Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Puerto Varas and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,130 in Puerto Varas, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Puerto Varas outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

52

Cost of Living Index in Puerto Varas
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Puerto Varas Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Puerto Varas

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,130

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Puerto Varas and in Lima

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Puerto Varas and in Lima actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,130 in Puerto Varas versus $1,012 in Lima.

Puerto Varas $1,130
Lima $1,012

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,624 in Puerto Varas versus $1,589 in Lima.

Puerto Varas $1,624
Lima $1,589

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,118 in Puerto Varas versus $2,167 in Lima.

Puerto Varas $2,118
Lima $2,167

Living in Puerto Varas is roughly 12% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Puerto Varas 16% lower, Lima 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.47 CLP 12.3K

$4.40 PEN 15.10

183.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.05 CLP 40.4K

$35.17 PEN 121

16.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.58 CLP 7,462

$6.89 PEN 23.65

10.01%

Cappuccino

$3.28 CLP 3,231

$3.26 PEN 11.20

0.61%

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

$0.99 CLP 977

$1.12 PEN 3.84

-11.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.80 CLP 785

$0.62 PEN 2.11

29.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 PEN 9.09

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 PEN 15.15

Milk (1 liter)

$1.09 CLP 1,077

$1.63 PEN 5.61

-33.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 CLP 1,830

$2.56 PEN 8.78

-27.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 CLP 1,582

$1.35 PEN 4.65

19.26%

Eggs

$3.11 CLP 3,062

$2.90 PEN 9.96

7.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.61 CLP 8,476

$8.85 PEN 30.38

-2.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.68 CLP 4,609

$5.98 PEN 20.52

-21.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.50 CLP 8,372

$9.78 PEN 33.59

-13.09%

Apples (1kg)

$1.78 CLP 1,751

$2.05 PEN 7.02

-13.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 CLP 1,922

$1.06 PEN 3.66

83.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 CLP 2,565

$1.35 PEN 4.64

93.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.89 CLP 1,862

$1.50 PEN 5.15

26.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.50 CLP 1,480

$0.88 PEN 3.03

70.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.25 CLP 1,230

$0.92 PEN 3.15

35.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 CLP 1,296

$0.89 PEN 3.07

48.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 CLP 1,117

$0.90 PEN 3.10

25.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.96 CLP 4,884

$5.90 PEN 20.27

-15.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.63 CLP 4,557

$8.52 PEN 29.26

-45.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 CLP 1,379

$1.88 PEN 6.45

-25.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 CLP 1,226

$3.22 PEN 11.05

-61.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.10 CLP 1,078

$0.68 PEN 2.33

61.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 PEN 13.09

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 PEN 5.91

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

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

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

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

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

$255 CLP 251.2K

$73.1 PEN 251

249.21%

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

$16.06 CLP 15.8K

$16.35 PEN 56.2

-1.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 PEN 94.3

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.89 CLP 30.4K

$31.90 PEN 110

-3.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 PEN 24.23

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

$488 CLP 480.6K

$182 PEN 627

167.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,137 CLP 6.0M

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

-52.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$20.37 CLP 20.1K

$53.8 PEN 185

-62.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$15.32 CLP 15.1K

$34.32 PEN 118

-55.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.1 CLP 60.1K

$82.8 PEN 284

-26.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.2 PEN 269

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$623 CLP 612.8K

$721 PEN 2,476

-13.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$402 CLP 396.0K

$343 PEN 1,179

17.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$819 CLP 805.9K

$1,219 PEN 4,186

-32.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 CLP 609.7K

$651 PEN 2,235

-4.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$532 CLP 523.5K

$648 PEN 2,226

-17.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

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

Last update for Puerto Varas: October 12, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Puerto Varas

$402 35.6%

Lima

$343 33.9% 14.6% $59

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Puerto Varas

$271 * 24%

Lima

$117 11.6% 56.9% $154

Groceries & Markets

Puerto Varas

$208 18.4%

Lima

$226 22.3% 8.5% $18

Eating Out

Puerto Varas

$169 * 15%

Lima

$124 12.3% 26.6% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Puerto Varas

$44 * 3.9%

Lima

$112 11.1% 158% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Puerto Varas

$31 * 2.7%

Lima

$46 4.6% 48.9% $15

Getting Around

Puerto Varas

$4.4 * 0.4%

Lima

$43 4.3% 893% $39

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 $623 in Puerto Varas and $721 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lima pays 22% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $41.00 in Puerto Varas vs $35.00 in Lima. Groceries flip the comparison at $208 vs $226, with Puerto Varas cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Puerto Varas

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

02:03 2:03 AM

00:03 12:03 AM

2 h behind Puerto Varas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

41,255

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to CLP – Chilean Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,107 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR).

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).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Puerto Varas Lima 3,280 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Puerto Varas
Lima

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

Puerto Varas vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Puerto Varas and Lima differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($1,130 vs $1,012 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 22% 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: $623 in Puerto Varas versus $721 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Puerto Varas pay roughly 8% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,130 per month in Puerto Varas versus $1,012 in Lima – a 12% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,130 in Puerto Varas, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Puerto Varas. 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 12% less than in Puerto Varas. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.