Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Santiago

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $996 a month against $1,206 in Santiago, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Santiago
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Santiago Living Index

Jump to prices

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$996

/mo nomad

Santiago

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Santiago

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $996 in Lima versus $1,206 in Santiago.

Lima $996
Santiago $1,206

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,594 in Lima versus $1,885 in Santiago.

Lima $1,594
Santiago $1,885

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,191 in Lima versus $2,564 in Santiago.

Lima $2,191
Santiago $2,564

Living in Lima costs roughly 17% less than in Santiago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 26% lower, Santiago 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.42 PEN 15.21

$10.19 CLP 9,954

-56.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.04 PEN 121

$52.2 CLP 51.0K

-32.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.84 PEN 23.52

$8.54 CLP 8,342

-19.91%

Cappuccino

$3.27 PEN 11.26

$3.19 CLP 3,122

2.51%

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

$1.10 PEN 3.80

$1.68 CLP 1,641

-34.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 PEN 2.23

$1.22 CLP 1,194

-46.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.58 PEN 8.88

$4.21 CLP 4,110

-38.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 PEN 15.39

$4.66 CLP 4,550

-4.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.59 PEN 5.48

$1.32 CLP 1,286

20.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.58 PEN 8.89

$1.80 CLP 1,760

43.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 PEN 4.67

$1.58 CLP 1,547

-13.92%

Eggs

$2.95 PEN 10.14

$4.25 CLP 4,151

-30.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.10 PEN 31.30

$11.19 CLP 10.9K

-18.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.81 PEN 19.98

$6.75 CLP 6,596

-13.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.83 PEN 33.80

$10.67 CLP 10.4K

-7.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.01 PEN 6.92

$2.04 CLP 1,995

-1.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.08 PEN 3.70

$1.53 CLP 1,500

-29.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 PEN 4.71

$1.59 CLP 1,553

-13.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.48 PEN 5.08

$1.75 CLP 1,712

-15.43%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 PEN 3.32

$1.08 CLP 1,054

-11.11%

Onion (1kg)

$0.85 PEN 2.93

$1.51 CLP 1,480

-43.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$1.17 CLP 1,148

-24.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 PEN 2.98

$1.07 CLP 1,043

-18.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.31

$5.14 CLP 5,027

14.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.81 PEN 30.31

$5.88 CLP 5,745

49.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 PEN 6.59

$1.55 CLP 1,516

23.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.20 PEN 11.02

$2.27 CLP 2,223

40.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$0.85 CLP 831

-20.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.74 PEN 92.0

$41.50 CLP 40.6K

-35.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.10

$0.39 CLP 383

876.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.04 PEN 7.02

$0.84 CLP 822

142.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.14 PEN 24.57

$11.94 CLP 11.7K

-40.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.65 PEN 5.67

$1.50 CLP 1,470

10.00%

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

$22.2K PEN 76.3K

$18.1K CLP 17.7M

22.49%

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

$25.7K PEN 88.3K

$21.6K CLP 21.1M

18.78%

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

$73.0 PEN 251

$151 CLP 147.7K

-51.66%

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

$16.26 PEN 55.9

$12.04 CLP 11.8K

35.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.60 PEN 94.9

$18.93 CLP 18.5K

45.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.07 PEN 114

$33.81 CLP 33.0K

-2.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.49 PEN 67.1

$11.72 CLP 11.5K

66.30%

Cinema Ticket

$7.39 PEN 25.41

$7.37 CLP 7,202

0.27%

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

$182 PEN 626

$434 CLP 424.3K

-58.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.3K PEN 45.8K

$11.0K CLP 10.7M

21.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 PEN 181

$50.9 CLP 49.7K

3.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.23 PEN 118

$29.16 CLP 28.5K

17.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.8 PEN 288

$67.4 CLP 65.8K

24.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.0 PEN 272

$80.3 CLP 78.4K

-1.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$723 PEN 2,488

$555 CLP 542.0K

30.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$340 PEN 1,170

$372 CLP 364.0K

-8.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 PEN 4,074

$1,009 CLP 986.6K

17.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$635 PEN 2,183

$779 CLP 760.9K

-18.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,449 PEN 8,423

$2,671 CLP 2.6M

-8.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,372 PEN 4,718

$2,622 CLP 2.6M

-47.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$653 PEN 2,245

$791 CLP 773.5K

-17.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

5.39

65.86%

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

Last update for Lima: October 4, 2026

Last update for Santiago: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$340 33.6%

Santiago

$372 31.6% 9.5% $32

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.4%

Santiago

$236 20% 4.4% $9.9

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Santiago

$187 15.9% 51% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Santiago

$182 15.5% 55.7% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Santiago

$102 8.7% 8.8% $9.9

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$48 4.7%

Santiago

$49 4.1% 1.5% $0.7

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Santiago

$50 4.2% 13.8% $6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $723 in Lima and $555 in Santiago. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santiago pays 21% 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 $52.0 in Santiago for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $236 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇨🇱 Santiago

🕒 Local time

20:08 8:08 PM

22:08 10:08 PM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

6,139,087 Capital

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.23 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 977 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,096 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.12 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lima Santiago 2,460 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Santiago

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 Santiago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Santiago differ by about 21% in total monthly costs ($996 vs $1,206 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 21% lower in Santiago. 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: $723 in Lima versus $555 in Santiago. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $182 in Lima versus $434 in Santiago. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 4% higher in Santiago. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $996 in Lima versus $1,206 in Santiago, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Santiago. 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 21% less than in Santiago. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.