Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Antonio, TX and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,042 a month against $2,349 in San Antonio, TX, rent and utilities included – about $15,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

113

Cost of Living Index in San Antonio, TX
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San Antonio, TX Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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San Antonio, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,349

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,042

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,349 in San Antonio, TX versus $1,042 in Lima.

San Antonio, TX $2,349
Lima $1,042

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,581 in San Antonio, TX versus $1,651 in Lima.

San Antonio, TX $3,581
Lima $1,651

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,813 in San Antonio, TX versus $2,259 in Lima.

San Antonio, TX $4,813
Lima $2,259

Living in San Antonio, TX is roughly 125% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Antonio, TX is 74% above, Lima is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.02 $18.02

$4.64 PEN 15.95

288.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.2 $75.2

$34.34 PEN 118

119.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.95 $10.95

$7.01 PEN 24.12

56.21%

Cappuccino

$5.46 $5.46

$3.22 PEN 11.09

69.57%

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

$2.68 $2.68

$1.13 PEN 3.90

137.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 $1.74

$0.61 PEN 2.09

185.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.16 $5.16

$2.93 PEN 10.08

76.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.82 $5.82

$4.25 PEN 14.63

36.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 $1.20

$1.58 PEN 5.44

-24.05%

White Bread (500g)

$3.30 $3.30

$2.61 PEN 8.98

26.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.42 $4.42

$1.30 PEN 4.47

240.00%

Eggs

$3.78 $3.78

$2.92 PEN 10.05

29.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.96 $11.96

$9.54 PEN 32.82

25.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.67 $11.67

$5.71 PEN 19.66

104.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.15 $18.15

$9.47 PEN 32.58

91.66%

Apples (1kg)

$4.86 $4.86

$2.01 PEN 6.91

141.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 $1.63

$1.02 PEN 3.52

59.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.28 $4.28

$1.45 PEN 4.99

195.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.61 $3.61

$1.49 PEN 5.14

142.28%

Potato (1kg)

$2.67 $2.67

$0.91 PEN 3.14

193.41%

Onion (1kg)

$2.99 $2.99

$0.89 PEN 3.07

235.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.97 $1.97

$0.86 PEN 2.97

129.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 $2.26

$0.89 PEN 3.06

153.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.13 $10.13

$5.47 PEN 18.83

85.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.13 $15.13

$10.17 PEN 35.00

48.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 $2.76

$1.81 PEN 6.21

52.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 $3.53

$3.15 PEN 10.84

12.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.27 $1.27

$0.66 PEN 2.28

92.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.88 $37.88

$31.89 PEN 110

18.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.46 $3.46

$3.43 PEN 11.79

0.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.98 PEN 6.80

-11.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.81 $26.81

$9.60 PEN 33.04

179.27%

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)

$35.7K $35.7K

$21.9K PEN 75.3K

63.40%

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

$25.9K $25.9K

$29.0K PEN 100.0K

-10.87%

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

$217 $217

$65.8 PEN 227

230.09%

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

$74.0 $74.0

$15.26 PEN 52.5

384.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$76.8 $76.8

$26.87 PEN 92.5

185.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.27 $36.27

$32.91 PEN 113

10.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.94 $20.94

$20.12 PEN 69.2

4.08%

Cinema Ticket

$14.72 $14.72

$7.12 PEN 24.49

106.74%

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

$1,293 $1,293

$309 PEN 1,064

318.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.6K $24.6K

$21.4K PEN 73.5K

15.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 $53.9

$52.0 PEN 179

3.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.3 $50.3

$35.69 PEN 123

41.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$140 $140

$81.8 PEN 281

70.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$148 $148

$78.0 PEN 268

90.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 $1,429

$727 PEN 2,501

96.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$990 $990

$373 PEN 1,284

165.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,941 $2,941

$1,249 PEN 4,297

135.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,834 $1,834

$739 PEN 2,544

148.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,430 $4,430

$2,380 PEN 8,191

86.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,717 $1,717

$1,365 PEN 4,697

25.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,813 $3,813

$650 PEN 2,238

486.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.48

8.38

-22.67%

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

Last update for San Antonio, TX: November 3, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Antonio, TX

$990 42.2%

Lima

$373 35.8% 62.3% $617

Groceries & Markets

San Antonio, TX

$396 16.9%

Lima

$228 21.9% 42.4% $168

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Antonio, TX

$368 15.7%

Lima

$108 10.4% 70.7% $260

Eating Out

San Antonio, TX

$298 12.7%

Lima

$127 12.2% 57.4% $171

Clothing & Footwear

San Antonio, TX

$177 7.5%

Lima

$111 10.7% 36.9% $65

Sport & Entertainment

San Antonio, TX

$66 2.8%

Lima

$47 4.5% 28.3% $19

Getting Around

San Antonio, TX

$55 2.4%

Lima

$48 4.6% 13.4% $7.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,429 in San Antonio, TX and $727 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

San Antonio, TX pays about 5.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $75 in San Antonio, TX vs $34 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $396 vs $228 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 San Antonio, TX

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

09:59 9:59 AM

10:59 10:59 AM

1 h ahead of San Antonio, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,434,625

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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Between locations

San Antonio, TX Lima 5,160 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

San Antonio, TX
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

San Antonio, TX vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,349 in San Antonio, TX 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 San Antonio, TX is about 5.9 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: $1,429 in San Antonio, TX versus $727 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,293 in San Antonio, TX 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 74% higher in San Antonio, TX. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,042 in Lima versus $2,349 in San Antonio, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in San Antonio, TX. 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 San Antonio, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.