Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Neuquen

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,237 in Neuquen, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

Lima
🇵🇪 Peru
$1,012
/mo nomad
Neuquen
🇦🇷 Argentina
$1,237
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Neuquen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $1,237 in Neuquen.

  • Lima $1,012
  • Neuquen $1,237

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $2,072 in Neuquen.

  • Lima $1,589
  • Neuquen $2,072

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $2,907 in Neuquen.

  • Lima $2,167
  • Neuquen $2,907

Living in Lima costs roughly 18% less than in Neuquen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 25% lower, Neuquen 8% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Lima
Neuquen
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$4.40 PEN 15.10
$16.16 ARS 24.5K
-72.77%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$35.17 PEN 121
$61.7 ARS 93.6K
-42.99%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$6.89 PEN 23.65
$13.53 ARS 20.5K
-49.08%
Cappuccino
$3.26 PEN 11.20
$3.72 ARS 5,646
-12.37%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.12 PEN 3.84
$1.93 ARS 2,927
-41.97%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.62 PEN 2.11
$1.80 ARS 2,733
-65.56%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.65 PEN 9.09
$4.21 ARS 6,383
-37.05%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.41 PEN 15.15
$3.49 ARS 5,289
26.36%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Lima
Neuquen
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.63 PEN 5.61
$1.48 ARS 2,244
10.14%
White Bread (500g)
$2.56 PEN 8.78
$2.50 ARS 3,796
2.40%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.35 PEN 4.65
$1.82 ARS 2,762
-25.82%
Eggs
$2.90 PEN 9.96
$2.40 ARS 3,648
20.83%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.85 PEN 30.38
$9.69 ARS 14.7K
-8.67%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.98 PEN 20.52
$8.22 ARS 12.5K
-27.25%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$9.78 PEN 33.59
$11.14 ARS 16.9K
-12.21%
Apples (1kg)
$2.05 PEN 7.02
$2.49 ARS 3,783
-17.67%
Banana (1kg)
$1.06 PEN 3.66
$2.34 ARS 3,546
-54.70%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.35 PEN 4.64
$1.73 ARS 2,622
-21.97%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.50 PEN 5.15
$2.92 ARS 4,434
-48.63%
Potato (1kg)
$0.88 PEN 3.03
$1.19 ARS 1,804
-26.05%
Onion (1kg)
$0.92 PEN 3.15
$0.95 ARS 1,438
-3.16%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.89 PEN 3.07
-
-
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.90 PEN 3.10
$1.54 ARS 2,330
-41.56%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.90 PEN 20.27
$3.37 ARS 5,109
75.07%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.52 PEN 29.26
$4.33 ARS 6,568
96.77%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.88 PEN 6.45
$2.08 ARS 3,158
-9.62%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.22 PEN 11.05
$2.94 ARS 4,458
9.52%
🚌 Getting Around
Lima
Neuquen
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.68 PEN 2.33
$0.91 ARS 1,383
-25.27%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$26.86 PEN 92.2
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.81 PEN 13.09
$1.30 ARS 1,979
193.08%
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
$1.37 ARS 2,085
25.55%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$22.3K PEN 76.6K
$24.1K ARS 36.5M
-7.34%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$25.5K PEN 87.6K
$35.3K ARS 53.6M
-27.76%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lima
Neuquen
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$73.1 PEN 251
$141 ARS 213.8K
-48.14%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$16.35 PEN 56.2
$16.56 ARS 25.1K
-1.27%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.47 PEN 94.3
$26.26 ARS 39.8K
4.61%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Lima
Neuquen
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$31.90 PEN 110
$28.80 ARS 43.7K
10.76%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$19.41 PEN 66.7
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$7.05 PEN 24.23
$8.43 ARS 12.8K
-16.37%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Lima
Neuquen
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$182 PEN 627
$248 ARS 376.8K
-26.52%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$13.0K PEN 44.8K
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Lima
Neuquen
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$53.8 PEN 185
$92.1 ARS 139.8K
-41.60%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$34.32 PEN 118
-
-
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$82.8 PEN 284
$109 ARS 165.8K
-24.21%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$78.2 PEN 269
$155 ARS 234.5K
-49.38%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Lima
Neuquen
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$721 PEN 2,476
$509 ARS 772.2K
41.71%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$343 PEN 1,179
$328 ARS 497.2K
4.81%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,219 PEN 4,186
$981 ARS 1.5M
24.21%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$651 PEN 2,235
$824 ARS 1.3M
-21.01%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,414 PEN 8,292
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,357 PEN 4,660
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Lima
Neuquen
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$648 PEN 2,226
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
8.94
0
-

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Neuquen: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Lima
$343
Neuquen
$328 4.6% $16
Groceries & Markets
Lima
$226
Neuquen
$257 * 13.8% $31
Eating Out
Lima
$124
Neuquen
$257 108% $133
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lima
$117
Neuquen
$184 57.2% $67
Clothing & Footwear
Lima
$112
Neuquen
$160 * 42.9% $48
Sport & Entertainment
Lima
$46
Neuquen
$46 0.8% $0.4
Getting Around
Lima
$43
Neuquen
$5 * 88.6% $39

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 $509 in Neuquen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $35.00 in Lima vs $62.0 in Neuquen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $257 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇵🇪 Lima
🇦🇷 Neuquen
🕒 Local time
08:42 8:42 AM
10:42 10:42 AM
2 h ahead of Lima
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
9,989,369 Capital
288,896
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Lima Neuquen 3,120 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Lima
  • Neuquen

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 Neuquen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Lima and in Neuquen?
Lima and Neuquen differ by about 22% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $1,237 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
What salary covers living expenses in Lima compared to Neuquen?
You'd need roughly $1,518 in Lima and $1,855 in Neuquen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.
How do apartment prices compare in Lima and in Neuquen?
Rent for a central apartment: $721 in Lima versus $509 in Neuquen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Supermarket bills run roughly 14% higher in Neuquen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Which city is more expensive overall: Lima or Neuquen?
All in, you'll spend $1,012 per month in Lima versus $1,237 in Neuquen – a 22% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Which city is more doable on $2,000 per month?
At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,237 in Neuquen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Neuquen. The gap between the two cities makes Lima the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Lima and Neuquen?
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.
Is Lima or Neuquen safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Lima and Neuquen are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Where should expats move: Lima or Neuquen?
Expats usually find Lima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 22% less than in Neuquen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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