Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,596 in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon
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Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon Living Index

Jump to prices

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,596

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

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 Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $1,596 in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon.

Lima $1,012
Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon $1,596

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $2,398 in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon.

Lima $1,589
Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon $2,398

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $3,200 in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon.

Lima $2,167
Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon $3,200

Living in Lima costs roughly 37% less than in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lima is 25% below, Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon is 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$11.94 ₡5,353

-63.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$44.58 ₡20.0K

-21.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$10.82 ₡4,855

-36.32%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$4.03 ₡1,808

-19.11%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$2.38 ₡1,067

-52.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$1.83 ₡819

-66.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$3.37 ₡1,510

-21.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$4.01 ₡1,800

9.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$2.08 ₡931

-21.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$3.16 ₡1,418

-18.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$2.43 ₡1,089

-44.44%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$3.07 ₡1,378

-5.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$6.56 ₡2,942

34.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$7.76 ₡3,479

-22.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$14.16 ₡6,350

-30.93%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$2.59 ₡1,161

-20.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$1.12 ₡504

-5.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$1.29 ₡576

4.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$1.74 ₡781

-13.79%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$2.60 ₡1,165

-66.15%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$1.97 ₡881

-53.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$0.69 ₡311

28.99%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$2.00 ₡898

-55.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$3.12 ₡1,398

89.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$15.10 ₡6,773

-43.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$2.86 ₡1,284

-34.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$3.71 ₡1,663

-13.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$1.30 ₡582

-47.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

$43.11 ₡19.3K

-37.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$1.84 ₡825

107.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

$1.54 ₡693

31.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

$8.50 ₡3,814

-16.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.50 ₡674

14.67%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$22.3K ₡10.0M

0.20%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$35.0K ₡15.7M

-27.23%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$95.5 ₡42.8K

-23.52%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$35.40 ₡15.9K

-53.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$32.86 ₡14.7K

-16.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$73.5 ₡33.0K

-56.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$7.71 ₡3,458

-8.56%

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

$182 PEN 627

$972 ₡435.8K

-81.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

$17.1K ₡7.7M

-23.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$64.6 ₡29.0K

-16.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$25.92 ₡11.6K

32.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$97.0 ₡43.5K

-14.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$54.5 ₡24.4K

43.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$690 ₡309.3K

4.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$659 ₡295.6K

-47.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$1,981 ₡888.2K

-38.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$1,135 ₡508.8K

-42.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

$976 ₡437.6K

-33.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

8.62

3.71%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

$659 41.3% 92% $316

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

$299 18.8% 32.5% $73

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

$218 13.7% 75.8% $94

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

$164 10.3% 40.1% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

$109 6.8% 2.9% $3.2

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

$89 5.6% 93.3% $43

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

$58 3.6% 33.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Lima and $690 in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon pays 51% 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 $45.00 in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $299 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇨🇷 Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

🕒 Local time

19:57 7:57 PM

18:57 6:57 PM

1 h behind Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lima Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon 2,680 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon

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 Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon differ by about 58% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $1,596 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 51% lower in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon. 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 $690 in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $182 in Lima versus $972 in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 32% higher in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,596 in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon. 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 58% less than in Puerto Viejo - de Talamanca, Limon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.