Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Waterloo, IA

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,042 a month against $1,788 in Waterloo, IA, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

50

Cost of Living Index in Lima
Learn more

Lima Living Index
85

Cost of Living Index in Waterloo, IA
Learn more

Waterloo, IA Living Index

Jump to prices

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,042

/mo nomad

Waterloo, IA

🇺🇸 United States

$1,788

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Waterloo, IA

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,042 in Lima versus $1,788 in Waterloo, IA.

Lima $1,042
Waterloo, IA $1,788

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,651 in Lima versus $2,506 in Waterloo, IA.

Lima $1,651
Waterloo, IA $2,506

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,259 in Lima versus $3,224 in Waterloo, IA.

Lima $2,259
Waterloo, IA $3,224

Living in Lima costs roughly 42% less than in Waterloo, IA, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lima is 23% below, Waterloo, IA is 32% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.64 PEN 15.95

$16.17 $16.17

-71.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.34 PEN 118

$56.8 $56.8

-39.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.01 PEN 24.12

$9.24 $9.24

-24.13%

Cappuccino

$3.22 PEN 11.09

$5.56 $5.56

-42.09%

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

$1.13 PEN 3.90

$2.63 $2.63

-57.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.61 PEN 2.09

$2.02 $2.02

-69.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.93 PEN 10.08

$4.03 $4.03

-27.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 PEN 14.63

$7.62 $7.62

-44.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 PEN 5.44

$0.92 $0.92

71.74%

White Bread (500g)

$2.61 PEN 8.98

$2.32 $2.32

12.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.30 PEN 4.47

$1.75 $1.75

-25.71%

Eggs

$2.92 PEN 10.05

$3.77 $3.77

-22.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.54 PEN 32.82

$12.99 $12.99

-26.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.71 PEN 19.66

$12.38 $12.38

-53.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.47 PEN 32.58

$17.64 $17.64

-46.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.01 PEN 6.91

$4.47 $4.47

-55.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.02 PEN 3.52

$1.53 $1.53

-33.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 PEN 4.99

$3.94 $3.94

-63.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.49 PEN 5.14

$4.48 $4.48

-66.74%

Potato (1kg)

$0.91 PEN 3.14

$1.14 $1.14

-20.18%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$2.23 $2.23

-60.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.86 PEN 2.97

$1.91 $1.91

-54.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 PEN 3.06

$1.52 $1.52

-41.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.47 PEN 18.83

$8.26 $8.26

-33.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.17 PEN 35.00

$14.10 $14.10

-27.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 PEN 6.21

$2.60 $2.60

-30.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.15 PEN 10.84

$1.72 $1.72

83.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.66 PEN 2.28

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.89 PEN 110

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 PEN 11.79

$4.07 $4.07

-15.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.98 PEN 6.80

$1.97 $1.97

0.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.60 PEN 33.04

$43.45 $43.45

-77.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.71 PEN 5.89

$0.96 $0.96

78.13%

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

$21.9K PEN 75.3K

$30.9K $30.9K

-29.30%

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

$29.0K PEN 100.0K

$25.7K $25.7K

12.89%

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

$65.8 PEN 227

$150 $150

-56.18%

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

$15.26 PEN 52.5

$45.61 $45.61

-66.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.87 PEN 92.5

$59.3 $59.3

-54.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.91 PEN 113

$26.76 $26.76

22.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.12 PEN 69.2

Cinema Ticket

$7.12 PEN 24.49

$14.93 $14.93

-52.31%

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

$309 PEN 1,064

$1,620 $1,620

-80.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.4K PEN 73.5K

$21.1K $21.1K

0.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.0 PEN 179

$20.25 $20.25

156.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.69 PEN 123

$15.01 $15.01

137.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.8 PEN 281

$60.6 $60.6

35.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.0 PEN 268

$80.4 $80.4

-2.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$727 PEN 2,501

$856 $856

-15.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 PEN 1,284

$749 $749

-50.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,249 PEN 4,297

$1,328 $1,328

-5.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$739 PEN 2,544

$938 $938

-21.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,380 PEN 8,191

$1,582 $1,582

50.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,365 PEN 4,697

$1,548 $1,548

-11.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$650 PEN 2,238

$3,920 $3,920

-83.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.38

6.81

23.05%

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

Last update for Lima: October 31, 2026

Last update for Waterloo, IA: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$373 35.8%

Waterloo, IA

$749 41.9% 101% $376

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$228 21.9%

Waterloo, IA

$356 19.9% 56.2% $128

Eating Out

Lima

$127 12.2%

Waterloo, IA

$278 15.5% 119% $151

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$111 10.7%

Waterloo, IA

$79 4.4% 28.8% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$108 10.4%

Waterloo, IA

$255 14.3% 136% $147

Getting Around

Lima

$48 4.6%

Waterloo, IA

$14 * 0.8% 70.9% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$47 4.5%

Waterloo, IA

$57 3.2% 20.1% $9.5

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 $727 in Lima and $856 in Waterloo, IA. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Waterloo, IA pays about 6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $34 in Lima vs $57 in Waterloo, IA for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $228 vs $356 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇺🇸 Waterloo, IA

🕒 Local time

20:08 8:08 PM

19:08 7:08 PM

1 h behind Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

67,314

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.891 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Waterloo, IA 6,260 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Waterloo, IA

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 Waterloo, IA: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,042 in Lima and $1,788 in Waterloo, IA, so Lima is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 83% lower in Lima. 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: $727 in Lima versus $856 in Waterloo, IA. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 56% higher in Waterloo, IA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,042 per month in Lima versus $1,788 in Waterloo, IA – Lima is about 42% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Lima gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Lima wins on affordability, Waterloo, IA on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.