Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Port Alberni

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,670 in Port Alberni, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Port Alberni
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Port Alberni Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Port Alberni

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,670

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Port Alberni

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $1,670 in Port Alberni.

Lima $1,012
Port Alberni $1,670

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $2,790 in Port Alberni.

Lima $1,589
Port Alberni $2,790

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $3,911 in Port Alberni.

Lima $2,167
Port Alberni $3,911

Living in Lima costs roughly 39% less than in Port Alberni, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lima is 25% below, Port Alberni is 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.08

$17.48 CA$24.85

-74.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$61.2 CA$87.0

-42.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.61

$10.46 CA$14.87

-34.13%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.19

$3.89 CA$5.54

-16.20%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.83

$2.04 CA$2.90

-45.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$1.38 CA$1.97

-55.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.08

$3.44 CA$4.89

-22.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.12

$5.40 CA$7.68

-18.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.60

$2.14 CA$3.04

-23.83%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.76

$2.28 CA$3.24

12.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$2.73 CA$3.88

-50.55%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.94

$3.93 CA$5.59

-26.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.33

$8.94 CA$12.70

-1.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.49

$4.09 CA$5.81

46.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.54

$19.41 CA$27.58

-49.61%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.01

$2.73 CA$3.87

-24.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.65

$1.06 CA$1.51

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.63

$3.40 CA$4.83

-60.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.14

$3.59 CA$5.10

-58.22%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.02

$2.07 CA$2.94

-57.49%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$1.85 CA$2.63

-50.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$2.16 CA$3.07

-58.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$0.68 CA$0.97

32.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.24

$10.54 CA$14.98

-44.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.21

$10.33 CA$14.69

-17.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.44

$2.51 CA$3.56

-25.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.03

$2.86 CA$4.07

12.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$1.42 CA$2.02

-52.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.1

$33.09 CA$47.03

-18.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.07

$2.68 CA$3.81

42.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.92

$1.56 CA$2.21

29.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.37

$31.01 CA$44.07

-77.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.90

$1.20 CA$1.70

43.33%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.5K

$27.5K CA$39.1K

-19.00%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.4K

$19.5K CA$27.7K

30.67%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$81.8 CA$116

-10.72%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.1

$36.45 CA$51.8

-55.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.2

$51.0 CA$72.5

-46.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 109

$42.83 CA$60.9

-25.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.6

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.19

$12.16 CA$17.28

-42.02%

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

$182 PEN 626

$1,087 CA$1,545

-83.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.7K

$19.9K CA$28.3K

-34.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 184

$58.2 CA$82.7

-7.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$32.34 CA$45.96

6.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$95.4 CA$136

-13.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 268

$93.7 CA$133

-16.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,472

$790 CA$1,122

-8.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,177

$705 CA$1,002

-51.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,179

$1,660 CA$2,359

-26.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,231

$1,673 CA$2,378

-61.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,278

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,653

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,222

$3,045 CA$4,328

-78.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

4.28

108.88%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Port Alberni: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Port Alberni

$705 42.2% 105% $362

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Port Alberni

$293 17.6% 29.8% $67

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Port Alberni

$260 15.6% 110% $136

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Port Alberni

$169 10.1% 44.8% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Port Alberni

$126 7.5% 12.2% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Port Alberni

$67 4% 45.9% $21

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Port Alberni

$49 3% 13.2% $5.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Lima and $790 in Port Alberni. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Port Alberni pays 370% 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: $35.00 in Lima vs $61.0 in Port Alberni for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $293 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇨🇦 Port Alberni

🕒 Local time

22:18 10:18 PM

20:18 8:18 PM

2 h behind Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

17,743

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.292 USD

1 PEN = 0.261 EUR

1 CAD = 0.704 USD

1 CAD = 0.628 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CAD, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.292 USD). 1 EUR = 3.84 PEN (1 PEN = 0.261 EUR).

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 CAD (1 CAD = 0.704 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.628 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Port Alberni 8,260 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Port Alberni

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 Port Alberni: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Port Alberni differ by about 65% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $1,670 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 370% lower in Port Alberni. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $721 in Lima versus $790 in Port Alberni. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $182 in Lima versus $1,087 in Port Alberni. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 30% higher in Port Alberni. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,670 in Port Alberni, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Port Alberni. 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.

Expats usually find Lima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 65% less than in Port Alberni. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.