Panama City eSIM

In Panama City you connect to Mas Movil or Tigo, whichever is performing better where you are standing. The typical speed across the country is 36 Mbps. Your data starts working the moment you land, before you reach the immigration hall.

Networks: Mas Movil and Tigo
Typical speed in Panama: 36 Mbps typical, 8 Mbps at busy times
5G: 4G only
Throttle: None on metered plans
Tethering: Allowed on every plan

Plans that cover Panama City

Data plans for Panama
Data	Validity	Price per GB	Price
1 GB	Never expires	$14.89	$14.89
3 GB	Never expires	$10.63	$31.89
5 GBMost travellers	Never expires	$9.58	$47.89
10 GB	Never expires	$8.09	$80.89

A single carrier provider cannot make this move.

All Panama plans North America regional plan Panama coverage No service after landing

How Panama compares across North America

Regional typical speed: 33 Mbps
Upstream networks: 2, Mas Movil, Tigo
5G: 4G only
Next fastest nearby: Mexico, 44 Mbps
Next slowest nearby: El Salvador, 34 Mbps
Cities with their own page: 2: Panama City, Bocas del Toro

Landing at Tocumen International Airport (PTY)

Airport: PTY / MPTO
Distance: 24 km from the centre of Panama City
Wifi on arrival: Free wifi in the terminalThe airport lists free wifi limited to one hour, available in the public areas of the airport, which has two terminals.
Also serves: Marcos A. Gelabert International Airport (Albrook) (PAC)

Getting into Panama City

Panama Metro Line 2 airport branch (El Ramal) to Aeropuerto station (PTY)
Airport taxi (PTY)
Free shuttle bus between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 (PTY)
Corredor Sur toll road, Tocumen to San Francisco (PTY)

Underground and on the metro

Metro de Panamá runs 2 lines. It opened in 2014. The operator does not publish whether the tunnels carry a mobile signal, so we do not claim either way.

Worth knowing about Panama City

A branch of Metro Line 2 reached Tocumen airport only on 16 March 2023; Line 2's 18 stations are all elevated.
Panama City has two airports: Tocumen on the eastern outskirts for long-haul, and Albrook/Gelabert just 1.5 km west of the centre for domestic flights including Bocas del Toro.
Line 1 of the Panama Metro is part underground and part elevated: 7 of its 15 stations are underground, 7 elevated and 1 at grade.
Metro de Panama charges 35 cents a trip and its fare page states the trip must be paid using a Metro, MetroBus or RapiPass card.
Since 17 January 2023 the metro has also accepted contactless debit and credit cards at marked validators in Line 1 and Line 2 stations. You tap in, then validate again at the station where you finish.
The metro user guide tells riders to buy or recharge the card before travelling and says carrying it is essential.
Line 1 is 18 km with 15 stations and takes about 33 minutes end to end. Line 2 is 20.4 km with 18 stations, plus a 2.1 km three station branch to the airport.
Line 3 to Panama Oeste is a monorail. Its first phase runs 25 km from Albrook to Ciudad del Futuro with 11 stations and an underground section of roughly 5.3 km.
Line 3's underground stretch includes a 4.5 km tunnel beneath the Panama Canal, reaching a maximum of 65 metres below sea level.
Tocumen airport sits 24 km from the centre of Panama City. It is reached by the toll free Via Domingo Diaz, the tolled Corredor Sur, MetroBus route E489 and Metro Line 2.
The Corredor Sur opened in 2000 and runs about 19 km from Tocumen to the San Francisco district. Its tolls are paid through the Panapass electronic system.
The airport lists an official taxi cooperative with regulated, fixed prices by destination, with stands at the arrivals exit of both terminals. Panama Centro is listed at $30.
Since 15 November 2023 every prepaid mobile line in Panama must have the user's identity registered at activation, a rule set by the regulator ASEP.
ASEP describes prepaid registration as capturing an image of the buyer's national identity card or passport plus a photo of the face, validated by a biometric proof of life check with the buyer's consent.
Panama's government free wifi network is InternetParaTodos, run under the innovation authority AIG, with 1,320 free access points at public interest sites across 288 corregimientos.
To use it you select the InternetParaTodos network name. First time users get a registration portal to complete, and the platform then identifies them by device and email address.
Sparkle's Panama Digital Gateway in Panama City is an open cable landing and connectivity centre with 3,200 square metres of colocation space, over 600 racks and 5 MW of power.
The Metropolitan Natural Park covers 265 hectares inside Panama City, in the Ancon corregimiento on Juan Pablo II Avenue, and is described as the only wildlife refuge in the city.

Other cities in Panama we cover

Bocas del Toro: 301 km from Panama City, nearest airport BOC