Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and San Cristobal de las Casas

For one person, living is cheaper in San Cristobal de las Casas: $925 a month against $1,012 in Lima, rent and utilities included – about $1,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
Learn more

Lima Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in San Cristobal de las Casas
Learn more

San Cristobal de las Casas Living Index

Jump to prices

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

San Cristobal de las Casas

🇲🇽 Mexico

$925

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in San Cristobal de las Casas

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 San Cristobal de las Casas actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $925 in San Cristobal de las Casas.

Lima $1,012
San Cristobal de las Casas $925

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $1,420 in San Cristobal de las Casas.

Lima $1,589
San Cristobal de las Casas $1,420

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $1,915 in San Cristobal de las Casas.

Lima $2,167
San Cristobal de las Casas $1,915

Living in Lima is roughly 9% more expensive than in San Cristobal de las Casas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 25% lower, San Cristobal de las Casas 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$5.36 MX$99.0

-17.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$27.82 MX$514

26.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$6.07 MX$112

13.51%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$2.48 MX$45.91

31.45%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$1.62 MX$29.93

-30.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$1.03 MX$19.08

-39.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$2.80 MX$51.8

-5.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$3.24 MX$59.8

36.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$1.41 MX$26.10

15.60%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$3.58 MX$66.1

-28.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$1.60 MX$29.62

-15.63%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$2.27 MX$41.91

27.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$6.69 MX$124

32.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$4.11 MX$76.0

45.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$6.40 MX$118

52.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$3.29 MX$60.9

-37.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$2.10 MX$38.81

-49.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$2.21 MX$40.80

-38.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$1.45 MX$26.74

3.45%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$1.61 MX$29.75

-45.34%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$1.77 MX$32.68

-48.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$1.82 MX$33.56

-51.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$1.61 MX$29.68

-44.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$1.88 MX$34.79

213.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$10.57 MX$195

-19.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$2.40 MX$44.35

-21.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$1.96 MX$36.27

64.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$0.56 MX$10.41

21.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

$27.82 MX$514

-3.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$2.69 MX$49.67

41.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

$2.79 MX$51.6

-27.60%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.39 MX$25.66

23.74%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$19.0K MX$351.7K

17.24%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$32.74 MX$605

123.18%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$14.82 MX$274

10.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$20.42 MX$377

34.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$22.92 MX$423

39.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

$23.54 MX$435

-17.54%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$6.73 MX$124

4.75%

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

$182 PEN 627

$208 MX$3,843

-12.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

$2,657 MX$49.1K

390.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$19.35 MX$358

177.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$27.33 MX$505

25.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$95.5 MX$1,765

-13.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$54.0 MX$999

44.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$434 MX$8,014

66.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$321 MX$5,938

6.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$890 MX$16.4K

37.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$527 MX$9,741

23.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

$835 MX$15.4K

189.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

$664 MX$12.3K

104.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

$403 MX$7,451

60.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

9.8

-8.78%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for San Cristobal de las Casas: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

San Cristobal de las Casas

$321 34.7% 6.4% $22

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

San Cristobal de las Casas

$242 26.2% 7.3% $16

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

San Cristobal de las Casas

$122 13.2% 1.6% $2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

San Cristobal de las Casas

$68 7.4% 41.8% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

San Cristobal de las Casas

$88 9.6% 21.2% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

San Cristobal de las Casas

$36 3.9% 20.9% $9.6

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

San Cristobal de las Casas

$47 5.1% 7.5% $3.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Lima and $434 in San Cristobal de las Casas. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lima pays 61% 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 $28.00 in San Cristobal de las Casas. Groceries flip the comparison at $226 vs $242, with Lima cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇲🇽 San Cristobal de las Casas

🕒 Local time

02:31 2:31 AM

01:31 1:31 AM

1 h behind Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

183,509

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, 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).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima San Cristobal de las Casas 3,630 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Lima
San Cristobal de las Casas

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 San Cristobal de las Casas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and San Cristobal de las Casas differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $925 including rent). San Cristobal de las Casas is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 61% 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: $721 in Lima versus $434 in San Cristobal de las Casas. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $182 in Lima versus $208 in San Cristobal de las Casas. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lima pay roughly 7% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $925 in San Cristobal de las Casas versus $1,012 in Lima, a $1,000 budget is realistic in San Cristobal de las Casas but tight or insufficient in Lima. The gap between the two cities makes San Cristobal de las Casas 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.

Safety-wise, Lima and San Cristobal de las Casas are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find San Cristobal de las Casas gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Lima. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.