CrossBorders
Take the quiz
Head-to-head

Cartagena vs Panama City

Colombia flagCartagenaPanama flagPanama City

Cartagena and Panama City are compared across affordability, safety, healthcare, career, culture and food, and public life. Panama City has the broader all-round edge, while Cartagena leads on culture and food. The better fit depends on which of those relocation priorities matters most.

How they compare

AffordabilitySafetyHealthcareCareerCulturePublic life
  • Cartagena
  • Panama City
Affordability
71
72
Safety
43
57
Healthcare
52
57
Career
37
52
Culture & food
56
53
Public life & spaces
56
56
Overall
51
57

Objective 0–100 scores from source-backed CrossBorders data. Green marks the category leader; gold is the overall leader.

Built for you, not the average
Cartagena or Panama City? Depends on you.

The scores above weigh every category equally. Your life doesn't. Answer a few questions and we'll rank all 283 cities around your budget, work, and dealbreakers, and call the winner for you.

Answer a few quick questions and get your personal winner out of 283 cities.

Get my personal ranking

Category by category

Is Cartagena or Panama City cheaper to live in?

Cartagena 71Panama 72

Cartagena has the lower open-market one-bedroom rent on a new lease, at about €337 per month, compared with €529 in Panama City. Against one typical employee's mean net pay, Cartagena is solo unlikely at roughly 97%, while Panama City is sharing likely at roughly 74%.

Is Cartagena or Panama City safer?

Cartagena 43Panama 57

The widest gap in the set: Panama City at leads Cartagena. Panama's homicide rate runs low for Central America and its roads are safer than regional peers, while Cartagena's petty theft and after-dark caution weigh it down.

Does Cartagena or Panama City have better healthcare?

Cartagena 52Panama 57

Panama City leads modestly; it's a known regional medical-tourism destination with more English-speaking doctors, while Cartagena's private clinics are decent but thinner on capacity.

Is Cartagena or Panama City better for your career?

Cartagena 37Panama 52

Panama City pulls well ahead, its banking, logistics and canal-trade economy giving it real depth that Cartagena's small, tourism-leaning job market can't match.

Does Cartagena or Panama City have a better food and culture scene?

Cartagena 56Panama 53

Cartagena narrowly leads: its Caribbean music and old-city dining scene has more local texture than Panama City's international-crowd nightlife, which runs shallower on museums and arts.

Does Cartagena or Panama City have better public spaces and street life?

Cartagena 56Panama 56

Cartagena edges ahead again — its walled plazas and ramparts are among the finest in the Americas, while Panama City's Cinta Costera and Casco Viejo read tidier from a distance but sit behind humid grime and high dollarized prices.

The verdict

Choose Panama City for the broader all-round balance, especially if affordability matters most. Choose Cartagena if culture and food matters more. Compare their rent burden and day-to-day strengths before deciding.

Not sure which fits you?
Stop comparing averages. Compare against you.

Cartagena vs Panama City looks different once your budget, work, and dealbreakers are in the mix. Answer a few questions and we'll weigh 109 metrics across 283 cities around your answers.

Take the free questionnaire

Explore each city

Colombia flagLiving in CartagenaPanama flagLiving in Panama City

More comparisons

Bogotá vs CartagenaBridgetown vs CartagenaCali vs CartagenaCali vs Panama City
Before you commit
Spend a week in Panama City first.

The fastest way to test a shortlist is to go. A week on the ground tells you things no ranking can.

See places to stay in Panama City →

Partner links — we may earn a commission. Never affects your ranking.