     -7.5 %
Tomato (1 lb) 650.13 ₡
(1.27 $)
698.19 ₡
(1.37 $)
     +7.4 %
Potato (1 lb) 626.46 ₡
(1.23 $)
482.30 ₡
(0.94 $)
     -23.0 %
Onion (1 lb) 632.83 ₡
(1.24 $)
532.71 ₡
(1.04 $)
     -15.8 %
Lettuce (1 head) 509.29 ₡
(1.00 $)
1,077.32 ₡
(2.11 $)
     +111.5 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 1,229.62 ₡
(2.41 $)
782.86 ₡
(1.53 $)
     -36.3 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 8,000.00 ₡
(15.65 $)
4,855.11 ₡
(9.50 $)
     -39.3 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 1,202.36 ₡
(2.35 $)
582.33 ₡
(1.14 $)
     -51.6 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 1,420.34 ₡
(2.78 $)
1,118.69 ₡
(2.19 $)
     -21.2 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 2,500.00 ₡
(4.89 $)
2,938.62 ₡
(5.75 $)
     +17.5 %
Transportation
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 500.00 ₡
(0.98 $)
255.53 ₡
(0.50 $)
     -48.9 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 20,800.00 ₡
(40.70 $)
12,776.62 ₡
(25.00 $)
     -38.6 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 915.00 ₡
(1.79 $)
1,277.66 ₡
(2.50 $)
     +39.6 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 1,609.34 ₡
(3.15 $)
1,644.96 ₡
(3.22 $)
     +2.2 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 3,725.00 ₡
(7.29 $)
10,732.36 ₡
(21.00 $)
     +188.1 %
Gasoline (1 gallon) 2,825.39 ₡
(5.53 $)
1,828.50 ₡
(3.58 $)
     -35.3 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 18,250,000.00 ₡
(35,709.77 $)
10,157,409.98 ₡
(19,875.00 $)
     -44.3 %
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 17,597,551.20 ₡
(34,433.12 $)
11,454,473.33 ₡
(22,412.96 $)
     -34.9 %
Utilities (Monthly)
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 42,414.22 ₡
(82.99 $)
53,309.75 ₡
(104.31 $)
     +25.7 %
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data 13,055.89 ₡
(25.55 $)
15,086.34 ₡
(29.52 $)
     +15.6 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 27,373.44 ₡
(53.56 $)
24,932.65 ₡
(48.79 $)
     -8.9 %
Sports And Leisure
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 30,092.16 ₡
(58.88 $)
28,319.00 ₡
(55.41 $)
     -5.9 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 15,308.33 ₡
(29.95 $)
16,290.19 ₡
(31.88 $)
     +6.4 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 4,044.26 ₡
(7.91 $)
3,577.45 ₡
(7.00 $)
     -11.5 %
Childcare
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 281,676.81 ₡
(551.16 $)
238,603.31 ₡
(466.88 $)
     -15.3 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 4,839,221.87 ₡
(9,468.90 $)
5,482,928.74 ₡
(10,728.44 $)
     +13.3 %
Clothing And Shoes
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 37,822.13 ₡
(74.01 $)
25,808.76 ₡
(50.50 $)
     -31.8 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 28,063.83 ₡
(54.91 $)
19,852.90 ₡
(38.85 $)
     -29.3 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 60,380.65 ₡
(118.15 $)
42,986.22 ₡
(84.11 $)
     -28.8 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 54,450.81 ₡
(106.54 $)
53,874.73 ₡
(105.42 $)
     -1.1 %
Rent Per Month
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 396,662.75 ₡
(776.15 $)
453,078.47 ₡
(886.54 $)
     +14.2 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 276,750.03 ₡
(541.52 $)
340,337.12 ₡
(665.94 $)
     +23.0 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 755,095.50 ₡
(1,477.50 $)
918,689.82 ₡
(1,797.60 $)
     +21.7 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 525,603.57 ₡
(1,028.45 $)
674,076.65 ₡
(1,318.97 $)
     +28.2 %
Buy Apartment Price
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 125,435.43 ₡
(245.44 $)
111,117.56 ₡
(217.42 $)
     -11.4 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 69,607.55 ₡
(136.20 $)
73,370.01 ₡
(143.56 $)
     +5.4 %
Salaries And Financing
Costa Rica Edit Panama Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 508,208.53 ₡
(994.41 $)
444,504.57 ₡
(869.76 $)
     -12.5 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 10.38 6.36      -38.7 %
Last update: January 2025January 2025
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