Money
Currency: US dollar and Panamanian balboa
Checked · official siteWe checked the details on the place’s own or an official website.
Panama uses the US dollar for all notes, alongside its own balboa coins, which are worth the same as US coins. Prices are quoted in dollars or 'B/.' interchangeably.
Good to know
Bring plenty of $1, $5, $10 and $20 bills; change for a $100 can be refused. Balboa coins received as change are not usable back in the US.
Details
- Symbol
- B/. or $
- Legal tender
- US dollar (notes and coins); Panamanian balboa (coins; pegged 1:1 to USD)
- Card acceptance
- Visa and Mastercard widely accepted in the city; Metro accepts contactless cards
- Carry small bills
- Yes
- Counterfeit warning
- Fake US$50 and US$100 notes have circulated; many shops prefer small bills
- Exchange needed for U.S. visitors
- No
Sources
- travel.gc.ca (opens in a new tab) · checked Nov 5, 2026
- tocumenaero.com (opens in a new tab) · checked Nov 5, 2026
Talk to a person
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