Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Sao Caetano do Sul

For one person, living costs are similar in Lima and in Sao Caetano do Sul: $1,012 and $1,058 a month, rent and utilities included.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in Sao Caetano do Sul
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Sao Caetano do Sul Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Sao Caetano do Sul

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,058

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Sao Caetano do Sul

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 Sao Caetano do Sul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $1,058 in Sao Caetano do Sul.

Lima $1,012
Sao Caetano do Sul $1,058

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $1,822 in Sao Caetano do Sul.

Lima $1,589
Sao Caetano do Sul $1,822

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $2,586 in Sao Caetano do Sul.

Lima $2,167
Sao Caetano do Sul $2,586

Living in Lima costs roughly 4% less than in Sao Caetano do Sul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 25% lower, Sao Caetano do Sul 22% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$8.89 R$45.06

-50.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$40.00 R$203

-12.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$8.77 R$44.46

-21.44%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$2.38 R$12.09

36.97%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$1.33 R$6.73

-15.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$0.93 R$4.71

-33.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$2.36 R$11.94

12.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$4.00 R$20.27

10.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$1.19 R$6.01

36.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$2.05 R$10.40

24.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$1.44 R$7.31

-6.25%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$2.48 R$12.55

16.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$10.70 R$54.2

-17.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$5.43 R$27.54

10.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$10.91 R$55.3

-10.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$2.39 R$12.10

-14.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$1.72 R$8.74

-38.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$1.55 R$7.84

-12.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$2.08 R$10.54

-27.88%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$1.40 R$7.09

-37.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$1.26 R$6.41

-26.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$0.92 R$4.67

-3.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$0.81 R$4.12

11.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$2.49 R$12.62

136.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$8.97 R$45.45

-5.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$1.75 R$8.88

7.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$2.58 R$13.06

24.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$0.68 R$3.47

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$1.32 R$6.71

188.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

$1.02 R$5.18

98.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

$8.86 R$44.93

-19.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.34 R$6.79

28.36%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$24.5K R$124.4K

-9.07%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$32.6K R$165.1K

-21.71%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$103 R$522

-29.03%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$14.91 R$75.6

9.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$22.99 R$117

19.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$50.3 R$255

-36.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

$46.01 R$233

-57.81%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$10.14 R$51.4

-30.47%

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

$182 PEN 627

$437 R$2,215

-58.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

$11.2K R$56.6K

16.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$65.3 R$331

-17.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$57.3 R$290

-40.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$98.3 R$498

-15.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$93.2 R$472

-16.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$419 R$2,126

71.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$311 R$1,575

10.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$867 R$4,394

40.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$868 R$4,398

-24.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

$1,890 R$9,581

27.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

$1,435 R$7,276

-5.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

$951 R$4,822

-31.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

10.81

-17.30%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Sao Caetano do Sul: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Sao Caetano do Sul

$311 29.4% 9.5% $33

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Sao Caetano do Sul

$231 21.8% 2.2% $5

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Sao Caetano do Sul

$155 14.6% 24.9% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Sao Caetano do Sul

$141 13.3% 20.5% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Sao Caetano do Sul

$141 13.4% 26.1% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Sao Caetano do Sul

$71 6.7% 53.5% $25

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Sao Caetano do Sul

$9.2 * 0.9% 78.9% $34

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 $419 in Sao Caetano do Sul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sao Caetano do Sul pays 47% 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 Sao Caetano do Sul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $231 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇧🇷 Sao Caetano do Sul

🕒 Local time

09:27 9:27 AM

11:27 11:27 AM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

165,655

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Sao Caetano do Sul 3,460 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Sao Caetano do Sul

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 Sao Caetano do Sul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Sao Caetano do Sul differ by about 5% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $1,058 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 47% lower in Sao Caetano do Sul. 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 $419 in Sao Caetano do Sul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 2% higher in Sao Caetano do Sul. 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 $1,058 in Sao Caetano do Sul – a 5% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,058 in Sao Caetano do Sul, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Sao Caetano do Sul. 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 5% less than in Sao Caetano do Sul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.