Groceries - is it any cheaper than the U.S.?
When we first arrived in Panama, we were honestly taken aback by the prices. After getting used to the budget-friendly shopping in Portugal—and being loyal Costco and Aldi shoppers back in the U.S.—the sticker shock was real. I had also just returned from three weeks in Poland, where everything felt surprisingly affordable, so the contrast was even sharper.
For context, we mostly eat a plant-based diet. I’m a vegetarian (with a few travel-inspired exceptions—like the occasional fish broth or roe in Japan), and my husband leans pescatarian, though he only eats fish occasionally.
This is also the most tropical destination we've lived in long-term, so you can find bananas, mangoes, papayas, and limes at super low prices. But it did take us a couple of weeks and a fair amount of trial and error at different grocery stores to figure out the best spots for different items. So here’s a quick breakdown of what we learned and a Sunday grocery shop that included most of what we would buy for about a week. We have been here for a month already, so we have many of the staples and will be heading back to the U.S. for 2 weeks on Sunday before returning here for 2.5 months.
This shopping was done at Riba grocery store - with is a large shop with many, many local brands. We spent 72$ on groceries and 44$ on gifts to bring home (4 bags of local coffee and 3 chocolate bars). One additional note, we generally walk to and from the store with backpacks and reusable bags, so if you take uber or drive, there will be a lot more accessible to you. However, once you scroll past this shopping, you will see there are a number of great options within walking distance.
Things that we normally buy that is just too expensive here so we significantly limit it: cheese, greek yogurt (you can find regular for a reasonable price), and berries. Other surprisingly expensive things: canned goods (especially beans, though you can find some for about 1.50$ a can), frozen veggies, any vegan ‘protein’ processed thing, and shrimp. Our oven has been non-functional in our airbnb the entire time we have been here, so we would normally have some frozen pizza for the nights that we are too tired to cook, but those were very expensive (more than it costs to get one delivered), so we didn’t miss out. Some things that were very reasonably priced - baked goods (bread, pastry), eggs, coffee, and bananas. We tried a few of the tropical fruits and I’m just not a giant fan - I don’t think I ever had any until I was an adult and just never got the taste for it - my son would be in heaven with all the fresh mango!
Our shopping included multiple locations with pics and notes below:
Felipe Motta Wine store: this is really the best place to get an assortment of different alcoholic beverages - found some lovely Argentinian wines and some low priced vinho verde (which is my favorite). Local brews and hard alcohol - all very reasonably priced - especially compared to the Foodie Mart or even the local grocery stores. They have a deli, fresh bread, and various imported and local goods. Not a full grocery, but a nice spot and we really liked their bread selection.
Foddie Mart: these are in numerous locations - think a small whole foods. Limited selection, but nice stuff. Lots of pre-packaged meals and snacks. We are staying in Marbella and I saw a much larger one in Punto Padilla. Expensive, but handy for the quick in and out. They do carry some of the nice generic brand (think Target style) that Rey also carries.
Rey: Great bakery and large organic section. Really a great store with a wide selection - we did a lot of shopping here and really like the quality of the store brand.
Ribba: The one closer to us wasn’t as nice as the one’s located in the malls, but it was our go-to spot when we wanted a lot of fruits/veg. This was the shop with the most reasonable prices and a wide selection of everything, but particularly fresh fruit and vegetables.
San Felipe Neri Public Market: This is the local market with various farmers stalls - the other side is fish/meats, which we didn’t go to. Normally, this would be the place I would do the majority of my shopping - I LOVE farmers markets! So much so, that that is practically a main priority when I’m selecting where I am going to stay. We went once, but it was such a pain to get to (in old town), that we haven’t been back. Prices were slightly less expensive, but the hassle of the walk has kept us away. There was another once closer - unfortunately it says it is permanently closed. It is Plaza Verde…I couldn’t tell if they were remodeling or it was really getting shut down.
Finally, if you are in Marbella, there is this tiny very nice fruit and veg stand. We got a number of things here - particularly some nice tomatoes. It was reasonably priced (cheaper than grocery) and supports another local.
