Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Porto Alegre

For one person, living costs are similar in Lima and in Porto Alegre: $996 and $990 a month, rent and utilities included.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
Learn more

Lima Living Index
48

Cost of Living Index in Porto Alegre
Learn more

Porto Alegre Living Index

Jump to prices

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$996

/mo nomad

Porto Alegre

🇧🇷 Brazil

$990

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Porto Alegre

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $996 in Lima versus $990 in Porto Alegre.

Lima $996
Porto Alegre $990

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,594 in Lima versus $1,567 in Porto Alegre.

Lima $1,594
Porto Alegre $1,567

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,191 in Lima versus $2,143 in Porto Alegre.

Lima $2,191
Porto Alegre $2,143

Living in Lima is roughly 1% more expensive than in Porto Alegre, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 26% lower, Porto Alegre 26% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.42 PEN 15.16

$7.85 R$39.17

-43.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.04 PEN 120

$39.44 R$197

-11.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.84 PEN 23.44

$7.16 R$35.72

-4.47%

Cappuccino

$3.27 PEN 11.22

$2.62 R$13.10

24.81%

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

$1.10 PEN 3.78

$1.39 R$6.96

-20.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 PEN 2.22

$1.07 R$5.33

-39.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.58 PEN 8.85

$2.42 R$12.08

6.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 PEN 15.34

$2.93 R$14.64

52.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.59 PEN 5.46

$1.04 R$5.18

52.88%

White Bread (500g)

$2.58 PEN 8.86

$1.72 R$8.59

50.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 PEN 4.65

$1.08 R$5.39

25.93%

Eggs

$2.95 PEN 10.11

$2.42 R$12.09

21.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.10 PEN 31.19

$10.08 R$50.3

-9.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.81 PEN 19.91

$4.81 R$24.02

20.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.83 PEN 33.68

$9.73 R$48.56

1.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.01 PEN 6.89

$2.44 R$12.20

-17.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.08 PEN 3.69

$1.45 R$7.23

-25.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 PEN 4.70

$1.40 R$6.99

-2.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.48 PEN 5.06

$1.66 R$8.28

-10.84%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 PEN 3.30

$1.21 R$6.04

-20.66%

Onion (1kg)

$0.85 PEN 2.92

$1.08 R$5.41

-21.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.88 PEN 3.02

$0.89 R$4.44

-1.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 PEN 2.97

$0.82 R$4.11

6.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.24

$2.46 R$12.28

139.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.81 PEN 30.21

$8.17 R$40.80

7.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 PEN 6.57

$1.12 R$5.61

71.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.20 PEN 10.98

$2.16 R$10.77

48.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$1.02 R$5.11

-33.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.74 PEN 91.7

$59.5 R$297

-55.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.06

$1.26 R$6.30

202.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.04 PEN 7.00

$0.79 R$3.94

158.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.14 PEN 24.49

$8.34 R$41.65

-14.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.65 PEN 5.65

$1.34 R$6.70

23.13%

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

$22.2K PEN 76.0K

$23.5K R$117.2K

-5.52%

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

$25.7K PEN 88.0K

$34.4K R$171.5K

-25.29%

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

$73.0 PEN 250

$77.6 R$387

-5.84%

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

$16.26 PEN 55.7

$12.72 R$63.5

27.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.60 PEN 94.6

$21.94 R$110

25.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.07 PEN 113

$29.96 R$150

10.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.49 PEN 66.8

$30.96 R$155

-37.05%

Cinema Ticket

$7.39 PEN 25.33

$7.41 R$36.98

-0.27%

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

$182 PEN 624

$568 R$2,837

-67.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.3K PEN 45.7K

$24.1K R$120.3K

-44.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 PEN 180

$51.0 R$255

3.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.23 PEN 117

$59.1 R$295

-42.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.8 PEN 287

$103 R$512

-18.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.0 PEN 271

$77.9 R$389

1.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$723 PEN 2,479

$483 R$2,411

49.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$340 PEN 1,166

$280 R$1,396

21.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 PEN 4,060

$816 R$4,072

45.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$635 PEN 2,176

$462 R$2,307

37.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,449 PEN 8,394

$1,675 R$8,363

46.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,372 PEN 4,702

$1,302 R$6,499

5.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$653 PEN 2,237

$546 R$2,725

19.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

11.5

-22.26%

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

Last update for Lima: October 4, 2026

Last update for Porto Alegre: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$340 33.6%

Porto Alegre

$280 28.4% 17.8% $61

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.4%

Porto Alegre

$205 20.9% 9.2% $21

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Porto Alegre

$144 14.6% 15.7% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Porto Alegre

$112 11.4% 4% $4.7

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Porto Alegre

$131 13.3% 16.4% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$48 4.7%

Porto Alegre

$45 4.5% 6.4% $3.1

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Porto Alegre

$69 7% 58.3% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $723 in Lima and $483 in Porto Alegre. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lima pays 20% 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 $39.00 in Porto Alegre. Groceries flip the comparison at $226 vs $205, with Porto Alegre cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇧🇷 Porto Alegre

🕒 Local time

05:14 5:14 AM

07:14 7:14 AM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

1,332,833

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.292 USD

1 PEN = 0.26 EUR

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.292 USD). 1 EUR = 3.84 PEN (1 PEN = 0.26 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.59 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Porto Alegre 3,330 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Porto Alegre

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 Porto Alegre: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Porto Alegre differ by about 1% in total monthly costs ($996 vs $990 including rent). Porto Alegre is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 20% 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: $723 in Lima versus $483 in Porto Alegre. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $182 in Lima versus $568 in Porto Alegre. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 10% higher in Lima. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $990 in Porto Alegre versus $996 in Lima, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Porto Alegre but tight or insufficient in Lima. The gap between the two cities makes Porto Alegre 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 Porto Alegre gentler on the wallet – expenses run 1% less than in Lima. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.