Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Contenda

For one person, living is cheaper in Contenda: $870 a month against $1,012 in Lima, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Contenda
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Contenda Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Contenda

🇧🇷 Brazil

$870

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Contenda

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 Contenda actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,012 per month in Lima vs $870 in Contenda, rent included.

Lima $1,012
Contenda $870

A couple spends around $1,589 per month in Lima vs $1,325 in Contenda, rent included.

Lima $1,589
Contenda $1,325

A family of three spends $2,167 per month in Lima vs $1,780 in Contenda, rent included.

Lima $2,167
Contenda $1,780

Lima costs about 16% more than Contenda, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Lima and Contenda are more affordable than the global median – Lima 25% lower, Contenda 36% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.13

$3.92 R$19.65

12.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$11.83 R$59.4

197.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.69

$8.16 R$40.93

-15.56%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.22

$2.40 R$12.05

35.83%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$1.38 R$6.94

-18.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.12

$0.61 R$3.07

1.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.11

$1.96 R$9.82

35.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.17

$1.96 R$9.83

125.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.62

$1.07 R$5.36

52.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.79

$1.63 R$8.17

57.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.66

$1.34 R$6.71

0.75%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.97

$2.57 R$12.88

12.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.43

$9.99 R$50.1

-11.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.55

$3.96 R$19.86

51.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.65

$8.05 R$40.41

21.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.04

$2.44 R$12.25

-15.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$1.19 R$5.97

-10.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$1.18 R$5.90

14.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.16

$1.38 R$6.94

8.70%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$0.97 R$4.89

-9.28%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.16

$0.93 R$4.68

-1.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.08

$0.82 R$4.11

8.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.11

$0.72 R$3.60

25.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.31

$3.02 R$15.16

95.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.31

$3.96 R$19.86

115.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.46

$1.48 R$7.40

27.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.07

$2.02 R$10.13

59.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.34

$0.99 R$4.98

-31.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.4

$43.35 R$218

-38.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.11

$1.19 R$5.96

220.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.94

$1.03 R$5.16

96.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.45

$10.19 R$51.1

-30.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.92

$1.22 R$6.12

40.98%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.7K

$18.3K R$91.7K

22.10%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.7K

$21.8K R$109.4K

16.92%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$84.0 R$422

-13.05%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$8.20 R$41.16

99.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.5

$20.25 R$102

35.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$26.41 R$133

20.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.8

$27.34 R$137

-29.01%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.27

$8.14 R$40.85

-13.39%

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

$182 PEN 628

$284 R$1,425

-35.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.9K

$11.1K R$55.7K

17.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$66.3 R$332

-18.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$71.0 R$356

-51.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 285

$114 R$573

-27.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$70.9 R$356

10.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,481

$343 R$1,719

110.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,181

$226 R$1,133

52.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,193

$743 R$3,725

64.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,239

$424 R$2,129

53.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,306

$1,493 R$7,488

61.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,668

$1,359 R$6,819

-0.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,229

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

10.61

-15.74%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Contenda: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Contenda

$226 26% 34.2% $118

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Contenda

$183 21.1% 18.8% $42

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Contenda

$106 12.2% 14.3% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Contenda

$113 12.9% 3.8% $4.4

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Contenda

$145 16.7% 29.4% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Contenda

$43 4.9% 7.2% $3.3

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Contenda

$54 6.2% 23.4% $10

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $721 in Lima versus $343 in Contenda. 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 $12.00 in Contenda. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $226 vs $183 – making Contenda the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇧🇷 Contenda

🕒 Local time

11:12 11:12 AM

13:12 1:12 PM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

19,128

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

1 BRL = 0.199 USD

1 BRL = 0.178 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.85 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 5.02 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.62 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Contenda 3,260 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Contenda

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 Contenda: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima costs about 16% more than Contenda, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,518 per month in Lima and $1,304 in Contenda. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $182 per month in Lima and $284 in Contenda. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 23% more in Lima, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Contenda, where all-in costs run around $870, than in Lima at $1,012. In Contenda it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lima it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Contenda costs $870 versus $1,012 in Lima. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Contenda. 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.