Why it is here
Why Boquete is on the list.
A city is listed when there is evidence that people move there. This is the evidence.
- InterNations names Boquete as a popular expat location with rent ranges, and The Rio Times (June 2026) says it has a dense, organised expat community with clubs and a weekly community breakfast and has long drawn North American and European retirees; both are private. [E1] [E2]
- Chiriquí province, which contains Boquete, had 12,596 foreign-born residents in the 2023 census, 2.7% of its people, up from 7,494 (1.8%) in 2010. The table is by province, so it does not isolate Boquete. [M1]
The Fernshore Index
How it grades, factor by factor.
Each grade is against a published measure, with its source and the date we checked it. It is research information, not advice. Where we have no figure, the row says Unknown.
Cost of living
74 of 100StrongCountry figure
Price level 0.451 of United States prices (2025).
Source: Price level index (GDP), Panama. Checked 15 October 2026.
Climate
0 of 100WeakCountry figure
Panama City, the main city: 0 comfortable months a year. Mean daily highs are 32.6 to 35.4 °C in every month (WMO World Weather Information Service) and 32.6 to 35.3 °C at Tocumen, 1977 to 2010 (ETESA). Neither source is a 1991 to 2020 table; the result does not change with the period, because no month is at 30 °C or under.
Source: Climate information for Panama City (WMO World Weather Information Service); Caracterización climática para los distritos de Panamá y San Miguelito, según los datos de la estación meteorológica Tocumen. Checked 15 October 2026.
Safety
42 of 100MixedCountry figure
Global Peace Index 2026: 81st of 163.
Source: Global Peace Index 2026, A3 map poster with the overall ranking. Checked 15 October 2026.
Healthcare
73 of 100StrongCountry figure
WHO UHC service coverage index 82 (2023).
Source: UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1). Checked 15 October 2026.
Schools
UnknownCountry figure
Our research doesn't cover schools yet.
Community
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
Expat Insider 2026 Ease of Settling In: 2nd of 31.
Source: Expat Insider 2026: Ease of Settling In. Checked 15 October 2026.
Lifestyle
78 of 100StrongCountry figure
Expat Insider 2026 Quality of Life: 6th of 31.
Source: Expat Insider 2026: Quality of Life. Checked 15 October 2026.
Work and career
50 of 100MixedCountry figure
Mixed: a residence route for remote workers exists (the short-stay remote worker visa, nine months, renewable once), but fixed broadband is 18.13 per 100 people (2023), under the 30 line.
Source: Decreto Ejecutivo No. 198 de 7 de mayo de 2021, que crea la Visa de Corta Estancia como Trabajador Remoto (Gaceta Oficial Digital No. 29290-A, 20 May 2021); Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Panama. Checked 15 October 2026.
Retirement
85 of 100StrongCountry figure
Strong: Decreto Ejecutivo 320 of 2008 lists a permanent permit for pensioners with a lifetime pension of at least B/.1,000 a month (articles 10 and 200). No age minimum or deposit is stated. Later amendments were not checked.
Source: Decreto Ejecutivo No. 320 de 8 de agosto de 2008, articles 10 and 200 to 203 (Gaceta Oficial Digital No. 26104, 13 August 2008). Checked 15 October 2026.
Internet
40 of 100MixedCountry figure
18.13 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people (2023, the latest year with a value).
Source: Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Panama. Checked 15 October 2026.
English
28 of 100WeakCountry figure
EF EPI 2025 score 491, under the 499 anchor.
Source: EF English Proficiency Index 2025: Panama fact sheet. Checked 15 October 2026.
Visa, United States passport
UnknownCountry figure
Research for US passports is being checked
Visa, Canada passport
UnknownCountry figure
Research for CA passports is being checked
Visa, Australia passport
UnknownCountry figure
Research for AU passports is being checked
Visa, New Zealand passport
UnknownCountry figure
Research for NZ passports is being checked
The country
More on Panama.
Cities
Other cities in Panama.
Questions about Boquete.
How big is Boquete, and who lives there?
Boquete district had 23,562 residents in the 2023 census (21,370 in 2010). Chiriquí province had 12,596 foreign-born residents, 2.7% of its people, up from 7,494 in 2010; the table is by province. InterNations and The Rio Times, both private, describe an organised expat community that has long drawn retirees.
