Work & incomePanama
Median salary in Panama
What does the middle earner actually make in a month?
Panama's median salary is $1,409 PPP/mo — #39 of 78 countries on the atlas (higher is better). Period 2025.
$1,409PPP/mo
Source: ILO monthly earnings of employees (EAR_EMTA mean + EAR_EMTM median)
Half of Panama's employees earn less than $1,409 a month, half earn more — the middle of the pay scale, in local buying power.
Among 78 countries
- Rank
- #39 of 78
- higher is better
- Ranked behind
- 50 %
- 39 of 78 countries
In Americas: #5 of 19vs median $1,379 PPP/mo: +2 % (better)
The neighbourhood
| # | Country | Median earnings | vs Panama |
|---|---|---|---|
| 37 | Chile | $1,506 PPP/mo | +$96 PPP/mo |
| 38 | Costa Rica | $1,431 PPP/mo | +$21 PPP/mo |
| 39 | Panama | $1,409 PPP/mo | — |
| 40 | Uruguay | $1,349 PPP/mo | −$60 PPP/mo |
| 41 | Mauritius | $1,255 PPP/mo | −$154 PPP/mo |
Median monthly earnings of employees, PPP dollars (ILO) — the middle earner, not the average. The gap to mean earnings is the skew: the US mean is a third above its median, and that difference is real information.
How to read this figure
Median monthly earnings from the ILO’s twin flow — same collection and unit as the mean, but the MIDDLE earner: half earn less, half earn more. Compare the two and the gap is the pay-scale skew itself (the US mean sits about a third above its median; Norway’s barely a tenth). Distinct from median income, which is equivalised disposable household income after tax and transfers — this is gross pay per employee.