Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Tamarindo

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $2,127 in Tamarindo, rent and utilities included – about $13,400 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
103

Cost of Living Index in Tamarindo
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Tamarindo Living Index

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Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Tamarindo

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,127

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Tamarindo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $2,127 in Tamarindo.

Lima $1,012
Tamarindo $2,127

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $3,081 in Tamarindo.

Lima $1,589
Tamarindo $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $4,035 in Tamarindo.

Lima $2,167
Tamarindo $4,035

Living in Lima costs roughly 52% less than in Tamarindo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lima is 25% below, Tamarindo is 58% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$12.18 ₡5,463

-63.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$62.3 ₡28.0K

-43.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$11.87 ₡5,324

-41.95%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$4.34 ₡1,948

-24.88%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$2.65 ₡1,188

-57.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$1.91 ₡856

-67.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$3.27 ₡1,465

-18.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$4.56 ₡2,043

-3.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$2.42 ₡1,085

-32.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$3.12 ₡1,400

-17.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$2.42 ₡1,088

-44.21%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$3.47 ₡1,556

-16.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$10.53 ₡4,721

-15.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$10.52 ₡4,716

-43.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$14.17 ₡6,354

-30.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$5.21 ₡2,336

-60.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$1.60 ₡717

-33.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$3.54 ₡1,588

-61.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$3.90 ₡1,747

-61.54%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$2.55 ₡1,141

-65.49%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$3.71 ₡1,665

-75.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$1.09 ₡487

-18.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$3.07 ₡1,376

-70.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$5.20 ₡2,331

13.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$13.18 ₡5,912

-35.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$2.78 ₡1,249

-32.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$3.09 ₡1,385

4.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$2.07 ₡929

-67.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

$85.4 ₡38.3K

-68.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$2.38 ₡1,065

60.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

$1.63 ₡729

23.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

$6.64 ₡2,978

7.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.50 ₡675

14.67%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$22.4K ₡10.0M

-0.24%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$34.7K ₡15.6M

-26.53%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$93.5 ₡41.9K

-21.88%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$30.01 ₡13.5K

-45.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$59.1 ₡26.5K

-53.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$101 ₡45.3K

-68.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

$26.01 ₡11.7K

-25.37%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$7.90 ₡3,543

-10.76%

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

$182 PEN 627

$575 ₡257.7K

-68.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

$9,081 ₡4.1M

43.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$71.5 ₡32.1K

-24.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$26.29 ₡11.8K

30.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$120 ₡53.7K

-30.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$131 ₡58.9K

-40.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$1,921 ₡861.5K

-62.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$960 ₡430.6K

-64.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$2,738 ₡1.2M

-55.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$1,371 ₡614.9K

-52.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

$5,341 ₡2.4M

-54.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

$3,241 ₡1.5M

-58.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

$949 ₡425.7K

-31.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

8.62

3.71%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Tamarindo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Tamarindo

$960 45.1% 180% $617

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Tamarindo

$378 17.8% 67.1% $152

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Tamarindo

$229 10.8% 84.6% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Tamarindo

$183 8.6% 56.3% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Tamarindo

$157 7.4% 40% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Tamarindo

$117 5.5% 154% $71

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Tamarindo

$104 4.9% 140% $61

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Lima and $1,921 in Tamarindo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tamarindo pays 46% 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 $62.0 in Tamarindo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $226 vs $378 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇨🇷 Tamarindo

🕒 Local time

20:06 8:06 PM

19:06 7:06 PM

1 h behind Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

6,000

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Tamarindo 2,670 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Tamarindo

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 Tamarindo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Tamarindo differ by about 110% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $2,127 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 46% lower in Tamarindo. 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 $1,921 in Tamarindo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $182 in Lima versus $575 in Tamarindo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 67% higher in Tamarindo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $2,127 in Tamarindo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Tamarindo. 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 Tamarindo 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 110% less than in Tamarindo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.