Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 37,806, settled in 1909. A regional job hub with 32,280 jobs.
Trash day: look up yoursPanama City grades D overall, 555th of 634 graded towns in Florida, mostly because of safety and health. Its crime rate is higher than 86% of U.S. towns, with 116 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Residents are less healthy than 80% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. What it does well: it is more walkable than 74% of U.S. towns. 39% of working residents work locally in Panama City, against 5% in Florida’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. Only 76 of Florida’s 779 towns score lower on hazard risk. Panama City is home to Gulf Coast State College.
Where Panama City beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far Panama City is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 422 in 1910, 32,939 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1850 and 3 maps from 1943 on.
7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Panama City, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 17, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Panama City.
Panama City draws workers from Lynn Haven and beyond and has a longer frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of Florida; it also has a long record of flood insurance claims.
32,280 jobs are based in Panama City, 2.3 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 21.4 minutes, against 28 across Florida.
About one in 3 of Panama City’s working residents works in town. 18% of residents live below the poverty line in Panama City. The top destinations are Panama City Beach (8%), Lynn Haven (7%) and Upper Grand Lagoon (4%).
| Panama City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 18% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $62,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 11% | 14% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Bay school district. Three of its 32 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| University Academy Sabl IncLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 711 | A+ |
| Bay High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,289 | C |
| Rising Leaders AcademyTop results in townGrades K–12 | Grades K–12 | 311 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within FL on state tests and graduation
27 miles of trail in 14 parks and preserves. The trail density in Panama City is 0.8 miles per square mile. The biggest park or preserve is Joe Moody Harris Park, at 29 acres.
| Panama City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1% | 3% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kenneth R. Hammons Park | 0.4 mi | 6 |
| 2. Oaks By The Bay Park | 0.3 mi | 5 |
| 3. Joe Moody Harris Park | 0.2 mi | 29 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
846 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 101 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 92% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 846 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Panama City.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Reported crimes fell from 1,182 to 612 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Panama City’s violent crime rate is 3 per 1,000 residents. Panama City reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 86% report less.
| Panama City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3 per 1,000 residents | 2.1 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 13 per 1,000 residents | 12.6 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
41% of Panama City adults sleep under 7 hours. Panama City beats the Florida average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 17. 19% of Panama City adults report frequent mental distress.
| Panama City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 37% | 36% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Panama City | FL |
|---|---|---|
| More smokers | 17.1% | 12.4% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.7% | 7.2% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 11.5% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The typical Panama City home is worth about $283,000, up 1.2% in a year, 25% below the Florida typical home.
| Panama City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 56% | 72% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,327 a month | $1,647 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The Panama City 5n weather station, 8 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 301 days: longer than most of the country, but shorter than 77% of Florida places with climate records. The Panama City 5n weather station, 8 miles away, records that about 67 days a year reach 90°: more than most of the country, but fewer than 87% of Florida places with climate records.
Panama City has warm winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 91°, January nights drop to 42° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Florida average. Panama City has grown 14% since 2020, to 37,806 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 26% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 34% across Florida.
| Panama City | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 39.5 years | 42.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 26% | 31% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 18% | 20% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 22% | 20% | 22% |
53% women, 47% men
About 90 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±1.5 points). Across Florida, 50.9% of residents are women. Median age: women 41.4, men 36.3.
| Panama City | FL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.4% | 10.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.3% | 9.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.6% | 8.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 16.5% | 12.7% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.6% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.1% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.7% | 13.4% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.4% | 11.7% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.4% | 9.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9.6% | 10.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 26.9% | 27.2% | 26% |
| Some college | 25% | 18.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.2% | 10.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 16.4% | 21.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 10% | 12.9% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
1 within 15 miles of the center of Panama City
About 5 of every 100 Panama City residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Florida.
Where Panama City’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
7 places in Panama City on the National Register of Historic Places.
45 notable people were born in Panama City.
City in Florida, United States
Panama City is a city in and the county seat of Bay County, Florida, United States. Located along U.S. Route 98, it is the largest city between Tallahassee and Pensacola. It is the most populous city in Bay County and a principal city of the Panama City–Panama City Beach, Florida metropolitan statistical area, which has a population around 200,534. According to the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 32,939 (excluding Panama City Beach).
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Panama City.
All 4 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its D; Springfield (C−) is closest.
| Town | FL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panama City | #555 | D | C | D | B | C− |
| Pretty Bayou | #158 | B− | C− | — | B | A |
| Cedar Grove | #196 | B− | B+ | — | B | C− |
| Lynn Haven | #122 | B | C− | B+ | B | B+ |
| Springfield | #499 | C− | B− | D | B | C− |
Pretty Bayou and Cedar Grove report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Panama City with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Panama City grades D overall, better than 8% of U.S. towns and #555 of 634 in Florida. It grades C− for health, D for safety and B for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 4 years of the area's median household income ($71,514 across the Panama City-Panama City Beach, FL metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
45 notable people were born here, including Carolyn Murphy and Janay DeLoach.
