Panama is known more for shipping, banking, low taxes, and beautiful sights. But the IT industry is not so far behind since the country is in the middle of digital transformation, and currently at the 4th stage of the “Smart Nation” project. Within this project, most of IT companies decided to settle there, and the existing ones have known successful progress. So after all, Panama is not only about taxes and beaches, but it has a developing IT sector. 

The main part of the tech sector relies on app development. Even back in 2014, Panama started to be an operational center for 250+ startups that were focused on developing apps for Google’s android, mainly. Later on, the country was a destination to set for multinational companies such as Dell, Ericsson, or ABB that continued to develop the IT industry inside the country. Panama doesn’t lack tech specialists, even if the country has ~4 million inhabitants. Since the tax policy is flexible and real estate is cheap, many skilled professionals from both Latin and North America consider Panama as a great place from where to work. 

Why working with a Panama-based IT company

Consider Panama as a non-national-based IT destination. Here, out of hundreds of IT startups and tech companies, only 30% are founded and lead by native inhabitants. The other 70% or so are international IT & software companies that relocated to a place comfortable for both workers and companies. 

In Panama, you can find the entire spectrum of IT services and companies that perform from midrange to top. Of course, these companies charge according to their service quality, but then again - try the US market and you will get extra prices for everything.  On top of everything, many Europeans found Panama as a great choice to start or continue their business. 

The local currency is equal to the USD which makes the country comfortable to work with. The average yearly salary of a web developer in Panama is ~39K USD, while the average hourly rate is ~18,8 USD. These are pretty competitive prices compared to the US or Bolivia, for example. 

What you should pay attention to when working with a Panama-based IT company

The huge company diversity in Panama can have both positive and negative impacts, especially for those interested in budget projects. Out of 560+ IT and software companies registered in Panama, many of them are still inexperienced in developing, design, marketing, or even simply B2B affairs. Yes, the risk of hitting an inexperienced company persists in every country, yet the chances here are bigger, due to the high number of startups that already call themselves “well-established web agencies”. 

How reliable are Panama-based IT companies

IT companies that lack experience, on their turn can create project difficulties, such as delays on project delivery, miscommunication, lower-than-average project management to name a few. This is why Tech Behemoths comes to help in analyzing and finding the right partner for your digital project. 

On the other hand, there are not few IT and software companies that gained a name on the international IT market and perform decent to world-class services for their clients and have a good portfolio. 

Generally, it all depends on the company, but certainly, Panama is a country not to miss when looking for a digital partner.