Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Salta and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,138 in Salta, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Salta
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Salta Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Salta

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,138

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,138 in Salta versus $1,012 in Lima.

Salta $1,138
Lima $1,012

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,915 in Salta versus $1,589 in Lima.

Salta $1,915
Lima $1,589

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,692 in Salta versus $2,167 in Lima.

Salta $2,692
Lima $2,167

Living in Salta is roughly 13% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.47 ARS 11.3K

$4.40 PEN 15.10

69.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.6 ARS 85.9K

$35.17 PEN 121

60.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.91 ARS 19.6K

$6.89 PEN 23.65

87.37%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ARS 3,810

$3.26 PEN 11.20

-23.01%

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

$1.57 ARS 2,377

$1.12 PEN 3.84

40.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ARS 2,817

$0.62 PEN 2.11

200.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.67 ARS 2,529

$2.65 PEN 9.09

-36.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 ARS 5,014

$4.41 PEN 15.15

-25.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.40 ARS 2,126

$1.63 PEN 5.61

-14.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.78 ARS 2,708

$2.56 PEN 8.78

-30.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 ARS 2,984

$1.35 PEN 4.65

45.93%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,304

$2.90 PEN 9.96

-2.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.29 ARS 15.6K

$8.85 PEN 30.38

16.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.67 ARS 11.6K

$5.98 PEN 20.52

28.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.47 ARS 17.4K

$9.78 PEN 33.59

17.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.36 ARS 3,579

$2.05 PEN 7.02

15.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ARS 2,552

$1.06 PEN 3.66

58.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.50 ARS 2,283

$1.35 PEN 4.64

11.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.03 ARS 3,078

$1.50 PEN 5.15

35.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 ARS 1,602

$0.88 PEN 3.03

20.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.05 ARS 1,586

$0.92 PEN 3.15

14.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 ARS 2,662

$0.90 PEN 3.10

94.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.38 ARS 5,127

$5.90 PEN 20.27

-42.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.87 ARS 7,388

$8.52 PEN 29.26

-42.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 ARS 2,185

$1.88 PEN 6.45

-23.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.11 ARS 6,243

$3.22 PEN 11.05

27.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.97 ARS 1,474

$0.68 PEN 2.33

42.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ARS 2,046

$3.81 PEN 13.09

-64.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 ARS 1,923

$1.72 PEN 5.91

-26.16%

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

$28.6K ARS 43.4M

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

28.29%

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

$33.8K ARS 51.2M

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

32.40%

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

$125 ARS 189.5K

$73.1 PEN 251

70.92%

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

$17.09 ARS 25.9K

$16.35 PEN 56.2

4.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.18 ARS 39.7K

$27.47 PEN 94.3

-4.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.89 ARS 45.4K

$31.90 PEN 110

-6.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$9.51 ARS 14.4K

$7.05 PEN 24.23

34.89%

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

$272 ARS 413.0K

$182 PEN 627

49.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$108 ARS 163.4K

$53.8 PEN 185

100.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.5 ARS 88.8K

$34.32 PEN 118

70.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 ARS 176.7K

$82.8 PEN 284

40.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$138 ARS 210.1K

$78.2 PEN 269

76.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$526 ARS 798.8K

$721 PEN 2,476

-27.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$325 ARS 493.4K

$343 PEN 1,179

-5.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,004 ARS 1.5M

$1,219 PEN 4,186

-17.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$818 ARS 1.2M

$651 PEN 2,235

25.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,953 ARS 3.0M

$2,414 PEN 8,292

-19.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,457 ARS 2.2M

$1,357 PEN 4,660

7.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$837 ARS 1.3M

$648 PEN 2,226

29.17%

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 Salta: 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

Salta

$325 28.6%

Lima

$343 33.9% 5.6% $18

Groceries & Markets

Salta

$244 * 21.5%

Lima

$226 22.3% 7.5% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Salta

$189 16.7%

Lima

$112 11.1% 40.8% $77

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Salta

$168 14.8%

Lima

$117 11.6% 30.5% $51

Eating Out

Salta

$157 13.8%

Lima

$124 12.3% 21.2% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Salta

$49 4.3%

Lima

$46 4.6% 5.9% $2.9

Getting Around

Salta

$5.2 * 0.5%

Lima

$43 4.3% 731% $38

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 $526 in Salta and $721 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Salta pays 29% 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: $57.0 in Salta vs $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $244 vs $226 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Salta

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

10:51 10:51 AM

08:51 8:51 AM

2 h behind Salta

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

535,303

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Salta Lima 1,870 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Salta
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

Salta vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Salta and Lima differ by about 13% in total monthly costs ($1,138 vs $1,012 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 29% higher in Salta, 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: $526 in Salta versus $721 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 8% higher in Salta. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,138 per month in Salta versus $1,012 in Lima – a 13% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,138 in Salta, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Salta. 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, Salta and Lima 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 13% less than in Salta. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.