What does it cost to rent in Boquete?
One furnished three-bedroom house in El Francés asked B/.1,400 a month (advert updated 12 October 2026). We found no one-bedroom advert with full details, so a one-bedroom rent is unknown. InterNations, a private source, gives US$500 to 800 for a single-room flat. One advert is not a town average.
Is Boquete cooler than Panama City?
No 1991 to 2020 normals were found for Boquete. INEC's table for one year, 2006, shows the Los Naranjos station in the district averaging daily highs of 24.5 to 26.3 °C across the months, against 32.6 to 35.4 °C in Panama City (WMO). One year is not a normal, and no rainfall was read.
What should I know about earthquakes and crime near Boquete?
Boquete is in Chiriquí, in western Panama, which Canada calls an active seismic zone. Chiriquí is not among the provinces Canada names as worst hit on 9 October 2026, and Migración reported relief delivered there. Canada names David, the provincial capital, among places with violent crime.
What is healthcare like near Boquete?
We found no source on hospitals in Boquete or how far they are, so that is unknown. Canada says good care is in private hospitals and clinics in Panama City, public hospital quality varies and is limited outside the capital, and you may pay in advance in cash. WHO's national service index is 82 of 100 (2023).
Sources
Where each figure comes from.
Every figure on this page links to the page we read, with the date we checked it.
- [N1] Cuadro 3. Población en la República, según provincia, comarca indígena y distrito: censos de 2000, 2010 y 2023, Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censo (INEC), Contraloría General de la República. Checked 15 October 2026. Boquete district: 23,562 residents in the 2023 census (16,943 in 2000, 21,370 in 2010). Cuadro 10 on the same site splits it into six corregimientos, from Caldera 1,637 to Alto Boquete 8,111.
- [B1] Boquete, Chiriquí, Wikipedia (secondary). Checked 15 October 2026. Describes Boquete as a small mountain town on the Caldera River in Chiriquí province; coordinates 8.78 N, 82.44 W from the page summary, used for the map point only.
- [E1] Expats in Panama (InterNations Panama page), InterNations (private expat network, not official). Checked 15 October 2026. Says InterNations has 21,965 members in Panama. Its Q&A names Panama City, Boquete and Coronado as popular expat locations and gives rent ranges for each (single-room flat US$800 to 1,200 in Panama City, US$500 to 800 in Boquete, US$700 to 1,000 in Coronado). No publication date shown; read on 15 October 2026.
- [E2] Building a Social Life: Expat Communities in Panama, The Rio Times (news site, article by Ana Clara Santos, 17 June 2026; private, not official). Checked 15 October 2026. Descriptive; the article gives no headcounts. It says Boquete has a dense, organised expat community and has long drawn North American and European retirees; the Pacific beach corridor is anchored by Coronado and is a major retirement and second-home hub; the capital has the deepest concentration of international schools. Read through a page-summary tool, so the quotes are short.
- [T1] Cuadro 121-04. Promedio de temperatura registrada en algunas estaciones meteorológicas de la República, por mes, según provincia, estación y temperatura: año 2006, Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censo (INEC). Checked 15 October 2026. A single year (2006), not a normal. The Los Naranjos station (Los Naranjos is a corregimiento of Boquete district) averaged daily maximums of 24.5 to 26.3 °C across the months. Used only for the weather type; no rainfall was read, so no comfortable-month count was made.
- [M1] Cuadro 6. Población en la República y población nacida en el extranjero, según provincia y comarca indígena: censos 2010 y 2023, Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censo (INEC), Contraloría General de la República. Checked 15 October 2026. Foreign-born residents by province, 2010 and 2023: Panamá 107,676 (6.3%) to 172,499 (12.0%); Panamá Oeste 33,916 (5.2%) in 2023 (not shown separately in 2010); Chiriquí 7,494 (1.8%) to 12,596 (2.7%); Los Santos 918 to 2,424; Bocas del Toro 3,026 to 2,946. Provinces only: the table has no district or town figures.
- [C1] Price level index (GDP), Panama, World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2025: 45.08 (United States = 100), read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026 (data.worldbank.org pages were not used; the API was).
