Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Irapuato

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,204 in Irapuato, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. The total is higher in Irapuato despite lower rent and utilities.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Irapuato
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Irapuato Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Irapuato

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Irapuato

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $1,204 in Irapuato.

Lima $1,012
Irapuato $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $1,956 in Irapuato.

Lima $1,589
Irapuato $1,956

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $2,708 in Irapuato.

Lima $2,167
Irapuato $2,708

Living in Lima costs roughly 16% less than in Irapuato, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 25% lower, Irapuato 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$10.77 MX$199

-59.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$49.62 MX$917

-29.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$11.05 MX$204

-37.65%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$3.77 MX$69.6

-13.53%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$1.58 MX$29.13

-29.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$1.29 MX$23.86

-51.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$3.25 MX$60.0

-18.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$5.40 MX$99.8

-18.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$1.77 MX$32.75

-7.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$3.05 MX$56.4

-16.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$1.94 MX$35.81

-30.41%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$2.74 MX$50.7

5.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$11.82 MX$218

-25.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$9.29 MX$172

-35.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$14.63 MX$270

-33.15%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$3.14 MX$58.0

-34.71%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$2.01 MX$37.23

-47.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$2.06 MX$38.02

-34.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$2.24 MX$41.38

-33.04%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$2.02 MX$37.31

-56.44%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$1.79 MX$33.17

-48.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$1.51 MX$27.99

-41.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$1.28 MX$23.64

-29.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$5.25 MX$97.0

12.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$16.46 MX$304

-48.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$1.98 MX$36.51

-5.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$4.47 MX$82.6

-27.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$0.68 MX$12.65

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$2.09 MX$38.59

82.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

$0.58 MX$10.65

248.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

$5.52 MX$102

28.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.32 MX$24.45

30.30%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$20.9K MX$385.6K

6.93%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$24.5K MX$453.3K

3.96%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$60.7 MX$1,121

20.44%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$28.25 MX$522

-42.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$33.99 MX$628

-19.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$34.39 MX$635

-7.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

$20.22 MX$374

-4.01%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$6.42 MX$119

9.81%

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

$182 PEN 627

$436 MX$8,057

-58.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

$4,659 MX$86.1K

179.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$70.0 MX$1,293

-23.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$53.1 MX$981

-35.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$106 MX$1,965

-22.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$112 MX$2,075

-30.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$617 MX$11.4K

16.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$347 MX$6,406

-0.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$1,119 MX$20.7K

8.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$697 MX$12.9K

-6.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

$1,833 MX$33.9K

31.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

$1,320 MX$24.4K

2.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

$347 MX$6,410

86.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

11.3

-20.88%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Irapuato: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Irapuato

$347 28.8% 0.9% $3.3

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Irapuato

$323 26.8% 42.8% $97

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Irapuato

$203 16.9% 63.8% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Irapuato

$123 10.2% 5.1% $6

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Irapuato

$154 12.8% 37.1% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Irapuato

$47 3.9% 2.6% $1.2

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Irapuato

$7.7 * 0.6% 82.3% $36

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 $617 in Irapuato. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lima pays 87% 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 $50.0 in Irapuato for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $323 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇲🇽 Irapuato

🕒 Local time

02:19 2:19 AM

01:19 1:19 AM

1 h behind Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

452,090

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lima Irapuato 4,510 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Irapuato

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 Irapuato: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Irapuato differ by about 19% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $1,204 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 87% higher in Lima, 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: $721 in Lima versus $617 in Irapuato. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 43% higher in Irapuato. 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 $1,204 in Irapuato – a 19% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,204 in Irapuato, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Irapuato. 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.

Safety-wise, Lima and Irapuato are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Lima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Irapuato. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.