Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Contagem and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Contagem: $788 a month against $1,012 in Lima, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Contagem
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Contagem Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Contagem

🇧🇷 Brazil

$788

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Contagem 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 Contagem and in Lima actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $788 per month in Contagem vs $1,012 in Lima, rent included.

Contagem $788
Lima $1,012

A couple spends around $1,272 per month in Contagem vs $1,589 in Lima, rent included.

Contagem $1,272
Lima $1,589

A family of three spends $1,755 per month in Contagem vs $2,167 in Lima, rent included.

Contagem $1,755
Lima $2,167

Contagem is about 22% cheaper than Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Contagem and Lima are more affordable than the global median – Contagem 42% lower, Lima 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.06 R$30.73

$4.40 PEN 15.10

37.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.50 R$155

$35.17 PEN 121

-13.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.32 R$37.10

$6.89 PEN 23.65

6.24%

Cappuccino

$1.76 R$8.93

$3.26 PEN 11.20

-46.01%

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

$1.42 R$7.19

$1.12 PEN 3.84

26.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 R$2.96

$0.62 PEN 2.11

-6.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.32 R$6.69

$2.65 PEN 9.09

-50.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 R$13.05

$4.41 PEN 15.15

-41.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.00 R$5.09

$1.63 PEN 5.61

-38.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 R$9.34

$2.56 PEN 8.78

-28.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.37 R$6.94

$1.35 PEN 4.65

1.48%

Eggs

$1.98 R$10.06

$2.90 PEN 9.96

-31.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.07 R$51.1

$8.85 PEN 30.38

13.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.47 R$17.61

$5.98 PEN 20.52

-41.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.50 R$38.03

$9.78 PEN 33.59

-23.31%

Apples (1kg)

$1.91 R$9.69

$2.05 PEN 7.02

-6.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.17 R$5.91

$1.06 PEN 3.66

10.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.94 R$4.75

$1.35 PEN 4.64

-30.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.67 R$8.48

$1.50 PEN 5.15

11.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.09 R$5.53

$0.88 PEN 3.03

23.86%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 R$5.00

$0.92 PEN 3.15

7.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.85 R$4.33

$0.89 PEN 3.07

-4.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 R$4.14

$0.90 PEN 3.10

-8.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.64 R$8.31

$5.90 PEN 20.27

-72.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.04 R$30.61

$8.52 PEN 29.26

-29.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 R$5.18

$1.88 PEN 6.45

-45.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.37 R$6.94

$3.22 PEN 11.05

-57.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 R$7.61

$0.68 PEN 2.33

120.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$80.1 R$406

$26.86 PEN 92.2

198.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 R$6.04

$3.81 PEN 13.09

-68.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 R$3.99

$2.02 PEN 6.93

-60.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.28 R$31.84

$7.11 PEN 24.41

-11.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 R$6.67

$1.72 PEN 5.91

-23.26%

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

$23.5K R$119.3K

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

5.45%

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

$31.6K R$160.4K

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

24.03%

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

$76.2 R$386

$73.1 PEN 251

4.23%

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

$10.11 R$51.3

$16.35 PEN 56.2

-38.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.26 R$97.7

$27.47 PEN 94.3

-29.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.55 R$135

$31.90 PEN 110

-16.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.62 R$120

$19.41 PEN 66.7

21.69%

Cinema Ticket

$7.31 R$37.04

$7.05 PEN 24.23

3.69%

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

$144 R$732

$182 PEN 627

-20.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,630 R$13.3K

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

-79.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.6 R$312

$53.8 PEN 185

14.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.74 R$252

$34.32 PEN 118

44.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.6 R$348

$82.8 PEN 284

-17.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$48.25 R$245

$78.2 PEN 269

-38.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$232 R$1,174

$721 PEN 2,476

-67.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$158 R$798

$343 PEN 1,179

-54.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$488 R$2,475

$1,219 PEN 4,186

-59.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$334 R$1,693

$651 PEN 2,235

-48.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,991 R$10.1K

$2,414 PEN 8,292

-17.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,015 R$5,146

$1,357 PEN 4,660

-25.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$261 R$1,324

$648 PEN 2,226

-59.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.67

8.94

19.35%

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

Last update for Contagem: October 10, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Contagem

$179 22.7%

Lima

$226 22.3% 26.2% $47

Accommodation & Living

Contagem

$158 20%

Lima

$343 33.9% 118% $186

Eating Out

Contagem

$111 14.1%

Lima

$124 12.3% 11.3% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Contagem

$106 13.4%

Lima

$117 11.6% 10.8% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Contagem

$103 13%

Lima

$112 11.1% 9.2% $9.4

Getting Around

Contagem

$91 11.6%

Lima

$43 4.3% 52.3% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Contagem

$41 5.2%

Lima

$46 4.6% 11.8% $4.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $232 in Contagem versus $721 in Lima. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 148% higher in Lima, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $31.00 in Contagem versus $35.00 in Lima. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $179 vs $226 – making Contagem the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Contagem

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

08:43 8:43 AM

06:43 6:43 AM

2 h behind Contagem

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

621,863

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Contagem Lima 3,620 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Contagem
Lima

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

Contagem vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Lima is pricier by about 28%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,183 per month in Contagem and $1,518 in Lima. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Contagem, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 198% less in Contagem. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $144 per month in Contagem and $182 in Lima. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Contagem, where all-in costs run around $788, than in Lima at $1,012. In Contagem it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lima it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Contagem – 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 Contagem. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Lima makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.