Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Santa Rosa

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,265 in Santa Rosa, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 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 Santa Rosa
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Santa Rosa Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Santa Rosa

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,265

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Santa Rosa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $1,265 in Santa Rosa.

Lima $1,012
Santa Rosa $1,265

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $2,107 in Santa Rosa.

Lima $1,589
Santa Rosa $2,107

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $2,950 in Santa Rosa.

Lima $2,167
Santa Rosa $2,950

Living in Lima costs roughly 20% less than in Santa Rosa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 25% lower, Santa Rosa 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$17.42 ARS 26.4K

-74.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$58.3 ARS 88.5K

-39.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$14.10 ARS 21.4K

-51.13%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$3.86 ARS 5,864

-15.54%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$1.91 ARS 2,892

-41.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$1.94 ARS 2,940

-68.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$4.01 ARS 6,085

-33.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$3.65 ARS 5,544

20.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$1.46 ARS 2,212

11.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$2.51 ARS 3,809

1.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$1.72 ARS 2,610

-21.51%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$3.14 ARS 4,758

-7.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$10.74 ARS 16.3K

-17.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$7.00 ARS 10.6K

-14.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$11.06 ARS 16.8K

-11.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$2.27 ARS 3,449

-9.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$1.94 ARS 2,940

-45.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$1.39 ARS 2,115

-2.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$2.56 ARS 3,888

-41.41%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$1.23 ARS 1,868

-28.46%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$1.04 ARS 1,583

-11.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$1.57 ARS 2,377

-42.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$3.65 ARS 5,537

61.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$4.38 ARS 6,648

94.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$1.70 ARS 2,581

10.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$3.10 ARS 4,703

3.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$1.03 ARS 1,570

-33.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$1.56 ARS 2,360

144.23%

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

$1.26 ARS 1,905

36.51%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$29.0K ARS 44.0M

-23.09%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$35.1K ARS 53.2M

-27.29%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$116 ARS 176.3K

-37.12%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$15.64 ARS 23.7K

4.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$29.16 ARS 44.2K

-5.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$34.30 ARS 52.0K

-7.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$8.31 ARS 12.6K

-15.16%

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

$182 PEN 627

$269 ARS 407.6K

-32.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$108 ARS 164.6K

-50.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$111 ARS 168.4K

-25.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$146 ARS 221.3K

-46.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$561 ARS 850.6K

28.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$363 ARS 551.1K

-5.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$932 ARS 1.4M

30.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$874 ARS 1.3M

-25.56%

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 Santa Rosa: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Santa Rosa

$363 28.7% 5.7% $20

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Santa Rosa

$249 * 19.7% 10.2% $23

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Santa Rosa

$271 21.4% 118% $147

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Santa Rosa

$161 12.7% 37.7% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Santa Rosa

$164 * 13% 46.6% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Santa Rosa

$51 4% 10.7% $4.9

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Santa Rosa

$5.7 * 0.5% 86.9% $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 $561 in Santa Rosa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $35.00 in Lima vs $58.0 in Santa Rosa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $249 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇦🇷 Santa Rosa

🕒 Local time

10:41 10:41 AM

12:41 12:41 PM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

116,083

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Santa Rosa 3,010 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Santa Rosa

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 Santa Rosa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Santa Rosa differ by about 25% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $1,265 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 $1,897 in Santa Rosa 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 $561 in Santa Rosa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 10% higher in Santa Rosa. 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 $1,265 in Santa Rosa – a 25% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,265 in Santa Rosa, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Santa Rosa. 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 Santa Rosa 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 25% less than in Santa Rosa. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.