Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Iquique

For one person, living costs are similar in Lima and in Iquique: $1,012 and $999 a month, rent and utilities included.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Iquique
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Iquique Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Iquique

🇨🇱 Chile

$999

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Iquique

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $999 in Iquique.

Lima $1,012
Iquique $999

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $1,590 in Iquique.

Lima $1,589
Iquique $1,590

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $2,180 in Iquique.

Lima $2,167
Iquique $2,180

Living in Lima is roughly 1% more expensive than in Iquique, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 25% lower, Iquique 26% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$7.48 CLP 7,359

-41.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$40.30 CLP 39.7K

-12.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$7.04 CLP 6,934

-2.13%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$3.44 CLP 3,384

-5.23%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$1.23 CLP 1,210

-8.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$0.95 CLP 937

-34.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$3.27 CLP 3,222

-18.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$3.61 CLP 3,552

22.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$1.09 CLP 1,077

49.54%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$1.13 CLP 1,111

126.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$1.31 CLP 1,285

3.05%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$3.02 CLP 2,972

-3.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$10.12 CLP 9,962

-12.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$10.05 CLP 9,896

-40.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$2.31 CLP 2,273

-11.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$2.15 CLP 2,121

-50.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$1.51 CLP 1,484

-10.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$1.06 CLP 1,040

41.51%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$0.73 CLP 722

20.55%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$0.64 CLP 628

43.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$1.00 CLP 981

-11.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$1.35 CLP 1,326

-33.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$7.25 CLP 7,139

-18.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$7.86 CLP 7,734

8.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$0.84 CLP 828

283.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$0.69 CLP 679

-1.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

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)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.44 CLP 1,419

19.44%

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)

$73.1 PEN 251

$88.6 CLP 87.2K

-17.56%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$15.63 CLP 15.4K

4.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$23.17 CLP 22.8K

18.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$50.7 CLP 49.9K

-37.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$6.91 CLP 6,803

2.03%

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

$182 PEN 627

$254 CLP 249.8K

-28.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$30.11 CLP 29.6K

78.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$23.04 CLP 22.7K

48.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$46.57 CLP 45.8K

77.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$58.3 CLP 57.4K

34.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$422 CLP 415.4K

70.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$382 CLP 375.7K

-10.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$683 CLP 671.9K

78.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$781 CLP 769.3K

-16.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

$1,718 CLP 1.7M

40.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

$1,926 CLP 1.9M

-29.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

$958 CLP 943.5K

-32.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

7.5

19.20%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Iquique: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Iquique

$382 38.2% 11.1% $38

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Iquique

$197 * 19.7% 12.8% $29

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Iquique

$155 15.5% 24.6% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Iquique

$127 12.8% 9% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Iquique

$71 7.1% 36.6% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Iquique

$65 6.5% 40.2% $19

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Iquique

$2.8 * 0.3% 93.7% $41

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 $721 in Lima and $422 in Iquique. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Iquique pays 48% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $35.00 in Lima vs $40.00 in Iquique. Groceries flip the comparison at $226 vs $197, with Iquique cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇨🇱 Iquique

🕒 Local time

10:31 10:31 AM

12:31 12:31 PM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

188,003

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, 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).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,107 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Iquique 1,170 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Iquique

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 Iquique: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Iquique differ by about 1% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $999 including rent). Iquique is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 48% lower in Iquique. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $721 in Lima versus $422 in Iquique. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 15% higher in Lima. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,012 per month in Lima versus $999 in Iquique – a 1% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $999 in Iquique versus $1,012 in Lima, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Iquique but tight or insufficient in Lima. The gap between the two cities makes Iquique 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.

Expats usually find Iquique gentler on the wallet – expenses run 1% less than in Lima. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.