Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Cafayate

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,244 in Cafayate, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Cafayate
Learn more

Cafayate Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Cafayate

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Cafayate

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

A single person spends $1,012 per month in Lima vs $1,244 in Cafayate, rent included.

Lima $1,012
Cafayate $1,244

A couple spends around $1,589 per month in Lima vs $2,042 in Cafayate, rent included.

Lima $1,589
Cafayate $2,042

A family of three spends $2,167 per month in Lima vs $2,839 in Cafayate, rent included.

Lima $2,167
Cafayate $2,839

Lima is about 19% cheaper than Cafayate, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Lima and Cafayate are more affordable than the global median – Lima 25% lower, Cafayate 8% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$16.65 ARS 25.3K

-73.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$57.2 ARS 86.8K

-38.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$12.70 ARS 19.3K

-45.75%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$3.79 ARS 5,758

-13.98%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$2.17 ARS 3,299

-48.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$1.83 ARS 2,778

-66.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$4.01 ARS 6,086

-33.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$4.21 ARS 6,395

4.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$1.25 ARS 1,894

30.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$2.48 ARS 3,768

3.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$2.03 ARS 3,076

-33.50%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$2.79 ARS 4,232

3.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$9.95 ARS 15.1K

-11.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$8.36 ARS 12.7K

-28.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$11.95 ARS 18.1K

-18.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$2.54 ARS 3,862

-19.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$2.31 ARS 3,498

-54.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$1.75 ARS 2,655

-22.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$2.66 ARS 4,039

-43.61%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$1.02 ARS 1,548

-13.73%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$0.90 ARS 1,365

2.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$1.72 ARS 2,612

-47.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$3.79 ARS 5,754

55.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$5.24 ARS 7,945

62.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$2.11 ARS 3,202

-10.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$3.19 ARS 4,842

0.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$1.09 ARS 1,647

-37.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$1.70 ARS 2,579

124.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.34 ARS 2,036

28.36%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$31.5K ARS 47.8M

-29.11%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$38.1K ARS 57.8M

-33.04%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$107 ARS 161.9K

-31.51%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$19.80 ARS 30.1K

-17.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$25.60 ARS 38.9K

7.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$31.21 ARS 47.4K

2.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

-10.76%

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

$182 PEN 627

$255 ARS 387.5K

-28.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$96.3 ARS 146.1K

-44.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$121 ARS 183.1K

-31.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$120 ARS 182.4K

-34.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$443 ARS 671.6K

62.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$362 ARS 549.4K

-5.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$1,042 ARS 1.6M

16.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$798 ARS 1.2M

-18.44%

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)

$648 PEN 2,226

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cafayate: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Cafayate

$362 29.1% 5.4% $19

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Cafayate

$264 * 21.2% 16.8% $38

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Cafayate

$261 21% 111% $137

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Cafayate

$152 12.2% 30.1% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Cafayate

$152 * 12.2% 35.3% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Cafayate

$47 3.8% 2.2% $1

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Cafayate

$6 * 0.5% 86.1% $37

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $721 in Lima versus $443 in Cafayate. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $35.00 in Lima versus $57.0 in Cafayate. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $226 vs $264 – making Lima the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇦🇷 Cafayate

🕒 Local time

10:36 10:36 AM

12:36 12:36 PM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

14,850

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

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).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lima Cafayate 1,940 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Cafayate

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

Lima vs Cafayate: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,012 in Lima, $1,244 in Cafayate – roughly 23% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,518 per month in Lima and $1,866 in Cafayate. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $35.00 in Lima and $57.0 in Cafayate. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 17% more in Cafayate, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Lima, where all-in costs run around $1,012, than in Cafayate at $1,244. In Lima it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cafayate it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Lima has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,012 in Lima to $1,244 in Cafayate. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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