Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and San Martin de los Andes

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,257 in San Martin de los Andes, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in San Martin de los Andes
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San Martin de los Andes Living Index

Jump to prices

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

San Martin de los Andes

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,257

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in San Martin de los Andes

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 Martin de los Andes actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $1,257 in San Martin de los Andes.

Lima $1,012
San Martin de los Andes $1,257

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $2,090 in San Martin de los Andes.

Lima $1,589
San Martin de los Andes $2,090

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $2,922 in San Martin de los Andes.

Lima $2,167
San Martin de los Andes $2,922

Living in Lima costs roughly 20% less than in San Martin de los Andes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 25% lower, San Martin de los Andes 7% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$15.31 ARS 23.2K

-71.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$56.4 ARS 85.6K

-37.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$14.59 ARS 22.1K

-52.78%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$3.51 ARS 5,334

-7.12%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$2.20 ARS 3,335

-49.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$2.18 ARS 3,312

-71.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$3.88 ARS 5,881

-31.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$4.41 ARS 6,690

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$1.49 ARS 2,266

9.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$2.16 ARS 3,282

18.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$1.84 ARS 2,790

-26.63%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$3.08 ARS 4,667

-5.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$10.67 ARS 16.2K

-17.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$8.72 ARS 13.2K

-31.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$10.02 ARS 15.2K

-2.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$2.40 ARS 3,646

-14.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$2.50 ARS 3,787

-57.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$1.72 ARS 2,605

-21.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$2.79 ARS 4,231

-46.24%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$0.97 ARS 1,466

-9.28%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$0.85 ARS 1,296

8.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$1.90 ARS 2,886

-52.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$2.97 ARS 4,501

98.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$5.48 ARS 8,316

55.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$1.90 ARS 2,882

-1.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$3.53 ARS 5,362

-8.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$0.99 ARS 1,509

-31.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$1.31 ARS 1,989

190.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.25 ARS 1,903

37.60%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$27.8K ARS 42.2M

-19.71%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$32.1K ARS 48.7M

-20.54%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$141 ARS 214.5K

-48.31%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$19.33 ARS 29.3K

-15.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$24.49 ARS 37.2K

12.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$27.09 ARS 41.1K

17.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$8.87 ARS 13.5K

-20.52%

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

$182 PEN 627

$255 ARS 386.5K

-28.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$100 ARS 152.3K

-46.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$126 ARS 190.6K

-34.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$137 ARS 207.3K

-42.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$587 ARS 891.5K

22.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$340 ARS 515.7K

1.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$1,086 ARS 1.6M

12.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$851 ARS 1.3M

-23.49%

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

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for San Martin de los Andes: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

San Martin de los Andes

$340 27% 1.1% $3.6

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

San Martin de los Andes

$265 * 21.1% 17.1% $39

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

San Martin de los Andes

$254 20.2% 105% $130

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

San Martin de los Andes

$185 14.7% 58.4% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

San Martin de los Andes

$163 * 13% 45.5% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

San Martin de los Andes

$45 3.6% 2.6% $1.2

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

San Martin de los Andes

$5.3 * 0.4% 87.8% $38

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 $587 in San Martin de los Andes. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $35.00 in Lima vs $56.0 in San Martin de los Andes for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $265 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇦🇷 San Martin de los Andes

🕒 Local time

09:56 9:56 AM

11:56 11:56 AM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

36,913

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, 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).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lima San Martin de los Andes 3,170 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
San Martin de los Andes

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 Martin de los Andes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and San Martin de los Andes differ by about 24% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $1,257 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,518 in Lima and $1,886 in San Martin de los Andes to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $721 in Lima versus $587 in San Martin de los Andes. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% higher in San Martin de los Andes. 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 $1,257 in San Martin de los Andes – a 24% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,257 in San Martin de los Andes, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in San Martin de los Andes. 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.

Safety-wise, Lima and San Martin de los Andes 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 Lima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 24% less than in San Martin de los Andes. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.