Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint Louis, MO and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,042 a month against $2,351 in Saint Louis, MO, rent and utilities included – about $15,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

113

Cost of Living Index in Saint Louis, MO
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Saint Louis, MO Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Saint Louis, MO

🇺🇸 United States

$2,351

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,042

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Saint Louis, MO 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 Saint Louis, MO and in Lima actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,351 in Saint Louis, MO versus $1,042 in Lima.

Saint Louis, MO $2,351
Lima $1,042

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,539 in Saint Louis, MO versus $1,651 in Lima.

Saint Louis, MO $3,539
Lima $1,651

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,726 in Saint Louis, MO versus $2,259 in Lima.

Saint Louis, MO $4,726
Lima $2,259

Living in Saint Louis, MO is roughly 126% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Saint Louis, MO is 74% above, Lima is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.69 $17.69

$4.64 PEN 15.95

281.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.3 $77.3

$34.34 PEN 118

125.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.82 $11.82

$7.01 PEN 24.12

68.62%

Cappuccino

$5.03 $5.03

$3.22 PEN 11.09

56.21%

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

$2.35 $2.35

$1.13 PEN 3.90

107.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 $1.74

$0.61 PEN 2.09

185.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.65 $5.65

$2.93 PEN 10.08

92.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.01 $7.01

$4.25 PEN 14.63

64.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 $1.30

$1.58 PEN 5.44

-17.72%

White Bread (500g)

$3.94 $3.94

$2.61 PEN 8.98

50.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.90 $5.90

$1.30 PEN 4.47

353.85%

Eggs

$4.02 $4.02

$2.92 PEN 10.05

37.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.70 $13.70

$9.54 PEN 32.82

43.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.37 $15.37

$5.71 PEN 19.66

169.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.25 $20.25

$9.47 PEN 32.58

113.83%

Apples (1kg)

$8.15 $8.15

$2.01 PEN 6.91

305.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 $2.29

$1.02 PEN 3.52

124.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.64 $5.64

$1.45 PEN 4.99

288.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.14 $5.14

$1.49 PEN 5.14

244.97%

Potato (1kg)

$4.33 $4.33

$0.91 PEN 3.14

375.82%

Onion (1kg)

$4.96 $4.96

$0.89 PEN 3.07

457.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.83 $2.83

$0.86 PEN 2.97

229.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.91 $2.91

$0.89 PEN 3.06

226.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.85 $7.85

$5.47 PEN 18.83

43.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.77 $14.77

$10.17 PEN 35.00

45.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 $2.81

$1.81 PEN 6.21

55.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 $3.35

$3.15 PEN 10.84

6.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.57 $2.57

$0.66 PEN 2.28

289.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.2 $77.2

$31.89 PEN 110

141.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.46 $3.46

$3.43 PEN 11.79

0.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.51 $1.51

$1.98 PEN 6.80

-23.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.82 $39.82

$9.60 PEN 33.04

314.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 $1.01

$1.71 PEN 5.89

-40.94%

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

$29.3K $29.3K

$21.9K PEN 75.3K

34.11%

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

$26.6K $26.6K

$29.0K PEN 100.0K

-8.43%

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

$246 $246

$65.8 PEN 227

273.92%

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

$68.3 $68.3

$15.26 PEN 52.5

347.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$75.4 $75.4

$26.87 PEN 92.5

180.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.69 $29.69

$32.91 PEN 113

-9.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.65 $19.65

$20.12 PEN 69.2

-2.34%

Cinema Ticket

$13.73 $13.73

$7.12 PEN 24.49

92.84%

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

$1,396 $1,396

$309 PEN 1,064

351.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.4K $28.4K

$21.4K PEN 73.5K

32.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 $58.5

$52.0 PEN 179

12.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.65 $39.65

$35.69 PEN 123

11.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.9 $88.9

$81.8 PEN 281

8.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 $120

$78.0 PEN 268

53.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,456 $1,456

$727 PEN 2,501

100.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$879 $879

$373 PEN 1,284

135.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,831 $1,831

$1,249 PEN 4,297

46.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,507 $1,507

$739 PEN 2,544

103.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 $1,621

$2,380 PEN 8,191

-31.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,815 $1,815

$1,365 PEN 4,697

32.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,333 $4,333

$650 PEN 2,238

566.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.72

8.38

-19.81%

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

Last update for Saint Louis, MO: November 2, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Saint Louis, MO

$879 37.4%

Lima

$373 35.8% 57.6% $506

Groceries & Markets

Saint Louis, MO

$493 21%

Lima

$228 21.9% 53.7% $265

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Saint Louis, MO

$390 16.6%

Lima

$108 10.4% 72.3% $282

Eating Out

Saint Louis, MO

$296 12.6%

Lima

$127 12.2% 57.1% $169

Clothing & Footwear

Saint Louis, MO

$138 5.9%

Lima

$111 10.7% 19.3% $27

Getting Around

Saint Louis, MO

$98 4.2%

Lima

$48 4.6% 51.4% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Saint Louis, MO

$57 2.4%

Lima

$47 4.5% 17.5% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,456 in Saint Louis, MO and $727 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Saint Louis, MO pays about 6.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $77 in Saint Louis, MO vs $34 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $493 vs $228 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Saint Louis, MO

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

08:40 8:40 AM

09:40 9:40 AM

1 h ahead of Saint Louis, MO

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

301,578

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.87 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

PEN to USD in detail →

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Saint Louis, MO Lima 5,800 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

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Saint Louis, MO
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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

Saint Louis, MO vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,351 in Saint Louis, MO and $1,042 in Lima, so Lima is about 56% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Saint Louis, MO is about 6.7 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,456 in Saint Louis, MO versus $727 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,396 in Saint Louis, MO versus $309 in Lima. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 116% higher in Saint Louis, MO. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,042 in Lima versus $2,351 in Saint Louis, MO, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Saint Louis, MO. 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 56% less than in Saint Louis, MO. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.