Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Albert Lea, MN and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,042 a month against $2,029 in Albert Lea, MN, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

97

Cost of Living Index in Albert Lea, MN
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Albert Lea, MN Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Albert Lea, MN

🇺🇸 United States

$2,029

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,042

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Albert Lea, MN and in Lima

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Albert Lea, MN and in Lima actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,029 in Albert Lea, MN versus $1,042 in Lima.

Albert Lea, MN $2,029
Lima $1,042

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,071 in Albert Lea, MN versus $1,651 in Lima.

Albert Lea, MN $3,071
Lima $1,651

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,113 in Albert Lea, MN versus $2,259 in Lima.

Albert Lea, MN $4,113
Lima $2,259

Living in Albert Lea, MN is roughly 95% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Albert Lea, MN is 50% above, Lima is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.35 $20.35

$4.64 PEN 15.95

338.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$101 $101

$34.34 PEN 118

195.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.14 $12.14

$7.01 PEN 24.12

73.18%

Cappuccino

$6.40 $6.40

$3.22 PEN 11.09

98.76%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 $3.01

$1.13 PEN 3.90

166.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 $2.46

$0.61 PEN 2.09

303.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.86 $4.86

$2.93 PEN 10.08

65.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.61 $5.61

$4.25 PEN 14.63

32.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 $0.92

$1.58 PEN 5.44

-41.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 $2.94

$2.61 PEN 8.98

12.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 $2.19

$1.30 PEN 4.47

68.46%

Eggs

$3.95 $3.95

$2.92 PEN 10.05

35.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.76 $8.76

$9.54 PEN 32.82

-8.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.16 $17.16

$5.71 PEN 19.66

200.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.05 $19.05

$9.47 PEN 32.58

101.16%

Apples (1kg)

$5.26 $5.26

$2.01 PEN 6.91

161.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 $1.57

$1.02 PEN 3.52

53.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.96 $4.96

$1.45 PEN 4.99

242.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.81 $3.81

$1.49 PEN 5.14

155.70%

Potato (1kg)

$2.81 $2.81

$0.91 PEN 3.14

208.79%

Onion (1kg)

$2.16 $2.16

$0.89 PEN 3.07

142.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.80 $2.80

$0.86 PEN 2.97

225.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.19 $2.19

$0.89 PEN 3.06

146.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.17 $10.17

$5.47 PEN 18.83

85.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.26 $15.26

$10.17 PEN 35.00

50.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 $1.69

$1.81 PEN 6.21

-6.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.34 $3.34

$3.15 PEN 10.84

6.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.87 $1.87

$0.66 PEN 2.28

183.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$51.6 $51.6

$31.89 PEN 110

61.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.97 $1.97

$3.43 PEN 11.79

-42.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.26 $1.26

$1.98 PEN 6.80

-36.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.33 $20.33

$9.60 PEN 33.04

111.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.71 PEN 5.89

-40.35%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$27.1K $27.1K

$21.9K PEN 75.3K

23.81%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$25.2K $25.2K

$29.0K PEN 100.0K

-13.20%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$184 $184

$65.8 PEN 227

179.57%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$53.1 $53.1

$15.26 PEN 52.5

248.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$75.6 $75.6

$26.87 PEN 92.5

181.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.78 $45.78

$32.91 PEN 113

39.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.12 PEN 69.2

Cinema Ticket

$10.08 $10.08

$7.12 PEN 24.49

41.57%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,294 $1,294

$309 PEN 1,064

318.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K $14.6K

$21.4K PEN 73.5K

-31.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.36 $45.36

$52.0 PEN 179

-12.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.27 $25.27

$35.69 PEN 123

-29.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.7 $50.7

$81.8 PEN 281

-38.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$61.0 $61.0

$78.0 PEN 268

-21.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,031 $1,031

$727 PEN 2,501

41.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$764 $764

$373 PEN 1,284

104.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,607 $1,607

$1,249 PEN 4,297

28.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,182 $1,182

$739 PEN 2,544

59.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,504 $2,504

$2,380 PEN 8,191

5.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,415 $2,415

$1,365 PEN 4,697

76.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,024 $3,024

$650 PEN 2,238

365.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.57

8.38

-21.60%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Albert Lea, MN: November 1, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Albert Lea, MN

$764 37.7%

Lima

$373 35.8% 51.2% $391

Groceries & Markets

Albert Lea, MN

$403 19.9%

Lima

$228 21.9% 43.4% $175

Eating Out

Albert Lea, MN

$333 16.4%

Lima

$127 12.2% 61.9% $207

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Albert Lea, MN

$313 15.4%

Lima

$108 10.4% 65.5% $205

Clothing & Footwear

Albert Lea, MN

$82 4%

Lima

$111 10.7% 35.7% $29

Getting Around

Albert Lea, MN

$67 3.3%

Lima

$48 4.6% 29% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Albert Lea, MN

$66 3.3%

Lima

$47 4.5% 28.5% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,031 in Albert Lea, MN and $727 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Albert Lea, MN pays about 4.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $101 in Albert Lea, MN vs $34 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $403 vs $228 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Albert Lea, MN

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

19:08 7:08 PM

20:08 8:08 PM

1 h ahead of Albert Lea, MN

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,758

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.891 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

PEN to USD in detail →

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Albert Lea, MN Lima 6,410 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Albert Lea, MN
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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Albert Lea, MN vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,029 in Albert Lea, MN and $1,042 in Lima, so Lima is about 49% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Albert Lea, MN is about 4.7 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,031 in Albert Lea, MN versus $727 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,294 in Albert Lea, MN versus $309 in Lima. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 77% higher in Albert Lea, MN. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,042 in Lima versus $2,029 in Albert Lea, MN, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Albert Lea, MN. The gap between the two cities makes Lima the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Lima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in Albert Lea, MN. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.