Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Jonesboro, AR and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,042 a month against $2,138 in Jonesboro, AR, rent and utilities included – about $13,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

102

Cost of Living Index in Jonesboro, AR
Learn more

Jonesboro, AR Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Lima
Learn more

Lima Living Index

Jump to prices

Jonesboro, AR

🇺🇸 United States

$2,138

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,042

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,138 in Jonesboro, AR versus $1,042 in Lima.

Jonesboro, AR $2,138
Lima $1,042

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,005 in Jonesboro, AR versus $1,651 in Lima.

Jonesboro, AR $3,005
Lima $1,651

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,872 in Jonesboro, AR versus $2,259 in Lima.

Jonesboro, AR $3,872
Lima $2,259

Living in Jonesboro, AR is roughly 105% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Jonesboro, AR is 58% above, Lima is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$27.60 $27.60

$4.64 PEN 15.95

494.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.0 $59.0

$34.34 PEN 118

71.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.68 $10.68

$7.01 PEN 24.12

52.35%

Cappuccino

$4.95 $4.95

$3.22 PEN 11.09

53.73%

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

$2.68 $2.68

$1.13 PEN 3.90

137.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 $1.80

$0.61 PEN 2.09

195.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.63 $4.63

$2.93 PEN 10.08

58.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.40 $6.40

$4.25 PEN 14.63

50.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 $1.20

$1.58 PEN 5.44

-24.05%

White Bread (500g)

$3.87 $3.87

$2.61 PEN 8.98

48.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.21 $2.21

$1.30 PEN 4.47

70.00%

Eggs

$3.90 $3.90

$2.92 PEN 10.05

33.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.60 $8.60

$9.54 PEN 32.82

-9.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.62 $8.62

$5.71 PEN 19.66

50.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.58 $11.58

$9.47 PEN 32.58

22.28%

Apples (1kg)

$4.51 $4.51

$2.01 PEN 6.91

124.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.14 $1.14

$1.02 PEN 3.52

11.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.06 $3.06

$1.45 PEN 4.99

111.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.88 $3.88

$1.49 PEN 5.14

160.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.64 $1.64

$0.91 PEN 3.14

80.22%

Onion (1kg)

$2.43 $2.43

$0.89 PEN 3.07

173.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.83 $1.83

$0.86 PEN 2.97

112.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 $2.09

$0.89 PEN 3.06

134.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.78 $7.78

$5.47 PEN 18.83

42.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.46 $13.46

$10.17 PEN 35.00

32.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 $1.80

$1.81 PEN 6.21

-0.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.76 $3.76

$3.15 PEN 10.84

19.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.10 $1.10

$0.66 PEN 2.28

66.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.11 $30.11

$31.89 PEN 110

-5.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.97 $2.97

$3.43 PEN 11.79

-13.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.39 $1.39

$1.98 PEN 6.80

-29.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.91 $27.91

$9.60 PEN 33.04

190.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 $0.87

$1.71 PEN 5.89

-49.12%

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

$27.9K $27.9K

$21.9K PEN 75.3K

27.82%

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

$26.6K $26.6K

$29.0K PEN 100.0K

-8.32%

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

$224 $224

$65.8 PEN 227

239.59%

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

$46.48 $46.48

$15.26 PEN 52.5

204.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$73.9 $73.9

$26.87 PEN 92.5

174.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.74 $39.74

$32.91 PEN 113

20.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.74 $10.74

$20.12 PEN 69.2

-46.62%

Cinema Ticket

$12.80 $12.80

$7.12 PEN 24.49

79.78%

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

$751 $751

$309 PEN 1,064

143.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,374 $8,374

$21.4K PEN 73.5K

-60.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.0 $63.0

$52.0 PEN 179

21.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.88 $36.88

$35.69 PEN 123

3.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.5 $78.5

$81.8 PEN 281

-3.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 $108

$78.0 PEN 268

39.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,157 $1,157

$727 PEN 2,501

59.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$864 $864

$373 PEN 1,284

131.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,426 $1,426

$1,249 PEN 4,297

14.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,168 $1,168

$739 PEN 2,544

58.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,531 $1,531

$2,380 PEN 8,191

-35.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,482 $1,482

$1,365 PEN 4,697

8.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,416 $3,416

$650 PEN 2,238

425.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.36

8.38

-24.11%

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

Last update for Jonesboro, AR: November 2, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Jonesboro, AR

$864 40.4%

Lima

$373 35.8% 56.8% $491

Eating Out

Jonesboro, AR

$366 17.1%

Lima

$127 12.2% 65.3% $239

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Jonesboro, AR

$344 16.1%

Lima

$108 10.4% 68.6% $236

Groceries & Markets

Jonesboro, AR

$325 15.2%

Lima

$228 21.9% 29.9% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Jonesboro, AR

$129 6%

Lima

$111 10.7% 13.7% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Jonesboro, AR

$65 3.1%

Lima

$47 4.5% 27.8% $18

Getting Around

Jonesboro, AR

$44 2.1%

Lima

$48 4.6% 7.7% $3.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,157 in Jonesboro, AR and $727 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Jonesboro, AR pays about 5.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $59 in Jonesboro, AR vs $34 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $228 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Jonesboro, AR

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

04:27 4:27 AM

05:27 5:27 AM

1 h ahead of Jonesboro, AR

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

78,576

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 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 = 0.89 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.87 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

PEN to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Jonesboro, AR Lima 5,520 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Jonesboro, AR
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

Jonesboro, AR vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima is about 51% 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 Jonesboro, AR is about 5.3 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: $1,157 in Jonesboro, AR versus $727 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $2,138 per month in Jonesboro, AR versus $1,042 in Lima – Lima is about 51% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Jonesboro, AR runs roughly 6% less than in Lima. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $1,042 in Lima versus $2,138 in Jonesboro, AR, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Jonesboro, AR. 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, Jonesboro, AR on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.