Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Piura

For one person, living is cheaper in Piura: $698 a month against $1,042 in Lima, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

50

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
33

Cost of Living Index in Piura
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Piura Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,042

/mo nomad

Piura

🇵🇪 Peru

$698

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Piura

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,042 in Lima versus $698 in Piura.

Lima $1,042
Piura $698

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,651 in Lima versus $1,196 in Piura.

Lima $1,651
Piura $1,196

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,259 in Lima versus $1,694 in Piura.

Lima $2,259
Piura $1,694

Living in Lima is roughly 49% more expensive than in Piura, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 23% lower, Piura 48% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 PEN 15.96

$3.67 PEN 12.63

26.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.34 PEN 118

$24.02 PEN 82.7

42.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.01 PEN 24.13

$7.11 PEN 24.47

-1.41%

Cappuccino

$3.22 PEN 11.09

$3.36 PEN 11.57

-4.17%

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

$1.13 PEN 3.90

$1.07 PEN 3.69

5.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.61 PEN 2.09

$0.71 PEN 2.44

-14.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.93 PEN 10.08

$2.33 PEN 8.01

25.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 PEN 14.64

$2.91 PEN 10.03

46.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 PEN 5.44

$1.42 PEN 4.89

11.27%

White Bread (500g)

$2.61 PEN 8.98

$2.62 PEN 9.02

-0.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.30 PEN 4.47

$1.62 PEN 5.58

-19.75%

Eggs

$2.92 PEN 10.05

$2.77 PEN 9.55

5.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.54 PEN 32.83

$10.42 PEN 35.85

-8.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.71 PEN 19.66

$8.23 PEN 28.32

-30.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.47 PEN 32.59

$10.34 PEN 35.59

-8.41%

Apples (1kg)

$2.01 PEN 6.91

$1.35 PEN 4.65

48.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.02 PEN 3.52

$1.32 PEN 4.53

-22.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 PEN 4.99

$1.40 PEN 4.83

3.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.49 PEN 5.14

$1.32 PEN 4.55

12.88%

Potato (1kg)

$0.91 PEN 3.14

$1.27 PEN 4.36

-28.35%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$0.75 PEN 2.58

18.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.86 PEN 2.97

$0.88 PEN 3.04

-2.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 PEN 3.06

$1.32 PEN 4.54

-32.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.47 PEN 18.84

$7.99 PEN 27.49

-31.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.17 PEN 35.01

$11.12 PEN 38.27

-8.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 PEN 6.22

$1.84 PEN 6.34

-1.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.15 PEN 10.84

$2.82 PEN 9.71

11.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.66 PEN 2.28

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.89 PEN 110

$19.88 PEN 68.4

60.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 PEN 11.80

$2.96 PEN 10.19

15.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.98 PEN 6.80

$2.34 PEN 8.04

-15.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.60 PEN 33.05

$7.01 PEN 24.13

36.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.71 PEN 5.89

$1.49 PEN 5.12

14.77%

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

$21.9K PEN 75.3K

$21.2K PEN 73.1K

2.94%

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

$29.0K PEN 100.0K

$23.0K PEN 79.2K

26.19%

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

$65.8 PEN 227

$41.49 PEN 143

58.66%

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

$15.26 PEN 52.5

$8.83 PEN 30.38

72.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.87 PEN 92.5

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.91 PEN 113

$28.47 PEN 98.0

15.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.12 PEN 69.3

Cinema Ticket

$7.12 PEN 24.50

$2.28 PEN 7.84

212.28%

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

$309 PEN 1,064

$194 PEN 667

59.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.4K PEN 73.5K

$2,339 PEN 8,053

812.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.0 PEN 179

$42.52 PEN 146

22.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.69 PEN 123

$13.17 PEN 45.34

170.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.8 PEN 282

$57.6 PEN 198

42.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.0 PEN 268

$72.4 PEN 249

7.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$727 PEN 2,502

$226 PEN 780

220.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 PEN 1,284

$129 PEN 442

190.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,249 PEN 4,298

$396 PEN 1,364

214.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$739 PEN 2,544

$399 PEN 1,372

85.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,380 PEN 8,193

$3,679 PEN 12.7K

-35.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,365 PEN 4,698

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$650 PEN 2,238

$521 PEN 1,794

24.76%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.38

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

Last update for Lima: October 31, 2026

Last update for Piura: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$373 35.8%

Piura

$129 18.4% 65.5% $245

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$228 21.9%

Piura

$250 35.8% 9.6% $22

Eating Out

Lima

$127 12.2%

Piura

$116 16.6% 8.9% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$111 10.7%

Piura

$84 12% 25% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$108 10.4%

Piura

$50 * 7.2% 53.4% $58

Getting Around

Lima

$48 4.6%

Piura

$37 5.3% 22.3% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$47 4.5%

Piura

$33 4.7% 29.9% $14

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 $727 in Lima and $226 in Piura. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lima pays 25% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $34 in Lima vs $24 in Piura. Groceries flip the comparison at $228 vs $250, with Lima cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇵🇪 Piura

🕒 Local time

18:16 6:16 PM

Same time as Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

158,495

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Piura 860 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Piura

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 Piura: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,042 in Lima and $698 in Piura, so Piura is about 33% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 25% 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: $727 in Lima versus $226 in Piura. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $309 in Lima versus $194 in Piura. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lima pay roughly 9% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Piura gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Piura wins on affordability, Lima on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.