Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Puntarenas

For one person, living costs are similar in Lima and in Puntarenas: $1,012 and $1,027 a month, rent and utilities included.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Puntarenas
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Puntarenas Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Puntarenas

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,027

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Puntarenas

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $1,027 in Puntarenas.

Lima $1,012
Puntarenas $1,027

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $1,596 in Puntarenas.

Lima $1,589
Puntarenas $1,596

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $2,165 in Puntarenas.

Lima $2,167
Puntarenas $2,165

Living in Lima costs roughly 1% less than in Puntarenas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 25% lower, Puntarenas 24% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$7.92 ₡3,554

-44.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$39.92 ₡17.9K

-11.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$9.48 ₡4,252

-27.32%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$4.32 ₡1,939

-24.54%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$2.48 ₡1,112

-54.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$1.89 ₡849

-67.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$3.33 ₡1,492

-20.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$4.33 ₡1,942

1.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$2.14 ₡960

-23.83%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$3.19 ₡1,431

-19.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$2.01 ₡900

-32.84%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$2.95 ₡1,323

-1.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$6.41 ₡2,874

38.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$7.86 ₡3,524

-23.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$12.84 ₡5,758

-23.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$3.98 ₡1,783

-48.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$1.47 ₡659

-27.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$2.24 ₡1,006

-39.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$2.38 ₡1,065

-36.97%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$2.42 ₡1,085

-63.64%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$2.32 ₡1,038

-60.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$0.96 ₡431

-7.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$2.79 ₡1,251

-67.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$5.03 ₡2,254

17.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$8.49 ₡3,809

0.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$1.83 ₡822

2.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$2.28 ₡1,025

41.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$1.03 ₡463

-33.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$2.20 ₡988

73.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

$1.13 ₡506

78.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

$8.67 ₡3,890

-17.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.43 ₡640

20.28%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$22.3K ₡10.0M

0.26%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$18.4K ₡8.2M

38.92%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$55.5 ₡24.9K

31.71%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$28.85 ₡12.9K

-43.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$40.79 ₡18.3K

-32.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$26.44 ₡11.9K

20.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$7.78 ₡3,489

-9.38%

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

$182 PEN 627

$975 ₡437.1K

-81.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

$17.3K ₡7.8M

-24.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$26.16 ₡11.7K

105.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$17.39 ₡7,798

97.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$131 ₡58.6K

-36.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$53.0 ₡23.8K

47.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$360 ₡161.2K

100.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$260 ₡116.4K

32.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$542 ₡243.0K

124.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$422 ₡189.4K

54.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

$985 ₡441.7K

145.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

$658 ₡295.3K

106.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

$874 ₡392.0K

-25.86%

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 Puntarenas: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Puntarenas

$260 25.3% 24.4% $84

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Puntarenas

$300 29.2% 32.6% $74

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Puntarenas

$187 18.2% 50.4% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Puntarenas

$125 12.2% 7% $8.2

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Puntarenas

$102 10% 8.8% $9.9

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Puntarenas

$42 4.1% 8.7% $4

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Puntarenas

$12 * 1.2% 72.4% $31

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 $721 in Lima and $360 in Puntarenas. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Puntarenas pays 35% 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 $40.00 in Puntarenas for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $300 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇨🇷 Puntarenas

🕒 Local time

14:03 2:03 PM

13:03 1:03 PM

1 h behind Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

70,000

💱 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 17, 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 17, 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 Puntarenas 2,600 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Puntarenas

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 Puntarenas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Puntarenas differ by about 2% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $1,027 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 35% lower in Puntarenas. 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 $360 in Puntarenas. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 33% higher in Puntarenas. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,012 per month in Lima versus $1,027 in Puntarenas – a 2% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,027 in Puntarenas, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Puntarenas. 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 2% less than in Puntarenas. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.