Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Sao Joao da Boa Vista

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Joao da Boa Vista: $823 a month against $1,012 in Lima, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
Learn more

Lima Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Sao Joao da Boa Vista
Learn more

Sao Joao da Boa Vista Living Index

Jump to prices

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

🇧🇷 Brazil

$823

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Sao Joao da Boa Vista

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 Joao da Boa Vista actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $823 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista.

Lima $1,012
Sao Joao da Boa Vista $823

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $1,320 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista.

Lima $1,589
Sao Joao da Boa Vista $1,320

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $1,818 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista.

Lima $2,167
Sao Joao da Boa Vista $1,818

Living in Lima is roughly 23% more expensive than in Sao Joao da Boa Vista, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lima 25% lower, Sao Joao da Boa Vista 39% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.13

$5.62 R$28.22

-21.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$23.03 R$116

52.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.69

$7.07 R$35.45

-2.55%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.22

$2.05 R$10.29

59.02%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$1.17 R$5.89

-4.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.12

$0.92 R$4.62

-32.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.11

$1.98 R$9.94

33.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.17

$2.06 R$10.32

114.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.62

$1.07 R$5.37

52.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.79

$1.64 R$8.23

56.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.66

$0.98 R$4.90

37.76%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.97

$2.37 R$11.90

22.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.43

$10.01 R$50.2

-11.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.55

$5.00 R$25.09

19.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.65

$10.07 R$50.5

-2.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.04

$1.95 R$9.80

5.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$1.17 R$5.88

-9.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$0.97 R$4.89

39.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.16

$1.56 R$7.85

-3.85%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$0.83 R$4.15

6.02%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.16

$0.81 R$4.09

13.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.08

$0.78 R$3.90

14.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.11

$0.77 R$3.87

16.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.31

$2.35 R$11.80

151.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.31

$6.09 R$30.55

39.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.46

$1.18 R$5.90

59.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.07

$1.98 R$9.93

62.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.34

$0.87 R$4.38

-21.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.4

$44.48 R$223

-39.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.11

$1.57 R$7.89

142.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.94

$1.57 R$7.87

28.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.45

$8.19 R$41.10

-13.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.92

$1.07 R$5.35

60.75%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.7K

$19.8K R$99.3K

12.76%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.7K

$33.3K R$166.9K

-23.34%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$95.3 R$478

-23.33%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$9.88 R$49.55

65.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.5

$19.70 R$98.8

39.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$28.59 R$143

11.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.8

$31.76 R$159

-38.89%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.27

$5.49 R$27.56

28.42%

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

$182 PEN 628

$280 R$1,403

-34.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.9K

$10.3K R$51.8K

26.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$54.6 R$274

-1.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$37.79 R$190

-9.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 285

$51.3 R$258

61.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$60.7 R$304

28.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,481

$349 R$1,753

106.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,181

$203 R$1,018

69.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,193

$678 R$3,402

79.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,239

$465 R$2,333

39.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,306

$1,581 R$7,931

52.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,668

$1,031 R$5,175

31.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,229

$659 R$3,307

-1.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

12.79

-30.10%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Sao Joao da Boa Vista: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$203 24.7% 40.9% $141

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$193 23.4% 14.7% $33

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$113 13.8% 8.7% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$125 15.2% 6.8% $8

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$92 11.2% 18% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$40 4.8% 14% $6.4

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$57 7% 32% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Lima and $349 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sao Joao da Boa Vista pays 2% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $35.00 in Lima vs $23.00 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $193 per month, with Sao Joao da Boa Vista cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇧🇷 Sao Joao da Boa Vista

🕒 Local time

15:16 3:16 PM

17:16 5:16 PM

2 h ahead of Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

92,547

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

1 BRL = 0.199 USD

1 BRL = 0.178 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 14, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.85 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 5.02 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.62 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Sao Joao da Boa Vista 3,390 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Sao Joao da Boa Vista

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 Joao da Boa Vista: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Sao Joao da Boa Vista differ by about 23% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $823 including rent). Sao Joao da Boa Vista is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 2% lower in Sao Joao da Boa Vista. 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 $349 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $182 in Lima versus $280 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% higher in Lima. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $823 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista versus $1,012 in Lima, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sao Joao da Boa Vista but tight or insufficient in Lima. The gap between the two cities makes Sao Joao da Boa Vista 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 Sao Joao da Boa Vista gentler on the wallet – expenses run 23% less than in Lima. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.