Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lima and Zapopan

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,518 in Zapopan, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
Learn more

Lima Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Zapopan
Learn more

Zapopan Living Index

Jump to prices

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Zapopan

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,518

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lima and in Zapopan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,012 in Lima versus $1,518 in Zapopan.

Lima $1,012
Zapopan $1,518

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,589 in Lima versus $2,203 in Zapopan.

Lima $1,589
Zapopan $2,203

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,167 in Lima versus $2,888 in Zapopan.

Lima $2,167
Zapopan $2,888

Living in Lima costs roughly 33% less than in Zapopan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lima is 25% below, Zapopan is 12% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 PEN 15.10

$10.95 MX$202

-59.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.17 PEN 121

$33.24 MX$614

5.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.89 PEN 23.65

$11.12 MX$205

-38.04%

Cappuccino

$3.26 PEN 11.20

$3.76 MX$69.4

-13.30%

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

$1.12 PEN 3.84

$1.11 MX$20.48

0.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 PEN 2.11

$1.17 MX$21.68

-47.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

$2.20 MX$40.74

20.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

$4.48 MX$82.7

-1.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 PEN 5.61

$1.49 MX$27.51

9.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PEN 8.78

$2.58 MX$47.70

-0.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.65

$1.21 MX$22.28

11.57%

Eggs

$2.90 PEN 9.96

$2.73 MX$50.5

6.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.85 PEN 30.38

$8.44 MX$156

4.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 PEN 20.52

$10.07 MX$186

-40.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.78 PEN 33.59

$10.14 MX$187

-3.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.05 PEN 7.02

$2.96 MX$54.7

-30.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.06 PEN 3.66

$1.43 MX$26.39

-25.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.35 PEN 4.64

$1.71 MX$31.68

-21.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 PEN 5.15

$2.18 MX$40.25

-31.19%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 PEN 3.03

$2.23 MX$41.19

-60.54%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 PEN 3.15

$2.60 MX$48.12

-64.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

$1.88 MX$34.70

-52.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 PEN 3.10

$1.19 MX$22.01

-24.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 PEN 20.27

$5.68 MX$105

3.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.52 PEN 29.26

$6.48 MX$120

31.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 PEN 6.45

$1.83 MX$33.78

2.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 PEN 11.05

$2.84 MX$52.4

13.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

$0.54 MX$10.01

25.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

$32.31 MX$597

-16.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

$2.42 MX$44.72

57.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

$2.54 MX$46.94

-20.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

$9.80 MX$181

-27.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

$1.46 MX$26.99

17.81%

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

$20.9K MX$385.6K

6.93%

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

$23.9K MX$441.7K

6.70%

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

$73.1 PEN 251

$125 MX$2,301

-41.31%

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

$16.35 PEN 56.2

$24.20 MX$447

-32.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

$29.26 MX$541

-6.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.90 PEN 110

$43.29 MX$800

-26.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

$13.80 MX$255

40.65%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

$5.37 MX$99.3

31.28%

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

$182 PEN 627

$166 MX$3,076

9.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

$7,056 MX$130.4K

84.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 PEN 185

$46.26 MX$855

16.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

$25.07 MX$463

36.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.8 PEN 284

$73.8 MX$1,364

12.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

$118 MX$2,184

-33.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$721 PEN 2,476

$969 MX$17.9K

-25.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$343 PEN 1,179

$658 MX$12.2K

-47.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,219 PEN 4,186

$1,667 MX$30.8K

-26.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$651 PEN 2,235

$1,026 MX$19.0K

-36.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

$5,695 MX$105.2K

-57.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

$1,559 MX$28.8K

-12.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

$1,013 MX$18.7K

-36.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

11.3

-20.88%

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

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Last update for Zapopan: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lima

$343 33.9%

Zapopan

$658 43.3% 91.5% $314

Groceries & Markets

Lima

$226 22.3%

Zapopan

$265 17.5% 17.3% $39

Eating Out

Lima

$124 12.3%

Zapopan

$195 12.9% 57.4% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lima

$117 11.6%

Zapopan

$178 11.7% 52.2% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Lima

$112 11.1%

Zapopan

$119 7.8% 5.7% $6.4

Sport & Entertainment

Lima

$46 4.6%

Zapopan

$54 3.6% 17.5% $8

Getting Around

Lima

$43 4.3%

Zapopan

$50 3.3% 14.1% $6.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $721 in Lima and $969 in Zapopan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Zapopan pays 56% 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 $33.00 in Zapopan. Groceries flip the comparison at $226 vs $265, with Lima cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Lima

🇲🇽 Zapopan

🕒 Local time

02:05 2:05 AM

01:05 1:05 AM

1 h behind Lima

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,989,369 Capital

1,257,547

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, 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).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lima Zapopan 4,650 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Lima
Zapopan

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 Zapopan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lima and Zapopan differ by about 50% in total monthly costs ($1,012 vs $1,518 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 56% lower in Zapopan. 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 $969 in Zapopan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $182 in Lima versus $166 in Zapopan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,518 in Zapopan, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Zapopan. 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 Zapopan 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 50% less than in Zapopan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.