Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Pando

For one person, living costs are similar in Lima and in Pando: $1,014 and $997 a month, rent and utilities included.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
48

Cost of Living Index in Pando
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Pando Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,014

/mo nomad

Pando

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$997

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Pando

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,014 in Lima versus $997 in Pando.

Lima $1,014
Pando $997

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,613 in Lima versus $1,900 in Pando.

Lima $1,613
Pando $1,900

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,211 in Lima versus $2,802 in Pando.

Lima $2,211
Pando $2,802

Living in Lima is roughly 2% more expensive than in Pando, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.42 PEN 15.19

$12.97 UYU 521

-65.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.56 PEN 119

$43.80 UYU 1,758

-21.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.80 PEN 23.37

$13.92 UYU 559

-51.15%

Cappuccino

$3.30 PEN 11.34

$5.07 UYU 203

-34.91%

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

$1.06 PEN 3.64

$2.35 UYU 94.2

-54.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.66 PEN 2.26

$2.26 UYU 90.8

-70.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.54 PEN 8.71

$2.93 UYU 117

-13.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.24 PEN 14.55

$3.61 UYU 145

17.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 PEN 5.43

$1.13 UYU 45.54

39.82%

White Bread (500g)

$2.61 PEN 8.97

$2.82 UYU 113

-7.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.34 PEN 4.60

$1.69 UYU 67.8

-20.71%

Eggs

$2.93 PEN 10.08

$4.32 UYU 173

-32.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.45 PEN 32.45

$12.35 UYU 496

-23.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.75 PEN 19.75

$11.88 UYU 477

-51.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.69 PEN 33.29

$12.07 UYU 485

-19.72%

Apples (1kg)

$2.02 PEN 6.95

$3.04 UYU 122

-33.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.07 PEN 3.66

$3.34 UYU 134

-67.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 PEN 4.70

$2.30 UYU 92.3

-40.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.47 PEN 5.05

$3.97 UYU 159

-62.97%

Potato (1kg)

$0.95 PEN 3.25

$2.07 UYU 83.1

-54.11%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 PEN 3.14

$2.08 UYU 83.5

-56.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$1.57 UYU 63.2

-42.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 PEN 3.04

$1.91 UYU 76.6

-53.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.74 PEN 19.71

$9.96 UYU 400

-42.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.21 PEN 31.64

$7.97 UYU 320

15.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.84 PEN 6.31

$3.02 UYU 121

-39.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 PEN 10.67

$3.36 UYU 135

-7.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.72 PEN 2.46

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.03 PEN 89.4

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.54 PEN 12.17

$3.59 UYU 144

-1.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.07 PEN 7.12

$3.44 UYU 138

-39.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.75 PEN 26.62

$9.78 UYU 393

-20.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.71 PEN 5.86

$2.15 UYU 86.3

-20.47%

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

$21.6K PEN 74.1K

$35.9K UYU 1.4M

-39.78%

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

$28.6K PEN 98.2K

$40.2K UYU 1.6M

-28.92%

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

$68.2 PEN 234

$113 UYU 4,536

-39.71%

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

$15.73 PEN 54.0

$24.04 UYU 965

-34.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.48 PEN 90.9

$46.87 UYU 1,881

-43.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.94 PEN 117

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.10 PEN 69.0

Cinema Ticket

$7.22 PEN 24.80

$12.53 UYU 503

-42.38%

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

$201 PEN 689

$492 UYU 19.7K

-59.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.9K PEN 44.3K

$6,713 UYU 269.4K

92.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.7 PEN 184

$88.1 UYU 3,535

-39.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.88 PEN 123

$37.69 UYU 1,513

-4.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.8 PEN 288

$163 UYU 6,545

-48.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.8 PEN 271

$117 UYU 4,714

-32.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 PEN 2,505

$346 UYU 13.9K

110.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$349 PEN 1,197

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,186 PEN 4,073

$740 UYU 29.7K

60.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$696 PEN 2,391

$606 UYU 24.3K

14.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,360 PEN 8,105

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,356 PEN 4,657

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 PEN 2,278

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.78

75.60%

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

Last update for Lima: October 17, 2026

Last update for Pando: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$349 34.4%

Pando

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$227 22.4%

Pando

$338 33.9% 48.6% $111

Eating Out

Lima

$123 12.2%

Pando

$247 24.7% 99.8% $123

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$113 11.2%

Pando

$183 18.3% 61.1% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$110 10.9%

Pando

$184 18.5% 66.7% $74

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$48 4.8%

Pando

$25 * 2.5% 48.2% $23

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.2%

Pando

$21 * 2.1% 51.5% $22

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 $729 in Lima and $346 in Pando. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $35.00 in Lima vs $44.00 in Pando for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $227 vs $338 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇺🇾 Pando

🕒 Local time

03:47 3:47 AM

05:47 5:47 AM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

25,949

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UYU, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Pando 3,300 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Pando

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 Pando: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Pando differ by about 2% in total monthly costs ($1,014 vs $997 including rent). Pando is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,522 in Lima and $1,496 in Pando 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $729 in Lima versus $346 in Pando. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Lima pay roughly 49% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,014 per month in Lima versus $997 in Pando – a 2% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $997 in Pando versus $1,014 in Lima, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Pando but tight or insufficient in Lima. The gap between the two cities makes Pando 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 Pando 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 Pando gentler on the wallet – expenses run 2% less than in Lima. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.