Tap water in Panama

Not safe to drink

This reflects the CDC's travel health guidance for Panama; no WHO coverage figure is published for this country. National figures describe a country, not the tap in front of you.

What the sources say

US CDC Travelers' Health

Advises travellers that tap water is generally not safe to drink in Panama.

Numbeo

67.39/100 on the water drinkability and accessibility index, which Numbeo reads as “High”. This one is crowdsourced from residents rather than measured.

Lonely Planet

Tap water in Panama City is safe to drink, as is the water in most other parts of the country. However, you’re better off buying bottled water or purifying your own water in the provinces...

Tap water in Panama City is safe to drink, as is the water in most other parts of the country. However, you’re better off buying bottled water or purifying your own water in the provinces of Bocas del Toro and Guna Yala.

If you have the means, vigorous boiling for one minute is the most effective method of water purification. Another option is to disinfect water with iodine pills, or add 2% tincture of iodine to one quart or liter of water (five drops to clear water, 10 drops to cloudy water) and let stand for 30 minutes. If the water is cold, longer periods may be required.

This is a national picture, and it varies. Some cities treat their water to a standard the country as a whole does not reach. Where the water is not safe, boiling, filtering or sealed bottles are the usual options, and ice and raw salad washed in tap water carry the same risk as the water itself.

What bottled water costs you here

Drinking tap water instead of bottled would save one adult about 1139$ a year in Panama, and keep several hundred plastic bottles out of circulation.

Work out your own saving

Places in Panama

Water quality is local. These places have their own readings.

Elsewhere in North America