Old-age dependency ratio in Panama

Panama: Old-age dependency ratio was 13.8% in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
13.8%
Change on year
up 3.2%
World rank
113th
of 236 countries
All-time high
13.8%
in 2023
All-time low
6.2%
in 1957
Years of data
74
1950–2023

Old-age dependency ratio in Panama, 1950–2023

051015195019862023

Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Panama recorded 13.8% for old-age dependency ratio in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.2% on the previous year and up 31.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, old-age dependency ratio in Panama peaked at 13.8% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 6.2%, in 1957.

That places Panama 113th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.

Old-age dependency ratio in Panama, year by year

Annual values for Old-age dependency ratio in Panama, 1950 to 2023.
Year % Change
1950 6.5%
1951 6.4% -1.5%
1952 6.3% -0.9%
1953 6.3% -0.5%
1954 6.3% -0.3%
1955 6.3% -0.3%
1956 6.2% -0.2%
1957 6.2% -0.1%
1958 6.2% +0.0%
1959 6.3% +0.2%
1960 6.3% +0.3%
1961 6.3% +0.4%
1962 6.3% +0.5%
1963 6.4% +0.5%
1964 6.4% +0.4%
1965 6.4% +0.3%
1966 6.4% +0.3%
1967 6.4% +0.2%
1968 6.5% +0.2%
1969 6.5% +0.2%
1970 6.5% +0.2%
1971 6.5% +0.3%
1972 6.5% +0.3%
1973 6.5% +0.3%
1974 6.6% +0.4%
1975 6.6% +0.5%
1976 6.6% +0.6%
1977 6.7% +0.6%
1978 6.7% +0.6%
1979 6.7% +0.6%
1980 6.8% +0.7%
1981 6.8% +0.7%
1982 6.9% +0.7%
1983 6.9% +0.6%
1984 7.0% +0.6%
1985 7.0% +0.6%
1986 7.1% +0.5%
1987 7.1% +0.5%
1988 7.1% +0.5%
1989 7.2% +0.5%
1990 7.2% +0.6%
1991 7.2% +0.6%
1992 7.3% +0.7%
1993 7.3% +0.8%
1994 7.4% +0.8%
1995 7.5% +0.9%
1996 7.5% +0.9%
1997 7.6% +1.0%
1998 7.7% +1.1%
1999 7.8% +1.2%
2000 7.9% +1.3%
2001 8.0% +1.5%
2002 8.1% +1.7%
2003 8.3% +1.9%
2004 8.5% +2.0%
2005 8.6% +2.1%
2006 8.8% +2.2%
2007 9.0% +2.3%
2008 9.3% +2.4%
2009 9.5% +2.5%
2010 9.7% +2.5%
2011 10.0% +2.6%
2012 10.2% +2.6%
2013 10.5% +2.6%
2014 10.8% +2.7%
2015 11.1% +2.7%
2016 11.4% +2.7%
2017 11.7% +2.7%
2018 12.0% +2.8%
2019 12.4% +2.9%
2020 12.7% +2.6%
2021 13.0% +2.4%
2022 13.4% +2.8%
2023 13.8% +3.2%

Panama compared with similar countries

  • Panama's 13.8% is below the median for high income countries, which is 25.9%, 53% of the median. (85 countries reporting)
  • Panama's 13.8% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 14.7%, 94% of the median. (42 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 6.3% 6.2% 6.5% 10
1960s 6.4% 6.3% 6.5% 10
1970s 6.6% 6.5% 6.7% 10
1980s 7.0% 6.8% 7.2% 10
1990s 7.5% 7.2% 7.8% 10
2000s 8.6% 7.9% 9.5% 10
2010s 11.0% 9.7% 12.4% 10
2020s 13.2% 12.7% 13.8% 4

Countries ranked near Panama

  1. 110 Turkey 14.7% compare
  2. 111 Venezuela 14.5% compare
  3. 112 Tunisia 13.8% compare
  4. 114 Peru 13.5% compare
  5. 115 Colombia 13.4% compare
  6. 116 Kazakhstan 13.4% compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Panama

All data for Panama →

Frequently asked questions

What is old-age dependency ratio in Panama?
Old-age dependency ratio in Panama was 13.8% in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest old-age dependency ratio recorded in Panama?
The highest recorded value was 13.8% in 2023.
What is the lowest old-age dependency ratio recorded in Panama?
The lowest recorded value was 6.2% in 1957.
How does Panama rank for old-age dependency ratio?
Panama ranks 113th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
Is old-age dependency ratio rising or falling in Panama?
Over the last ten years it is up 31.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Panama data come from?
The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Old-age dependency ratio. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Old-age dependency ratio in Panama. Statizoid, drawing on UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/age-dependency-ratio-old/panama/

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About this data

Indicator
Old-age dependency ratio
Unit
%
Source
UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 17,464 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed

Number of people aged 65 and over per 100 working-age people (aged 15 to 64).