expatwhy.

Cost of living in Panama City

One person can expect roughly $1,207 a month in Panama City, before flights and one-off setup costs.

one person, monthly

$1,207

family of four, monthly

$2,054

What that actually covers.

Monthly cost components for Panama City
ItemUSD / month
Rent, one bedroom

Modelled from a country baseline, not a quoted listing.

$650
Food and groceries$240
Utilities$110
Mobile data$20
Local transportverified$21
Coworking

14/day × 4 days/mo regional estimate

$56
Buffer

Headroom for everything not itemised above.

$110
Total$1,207

Estimate. Rent is modelled from a country baseline, not a quoted listing.

What this figure leaves out

Flights, visa fees, health insurance, a rental deposit (often one to three months up front), agency fees, furniture, and the first-month overlap where you pay for a short stay and a lease at the same time. Budget for those separately; they are a one-off cash need, not a monthly cost.

where these numbers come from

  • · Rent: national statistics offices and published rent indices where a source exists for the city, otherwise a country baseline.
  • · Everyday costs: published operator and transit tariffs, plus regional baselines where no city figure exists.
  • · Currency conversion: European Central Bank daily reference rates.

Last reviewed 2026-05-22. Full method, licences and the list of sources we rejected are on the methodology page.