- [W1] Climate information for Panama City (WMO World Weather Information Service), World Meteorological Organization, World Weather Information Service (data supplied by Panama's national meteorological service). Checked 15 October 2026. Panama City station (9.05 N, 79.37 W). Monthly mean daily highs 32.6 to 35.4 °C (October lowest, April highest); rainfall 10.1 mm (February) to 330.7 mm (October). The service marks the rainfall record as 1971 to 2000 and gives no period for temperatures. These are not 1991 to 2020 normals; no month has a mean daily high of 30 °C or less, so there are 0 comfortable months.
- [W2] Caracterización climática para los distritos de Panamá y San Miguelito, según los datos de la estación meteorológica Tocumen, Empresa de Transmisión Eléctrica S.A. (ETESA), Gerencia de Hidrometeorología, Centro del Clima de Panamá (published on the site of the Instituto de Meteorología e Hidrología de Panamá, IMHPA). Checked 15 October 2026. Tocumen station, period 1977 to 2010 (not 1991 to 2020). Average daily maximum 32.6 °C (October) to 35.3 °C (April) in every month; rain 10.0 mm (February) to 329.6 mm (October), 1,917.4 mm a year. No month has a mean daily high of 30 °C or less. IMHPA's own climate pages (imhpa.gob.pa) show current data only, no 1991 to 2020 normals table was found.
- [S1] Global Peace Index 2026, A3 map poster with the overall ranking, Institute for Economics and Peace (Vision of Humanity). Checked 15 October 2026. Panama ranks 81st of 163 countries (score 1.976), down 6 places. Read from the poster; the full report PDF was not opened.
- [H1] UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1), World Health Organization. Checked 15 October 2026. Panama: 82 out of 100 (2023), read from the WHO GHO API (indicator UHC_INDEX_REPORTED) on 15 October 2026.
- [Q1] Expat Insider 2026: Ease of Settling In, InterNations (Expat Insider survey, private). Checked 15 October 2026. Panama ranks 2nd of 31 countries in the Ease of Settling In Index.
- [Q2] Expat Insider 2026: Quality of Life, InterNations (Expat Insider survey, private). Checked 15 October 2026. Panama ranks 6th of 31 countries in the Quality of Life Index.
- [K1] Decreto Ejecutivo No. 198 de 7 de mayo de 2021, que crea la Visa de Corta Estancia como Trabajador Remoto (Gaceta Oficial Digital No. 29290-A, 20 May 2021), República de Panamá, Ministerio de Seguridad Pública (published in the Gaceta Oficial). Checked 15 October 2026. Article 1: a short-stay (non-resident) visa for foreign remote workers with foreign-source income of at least B/.36,000 a year; nine months, renewable once for the same period; carnet B/.50. Article 2: B/.250 payment, insurance, a letter showing at least B/.3,000 a month, a sworn statement of no local job or service. The Gaceta is a scan; the text was read by OCR. The Servicio Nacional de Migración requirements sheet (migracion.gob.pa) could not be opened (the address returned a page-not-found). Later changes were not checked.
- [K2] Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Panama, International Telecommunication Union, via the World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2023: 18.13 per 100 people (2024 and 2025 have no value), read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
- [R1] Decreto Ejecutivo No. 320 de 8 de agosto de 2008, articles 10 and 200 to 203 (Gaceta Oficial Digital No. 26104, 13 August 2008), República de Panamá, Ministerio de Gobierno y Justicia (published in the Gaceta Oficial). Checked 15 October 2026. Article 10 lists the permanent permit for jubilado o pensionado. Article 200: a lifetime pension of at least B/.1,000 a month (B/.750 with a property worth more than B/.100,000). Article 201: certification letters and B/.250 per dependent. No age minimum is stated. This is the 2008 text; amendments (for example Decreto Ejecutivo 26 of 2009) were not checked.
- [F1] EF English Proficiency Index 2025: Panama fact sheet, EF Education First (private test-taker index). Checked 15 October 2026. Score 491, global rank 70 (global average 488). The live country page (ef.com/wwen/epi/regions/latin-america/panama/) shows the same score and rank on 15 October 2026.