Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Fort St John, BC and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,913 in Fort St John, BC, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

94

Cost of Living Index in Fort St John, BC
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Fort St John, BC Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Fort St John, BC

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,913

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,913 in Fort St John, BC versus $1,012 in Lima.

Fort St John, BC $1,913
Lima $1,012

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,956 in Fort St John, BC versus $1,589 in Lima.

Fort St John, BC $2,956
Lima $1,589

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,000 in Fort St John, BC versus $2,167 in Lima.

Fort St John, BC $4,000
Lima $2,167

Living in Fort St John, BC is roughly 89% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Fort St John, BC is 42% above, Lima is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.24 CA$24.37

$4.40 PEN 15.10

291.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.68 CA$58.9

$35.17 PEN 121

18.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.28 CA$13.11

$6.89 PEN 23.65

34.69%

Cappuccino

$3.84 CA$5.43

$3.26 PEN 11.20

17.79%

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

$1.71 CA$2.42

$1.12 PEN 3.84

52.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 CA$1.70

$0.62 PEN 2.11

93.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.20 CA$8.76

$2.65 PEN 9.09

133.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 CA$6.51

$4.41 PEN 15.15

4.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.36 CA$4.75

$1.63 PEN 5.61

106.13%

White Bread (500g)

$2.77 CA$3.91

$2.56 PEN 8.78

8.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.70 CA$5.23

$1.35 PEN 4.65

174.07%

Eggs

$3.93 CA$5.56

$2.90 PEN 9.96

35.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.80 CA$16.69

$8.85 PEN 30.38

33.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.63 CA$19.27

$5.98 PEN 20.52

127.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.56 CA$26.23

$9.78 PEN 33.59

89.78%

Apples (1kg)

$5.70 CA$8.06

$2.05 PEN 7.02

178.05%

Banana (1kg)

$0.67 CA$0.95

$1.06 PEN 3.66

-36.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.75 CA$5.30

$1.35 PEN 4.64

177.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.50 CA$4.95

$1.50 PEN 5.15

133.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.73 CA$3.86

$0.88 PEN 3.03

210.23%

Onion (1kg)

$2.82 CA$3.99

$0.92 PEN 3.15

206.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.03 CA$2.87

$0.89 PEN 3.07

128.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.51 CA$3.54

$0.90 PEN 3.10

178.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.53 CA$20.55

$5.90 PEN 20.27

146.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.83 CA$29.44

$8.52 PEN 29.26

144.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.98 CA$7.04

$1.88 PEN 6.45

164.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.51 CA$7.80

$3.22 PEN 11.05

71.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.37 CA$1.94

$0.68 PEN 2.33

101.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.24 CA$39.92

$26.86 PEN 92.2

5.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 CA$1.65

$1.72 PEN 5.91

-31.98%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

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

$124 CA$175

$73.1 PEN 251

69.52%

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

$96.6 CA$137

$16.35 PEN 56.2

491.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.4 CA$83.9

$27.47 PEN 94.3

116.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.11 CA$18.53

$31.90 PEN 110

-58.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$10.56 CA$14.93

$7.05 PEN 24.23

49.79%

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

$707 CA$1,000

$182 PEN 627

287.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.3 CA$101

$53.8 PEN 185

32.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.86 CA$66.3

$34.32 PEN 118

36.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 CA$149

$82.8 PEN 284

27.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 CA$197

$78.2 PEN 269

77.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$737 CA$1,041

$721 PEN 2,476

2.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$692 CA$979

$343 PEN 1,179

101.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,520 CA$2,149

$1,219 PEN 4,186

24.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,380 CA$1,951

$651 PEN 2,235

112.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,001 CA$4,243

$648 PEN 2,226

363.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.1

8.94

-31.77%

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

Last update for Fort St John, BC: October 10, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Fort St John, BC

$692 36.2%

Lima

$343 33.9% 50.4% $349

Groceries & Markets

Fort St John, BC

$446 23.3%

Lima

$226 22.3% 49.3% $220

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Fort St John, BC

$280 14.6%

Lima

$117 11.6% 58.2% $163

Eating Out

Fort St John, BC

$264 13.8%

Lima

$124 12.3% 53% $140

Clothing & Footwear

Fort St John, BC

$163 8.5%

Lima

$112 11.1% 31.3% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Fort St John, BC

$34 1.8%

Lima

$46 4.6% 34.4% $12

Getting Around

Fort St John, BC

$34 * 1.8%

Lima

$43 4.3% 28.9% $9.8

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $737 in Fort St John, BC and $721 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Fort St John, BC pays 363% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $42.00 in Fort St John, BC vs $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $446 vs $226 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Fort St John, BC

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

15:06 3:06 PM

17:06 5:06 PM

2 h ahead of Fort St John, BC

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

18,609

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

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Fort St John, BC Lima 8,610 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Fort St John, BC
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

Fort St John, BC vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 89% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 363% higher in Fort St John, BC, 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: $737 in Fort St John, BC versus $721 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Lima – a meal for two runs $35.00 versus $42.00 in Fort St John, BC. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,913 per month in Fort St John, BC versus $1,012 in Lima – a 89% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,913 in Fort St John, BC, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Fort St John, BC. The gap between the two cities makes Lima the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Lima is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Fort St John, BC, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Lima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 89% less than in Fort St John, BC. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.