Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arequipa and Vancouver

For one person, living is cheaper in Arequipa: $696 a month against $2,683 in Vancouver, rent and utilities included – about $23,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Arequipa
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Arequipa Living Index
128

Cost of Living Index in Vancouver
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Vancouver Living Index

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Arequipa

🇵🇪 Peru

$696

/mo nomad

Vancouver

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,683

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Arequipa and in Vancouver

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

A single person spends $696 per month in Arequipa vs $2,683 in Vancouver, rent included.

Arequipa $696
Vancouver $2,683

A couple spends around $1,094 per month in Arequipa vs $3,963 in Vancouver, rent included.

Arequipa $1,094
Vancouver $3,963

A family of three spends $1,492 per month in Arequipa vs $5,244 in Vancouver, rent included.

Arequipa $1,492
Vancouver $5,244

Arequipa is about 74% cheaper than Vancouver, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Arequipa sits 49% below the global median, while Vancouver is 98% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.39 PEN 11.67

$18.10 CA$25.37

-81.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.99 PEN 89.5

$71.0 CA$99.5

-63.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.73 PEN 19.71

$10.57 CA$14.81

-45.79%

Cappuccino

$2.50 PEN 8.61

$3.97 CA$5.56

-37.03%

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

$0.82 PEN 2.81

$2.07 CA$2.90

-60.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.38 PEN 1.32

$1.85 CA$2.59

-79.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.04 PEN 7.04

$5.67 CA$7.95

-64.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.90 PEN 9.99

$6.61 CA$9.27

-56.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 PEN 4.36

$2.16 CA$3.02

-41.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 PEN 4.84

$2.58 CA$3.62

-45.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 PEN 5.19

$4.30 CA$6.02

-64.88%

Eggs

$2.34 PEN 8.04

$4.09 CA$5.74

-42.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.26 PEN 21.55

$12.12 CA$16.98

-48.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.40 PEN 15.15

$13.28 CA$18.62

-66.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.17 PEN 24.67

$20.11 CA$28.19

-64.35%

Apples (1kg)

$1.71 PEN 5.90

$3.96 CA$5.56

-56.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 PEN 4.25

$1.43 CA$2.00

-13.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.14 PEN 3.91

$3.71 CA$5.20

-69.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.00 PEN 3.43

$3.92 CA$5.50

-74.49%

Potato (1kg)

$0.62 PEN 2.14

$2.87 CA$4.02

-78.40%

Onion (1kg)

$0.67 PEN 2.30

$2.98 CA$4.17

-77.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.51 PEN 1.77

$2.61 CA$3.66

-80.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 PEN 2.62

$1.63 CA$2.29

-53.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.14 PEN 17.68

$15.94 CA$22.35

-67.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.95 PEN 17.04

$14.25 CA$19.97

-65.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 PEN 9.15

$2.52 CA$3.54

5.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 PEN 7.69

$2.87 CA$4.03

-22.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 PEN 0.96

$2.57 CA$3.60

-89.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$84.4 CA$118

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.97 PEN 6.77

$2.74 CA$3.85

-28.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 PEN 7.06

$1.63 CA$2.28

25.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.72 PEN 43.77

$31.90 CA$44.71

-60.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 PEN 5.45

$1.46 CA$2.04

8.22%

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

$19.0K PEN 65.2K

$26.7K CA$37.4K

-29.02%

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

$25.3K PEN 87.2K

$21.0K CA$29.5K

20.43%

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

$23.50 PEN 80.9

$88.2 CA$124

-73.37%

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

$10.28 PEN 35.37

$36.72 CA$51.5

-72.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.79 PEN 78.4

$49.81 CA$69.8

-54.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.35 PEN 83.8

$45.34 CA$63.6

-46.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.77 PEN 26.73

$12.13 CA$17.00

-35.94%

Cinema Ticket

$7.03 PEN 24.19

$12.55 CA$17.59

-43.98%

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

$73.9 PEN 254

$1,055 CA$1,479

-93.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,686 PEN 23.0K

$28.5K CA$39.9K

-76.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.91 PEN 165

$56.4 CA$79.1

-15.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.78 PEN 88.7

$34.37 CA$48.18

-24.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.6 PEN 226

$89.8 CA$126

-27.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.3 PEN 201

$94.3 CA$132

-38.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$348 PEN 1,199

$1,738 CA$2,436

-79.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$231 PEN 796

$1,528 CA$2,143

-84.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$719 PEN 2,473

$3,107 CA$4,355

-76.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$411 PEN 1,414

$2,547 CA$3,570

-83.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,915 PEN 6,589

$8,540 CA$12.0K

-77.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$973 PEN 3,348

$6,328 CA$8,870

-84.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$605 PEN 2,082

$3,770 CA$5,284

-83.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.24

253.77%

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

Last update for Arequipa: November 3, 2026

Last update for Vancouver: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arequipa

$231 33.3%

Vancouver

$1.5K 57% 561% $1.3K

Groceries & Markets

Arequipa

$172 24.7%

Vancouver

$398 14.9% 132% $226

Eating Out

Arequipa

$95 13.7%

Vancouver

$281 10.5% 196% $186

Clothing & Footwear

Arequipa

$89 12.8%

Vancouver

$124 4.6% 39.2% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arequipa

$57 8.1%

Vancouver

$175 6.5% 209% $118

Sport & Entertainment

Arequipa

$38 5.5%

Vancouver

$70 2.6% 83.4% $32

Getting Around

Arequipa

$13 * 1.9%

Vancouver

$106 3.9% 691% $92

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $348 in Arequipa versus $1,738 in Vancouver. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Vancouver are about 6.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $26 in Arequipa versus $71 in Vancouver. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $172 vs $398 – making Arequipa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Arequipa

🇨🇦 Vancouver

🕒 Local time

21:56 9:56 PM

19:56 7:56 PM

2 h behind Arequipa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,062

631,486

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.635 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

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).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.635 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Arequipa Vancouver 8,890 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Arequipa
Vancouver

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

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

Arequipa vs Vancouver: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Vancouver costs about 286% more than Arequipa, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,044 per month in Arequipa and $4,024 in Vancouver. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Arequipa, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $348 there versus $1,738 in Vancouver.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $26 in Arequipa and $71 in Vancouver. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 132% more in Vancouver, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Arequipa, where all-in costs run around $696, than in Vancouver at $2,683. In Arequipa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Vancouver it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Arequipa – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Arequipa. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Vancouver makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.