Is Panama City Safe? Honest Safety Guide for Expats (2026)

Safety is the first question most people ask about Panama City — and it deserves an honest answer rather than the cheerleading you get from expat promotion sites or the alarm you get from US State Department advisories written for worst-case scenarios.

Panama City vs Other Latin American Capitals

Context matters. Panama City’s homicide rate (~10–12 per 100,000) is significantly lower than San Pedro Sula, Tegucigalpa, Guatemala City, or Bogotá. It’s comparable to some US cities and well below the Latin American average. The expat neighborhoods specifically have rates much lower than the city average.

What Crime Looks Like for Expats in Practice

The vast majority of crime affecting expats is opportunistic petty theft — phone snatches, bag grabs, pickpocketing in crowded areas. The scenario that most expats actually experience, if anything, is someone grabbing a phone from an outdoor café table or a bag from a car seat. Violent robbery targeting foreigners does happen but is rare in the main expat neighborhoods.

• Don’t use your phone while walking in unfamiliar or lower-income areas
• Use Uber, not street taxis — especially at night. Uber drivers are tracked and rated.
• Don’t leave anything visible in a parked car — bags, laptops, anything
• Skip the flashy jewelry when out in public — it’s unnecessary in Panama’s heat anyway
• ATMs: use machines inside banks or malls, not street-facing ones at night

Is Panama City Safe for Solo Female Travelers and Expats?

Panama City is broadly safe for solo women in the main expat neighborhoods — significantly more so than many other Latin American cities. Catcalling exists (as it does throughout Latin America) but physical harassment targeting foreign women is uncommon in the expat areas. The same rules apply: Uber over taxis, avoid poorly lit areas at night, stay in the well-traveled tourist and expat corridors.

The Right Way to Think About Panama City Safety

Panama City rewards the same awareness you’d apply in any large city — Chicago, London, Buenos Aires. The people who have trouble are generally those who treat it like a small town (leaving bags unattended, wandering into unfamiliar neighborhoods at 2am, flashing expensive equipment). The expats who live there year after year rarely experience any serious incident.

For context on which neighborhoods make the most sense for expats, see our detailed Panama City neighborhoods guide.