Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Iowa City, IA and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,042 a month against $2,239 in Iowa City, IA, rent and utilities included – about $14,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Iowa City, IA
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Iowa City, IA Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Iowa City, IA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,239

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,042

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,239 in Iowa City, IA versus $1,042 in Lima.

Iowa City, IA $2,239
Lima $1,042

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,243 in Iowa City, IA versus $1,651 in Lima.

Iowa City, IA $3,243
Lima $1,651

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,246 in Iowa City, IA versus $2,259 in Lima.

Iowa City, IA $4,246
Lima $2,259

Living in Iowa City, IA is roughly 115% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Iowa City, IA is 66% above, Lima is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.86 $14.86

$4.64 PEN 15.95

220.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.9 $64.9

$34.34 PEN 118

89.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.02 $9.02

$7.01 PEN 24.12

28.67%

Cappuccino

$5.72 $5.72

$3.22 PEN 11.09

77.64%

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

$2.78 $2.78

$1.13 PEN 3.90

146.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

$0.61 PEN 2.09

263.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.04 $5.04

$2.93 PEN 10.07

72.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.97 $6.97

$4.25 PEN 14.63

64.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.96 $0.96

$1.58 PEN 5.44

-39.24%

White Bread (500g)

$2.75 $2.75

$2.61 PEN 8.98

5.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.02 $2.02

$1.30 PEN 4.46

55.38%

Eggs

$3.68 $3.68

$2.92 PEN 10.04

26.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.22 $9.22

$9.54 PEN 32.82

-3.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.48 $10.48

$5.71 PEN 19.66

83.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.19 $20.19

$9.47 PEN 32.57

113.20%

Apples (1kg)

$3.40 $3.40

$2.01 PEN 6.91

69.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.15 $1.15

$1.02 PEN 3.52

12.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.66 $2.66

$1.45 PEN 4.99

83.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.68 $4.68

$1.49 PEN 5.14

214.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.98 $1.98

$0.91 PEN 3.14

117.58%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$0.89 PEN 3.07

164.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 $1.70

$0.86 PEN 2.97

97.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.34 $2.34

$0.89 PEN 3.05

162.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.65 $9.65

$5.47 PEN 18.83

76.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.30 $13.30

$10.17 PEN 34.99

30.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 $1.75

$1.81 PEN 6.21

-3.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.28 $4.28

$3.15 PEN 10.83

35.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.66 PEN 2.28

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.89 PEN 110

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.91 $3.91

$3.43 PEN 11.79

13.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 $2.05

$1.98 PEN 6.80

3.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$43.91 $43.91

$9.60 PEN 33.03

357.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 $1.01

$1.71 PEN 5.89

-40.94%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$21.9K PEN 75.2K

24.45%

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

$26.2K $26.2K

$29.0K PEN 99.9K

-9.85%

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

$271 $271

$65.8 PEN 227

311.03%

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

$46.61 $46.61

$15.26 PEN 52.5

205.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$80.8 $80.8

$26.87 PEN 92.5

200.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.52 $29.52

$32.91 PEN 113

-10.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.31 $20.31

$20.12 PEN 69.2

0.94%

Cinema Ticket

$13.83 $13.83

$7.12 PEN 24.49

94.24%

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

$1,287 $1,287

$309 PEN 1,063

316.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.7K $14.7K

$21.4K PEN 73.5K

-31.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.9 $63.9

$52.0 PEN 179

22.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.41 $47.41

$35.69 PEN 123

32.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.3 $98.3

$81.8 PEN 281

20.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 $116

$78.0 PEN 268

49.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 $1,302

$727 PEN 2,501

79.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,002 $1,002

$373 PEN 1,284

168.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,906 $1,906

$1,249 PEN 4,296

52.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,638 $1,638

$739 PEN 2,543

121.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,489 $3,489

$2,380 PEN 8,190

46.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,843 $1,843

$1,365 PEN 4,696

35.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,887 $3,887

$650 PEN 2,237

497.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

8.38

-23.03%

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

Last update for Iowa City, IA: 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

Iowa City, IA

$1K 44.7%

Lima

$373 35.8% 62.8% $629

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Iowa City, IA

$398 17.8%

Lima

$108 10.4% 72.9% $290

Groceries & Markets

Iowa City, IA

$348 15.5%

Lima

$228 21.9% 34.5% $120

Eating Out

Iowa City, IA

$274 12.2%

Lima

$127 12.2% 53.6% $147

Clothing & Footwear

Iowa City, IA

$147 6.6%

Lima

$111 10.7% 24.1% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Iowa City, IA

$57 2.6%

Lima

$47 4.5% 17.5% $10

Getting Around

Iowa City, IA

$14 * 0.6%

Lima

$48 4.6% 238% $34

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 $1,302 in Iowa City, IA and $727 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Iowa City, IA pays about 6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $65 in Iowa City, IA vs $34 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $348 vs $228 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Iowa City, IA

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

15:55 3:55 PM

16:55 4:55 PM

1 h ahead of Iowa City, IA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,828

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.895 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.26 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 = 0.895 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.85 PEN (1 PEN = 0.26 EUR).

PEN to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Iowa City, IA Lima 6,160 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Iowa City, IA
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

Iowa City, IA vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima is about 53% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Iowa City, IA is about 6 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: $1,302 in Iowa City, IA versus $727 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,287 in Iowa City, IA versus $309 in Lima. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Lima – a meal for two runs $34 versus $65 in Iowa City, IA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,042 in Lima versus $2,239 in Iowa City, IA, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Iowa City, IA. 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.

It comes down to priorities – Lima wins on affordability, Iowa City, IA on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.