Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Leon

For one person, living is cheaper in Leon: $821 a month against $1,012 in Lima, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lima outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Leon
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Leon Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Leon

🇳🇮 Nicaragua

$821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Leon

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

A single person spends $1,012 per month in Lima vs $821 in Leon, rent included.

Lima $1,012
Leon $821

A couple spends around $1,589 per month in Lima vs $1,423 in Leon, rent included.

Lima $1,589
Leon $1,423

A family of three spends $2,167 per month in Lima vs $2,026 in Leon, rent included.

Lima $2,167
Leon $2,026

Lima costs about 23% more than Leon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Lima and Leon are more affordable than the global median – Lima 25% lower, Leon 39% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$9.90 NIO 363

-55.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$34.68 NIO 1,270

1.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$7.41 NIO 271

-7.02%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$2.54 NIO 93.1

28.35%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$0.91 NIO 33.42

23.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$0.72 NIO 26.50

-13.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$1.46 NIO 53.6

81.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$2.23 NIO 81.8

97.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$1.20 NIO 44.10

35.83%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$2.33 NIO 85.5

9.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$1.88 NIO 68.7

-28.19%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$2.32 NIO 84.8

25.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$11.45 NIO 420

-22.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$6.44 NIO 236

-7.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$7.93 NIO 290

23.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$4.11 NIO 150

-50.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$0.59 NIO 21.60

79.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$1.85 NIO 67.8

-27.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$2.42 NIO 88.6

-38.02%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$3.85 NIO 141

-77.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$2.21 NIO 80.8

-58.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$1.09 NIO 39.90

-18.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$1.00 NIO 36.66

-10.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$2.79 NIO 102

111.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$14.92 NIO 547

-42.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$1.42 NIO 51.9

32.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$2.26 NIO 82.9

42.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$1.61 NIO 58.9

136.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

$1.58 NIO 58.0

27.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

$7.00 NIO 256

1.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.31 NIO 47.98

31.30%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$23.0K NIO 841.2K

-2.86%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$26.9K NIO 985.1K

-5.18%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$153 NIO 5,618

-52.36%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$19.86 NIO 727

-17.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$32.75 NIO 1,199

-16.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$9.23 NIO 338

-23.62%

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

$182 PEN 627

$235 NIO 8,617

-22.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

$6,149 NIO 225.2K

112.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$61.1 NIO 2,236

-11.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$65.1 NIO 2,386

-47.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$121 NIO 4,430

-31.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$145 NIO 5,318

-46.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$407 NIO 14.9K

77.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$284 NIO 10.4K

129.35%

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

11.92

-25.00%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Leon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Leon

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Leon

$260 31.7% 15% $34

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Leon

$150 18.3% 21.2% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Leon

$206 25.1% 76.2% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Leon

$177 21.5% 57.5% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Leon

$18 * 2.3% 59.9% $28

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Leon

$9.5 * 1.2% 78.1% $34

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 $407 in Leon. 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 $35.00 in Leon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $226 vs $260 – making Lima the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇳🇮 Leon

🕒 Local time

14:49 2:49 PM

13:49 1:49 PM

1 h behind Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

207,533

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Nicaraguan Córdoba NIO C$

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

100 NIO = 2.73 USD

100 NIO = 2.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NIO, 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).

Nicaraguan Córdoba exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 36.62 NIO (100 NIO = 2.73 USD). 1 EUR = 41.18 NIO (100 NIO = 2.43 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Leon 2,930 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Leon

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 Leon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Lima is pricier by about 23%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,518 per month in Lima and $1,231 in Leon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,012 in Lima and $821 in Leon. That's a gap of about 23%.

Kindergarten costs $182 per month in Lima and $235 in Leon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Leon, where all-in costs run around $821, than in Lima at $1,012. In Leon it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lima it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Leon – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Leon. 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.