Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San José and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in San José: $913 a month against $1,014 in Lima, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lima outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

44

Cost of Living Index in San José
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San José Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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San José

🇺🇾 Uruguay

$913

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,014

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $913 in San José versus $1,014 in Lima.

San José $913
Lima $1,014

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,449 in San José versus $1,613 in Lima.

San José $1,449
Lima $1,613

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,985 in San José versus $2,211 in Lima.

San José $1,985
Lima $2,211

Living in San José costs roughly 10% less than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: San José 33% lower, Lima 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.95 UYU 520

$4.42 PEN 15.19

192.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.87 UYU 1,761

$34.56 PEN 119

26.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.82 UYU 555

$6.80 PEN 23.37

103.24%

Cappuccino

$4.88 UYU 196

$3.30 PEN 11.34

47.88%

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

$2.38 UYU 95.6

$1.06 PEN 3.64

124.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 UYU 87.9

$0.66 PEN 2.26

231.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.92 UYU 117

$2.54 PEN 8.71

14.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 UYU 140

$4.24 PEN 14.55

-17.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.99 UYU 39.77

$1.58 PEN 5.43

-37.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.01 UYU 80.7

$2.61 PEN 8.97

-22.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 UYU 59.0

$1.34 PEN 4.60

9.70%

Eggs

$2.62 UYU 105

$2.93 PEN 10.08

-10.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.01 UYU 482

$9.45 PEN 32.45

27.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.26 UYU 291

$5.75 PEN 19.75

26.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.07 UYU 484

$9.69 PEN 33.29

24.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.22 UYU 48.77

$2.02 PEN 6.95

-39.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 UYU 61.8

$1.07 PEN 3.66

43.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.21 UYU 48.71

$1.37 PEN 4.70

-11.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 UYU 61.7

$1.47 PEN 5.05

4.76%

Potato (1kg)

$0.98 UYU 39.49

$0.95 PEN 3.25

3.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 UYU 51.5

$0.91 PEN 3.14

40.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 UYU 59.7

$0.90 PEN 3.10

65.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.99 UYU 79.9

$0.89 PEN 3.04

123.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.82 UYU 394

$5.74 PEN 19.71

71.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.17 UYU 328

$9.21 PEN 31.64

-11.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.05 UYU 123

$1.84 PEN 6.31

65.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 UYU 135

$3.11 PEN 10.67

7.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.72 PEN 2.46

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.03 PEN 89.4

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.50 UYU 141

$3.54 PEN 12.17

-1.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.45 UYU 139

$2.07 PEN 7.12

66.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.95 UYU 399

$7.75 PEN 26.62

28.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 UYU 86.3

$1.71 PEN 5.86

25.73%

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

$36.4K UYU 1.5M

$21.6K PEN 74.1K

68.63%

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

$40.1K UYU 1.6M

$28.6K PEN 98.2K

40.11%

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

$113 UYU 4,547

$68.2 PEN 234

66.25%

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

$23.78 UYU 955

$15.73 PEN 54.0

51.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.11 UYU 1,891

$26.48 PEN 90.9

77.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.94 PEN 117

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.10 PEN 69.0

Cinema Ticket

$12.35 UYU 496

$7.22 PEN 24.80

71.05%

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

$494 UYU 19.8K

$201 PEN 689

146.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,691 UYU 268.6K

$12.9K PEN 44.3K

-48.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.3 UYU 3,542

$53.7 PEN 184

64.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.57 UYU 1,508

$35.88 PEN 123

4.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$164 UYU 6,601

$83.8 PEN 288

96.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 UYU 4,699

$78.8 PEN 271

48.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 PEN 2,505

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$349 PEN 1,197

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,186 PEN 4,073

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$696 PEN 2,391

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,360 PEN 8,105

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,356 PEN 4,657

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$663 PEN 2,278

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.78

-43.05%

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

Last update for San José: October 17, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

San José

$256 28.1%

Lima

$227 22.4% 11.4% $29

Eating Out

San José

$243 26.7%

Lima

$123 12.2% 49.3% $120

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San José

$184 20.2%

Lima

$110 10.9% 40.1% $74

Clothing & Footwear

San José

$183 20.1%

Lima

$113 11.2% 38.1% $70

Sport & Entertainment

San José

$25 * 2.7%

Lima

$48 4.8% 95.9% $24

Getting Around

San José

$21 * 2.3%

Lima

$43 4.2% 106% $22

Accommodation & Living

San José

- * 0%

Lima

$349 34.4%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $44.00 in San José vs $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $256 vs $227 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇾 San José

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

19:40 7:40 PM

17:40 5:40 PM

2 h behind San José

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

36,747

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Uruguayan Peso UYU $U

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

100 UYU = 2.49 USD

100 UYU = 2.22 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to UYU – Uruguayan Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇾 Uruguayan Peso ($U)

Uruguayan Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 40.14 UYU (100 UYU = 2.49 USD). 1 EUR = 45.12 UYU (100 UYU = 2.22 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to UYU in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

San José Lima 3,220 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

San José
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 José vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San José and Lima differ by about 11% in total monthly costs ($913 vs $1,014 including rent). San José is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,369 in San José and $1,522 in Lima to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Shoppers in Lima pay roughly 13% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $913 per month in San José versus $1,014 in Lima – a 11% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $913 in San José versus $1,014 in Lima, a $1,000 budget is realistic in San José but tight or insufficient in Lima. The gap between the two cities makes San José 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, San José 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 San José gentler on the wallet – expenses run 11% less than in Lima. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.