Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Salvador and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $996 a month against $1,666 in San Salvador, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in San Salvador
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San Salvador Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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San Salvador

🇸🇻 El Salvador

$1,666

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$996

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,666 in San Salvador versus $996 in Lima.

San Salvador $1,666
Lima $996

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,465 in San Salvador versus $1,594 in Lima.

San Salvador $2,465
Lima $1,594

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,263 in San Salvador versus $2,191 in Lima.

San Salvador $3,263
Lima $2,191

Living in San Salvador is roughly 67% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Salvador is 24% above, Lima is 26% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.72 $6.72

$4.42 PEN 15.16

52.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.39 $45.39

$35.04 PEN 120

29.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.07 $7.07

$6.84 PEN 23.44

3.36%

Cappuccino

$3.53 $3.53

$3.27 PEN 11.22

7.95%

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

$1.13 $1.13

$1.10 PEN 3.78

2.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 $0.85

$0.65 PEN 2.22

30.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.04 $2.04

$2.58 PEN 8.85

-20.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 $3.51

$4.47 PEN 15.34

-21.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.87 $1.87

$1.59 PEN 5.46

17.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.89 $2.89

$2.58 PEN 8.86

12.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.40 $1.40

$1.36 PEN 4.65

2.94%

Eggs

$3.09 $3.09

$2.95 PEN 10.11

4.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.88 $7.88

$9.10 PEN 31.19

-13.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.93 $6.93

$5.81 PEN 19.91

19.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.05 $10.05

$9.83 PEN 33.68

2.24%

Apples (1kg)

$5.08 $5.08

$2.01 PEN 6.89

152.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 $1.39

$1.08 PEN 3.69

28.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.53 $2.53

$1.37 PEN 4.70

84.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.40 $3.40

$1.48 PEN 5.06

129.73%

Potato (1kg)

$2.87 $2.87

$0.96 PEN 3.30

198.96%

Onion (1kg)

$3.28 $3.28

$0.85 PEN 2.92

285.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.97 $0.97

$0.88 PEN 3.02

10.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 $0.97

$0.87 PEN 2.97

11.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.07 $4.07

$5.90 PEN 20.24

-31.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.21 $12.21

$8.81 PEN 30.21

38.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.19 $2.19

$1.92 PEN 6.57

14.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 $2.86

$3.20 PEN 10.98

-10.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 $0.34

$0.68 PEN 2.33

-50.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.66 $37.66

$26.74 PEN 91.7

40.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.04 $6.04

$3.81 PEN 13.06

58.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.03 $3.03

$2.04 PEN 7.00

48.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.11 $20.11

$7.14 PEN 24.49

181.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 $1.29

$1.65 PEN 5.65

-21.82%

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

$24.8K $24.8K

$22.2K PEN 76.0K

11.62%

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

$27.0K $27.0K

$25.7K PEN 88.0K

5.09%

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

$130 $130

$73.0 PEN 250

78.63%

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

$21.57 $21.57

$16.26 PEN 55.7

32.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.03 $43.03

$27.60 PEN 94.6

55.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.99 $31.99

$33.07 PEN 113

-3.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.57 $21.57

$19.49 PEN 66.8

10.67%

Cinema Ticket

$5.06 $5.06

$7.39 PEN 25.33

-31.53%

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

$165 $165

$182 PEN 624

-9.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,640 $4,640

$13.3K PEN 45.7K

-65.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.2 $68.2

$52.6 PEN 180

29.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.79 $46.79

$34.23 PEN 117

36.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 $120

$83.8 PEN 287

43.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 $117

$79.0 PEN 271

47.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$906 $906

$723 PEN 2,479

25.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$755 $755

$340 PEN 1,166

122.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,804 $1,804

$1,184 PEN 4,060

52.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,343 $1,343

$635 PEN 2,176

111.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,813 $2,813

$2,449 PEN 8,394

14.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,845 $1,845

$1,372 PEN 4,702

34.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$372 $372

$653 PEN 2,237

-42.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.5

8.94

-4.92%

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

Last update for San Salvador: October 6, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Salvador

$755 46.1%

Lima

$340 33.6% 55% $415

Groceries & Markets

San Salvador

$287 17.5%

Lima

$226 22.4% 21% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Salvador

$195 11.9%

Lima

$117 11.6% 40.1% $78

Clothing & Footwear

San Salvador

$158 9.7%

Lima

$112 11.1% 29% $46

Eating Out

San Salvador

$142 8.7%

Lima

$124 12.3% 12.9% $18

Getting Around

San Salvador

$60 3.7%

Lima

$43 4.3% 27.8% $17

Sport & Entertainment

San Salvador

$42 2.6%

Lima

$48 4.7% 13.6% $5.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $906 in San Salvador and $723 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lima pays 75% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $45.00 in San Salvador vs $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $287 vs $226 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇻 San Salvador

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

23:39 11:39 PM

00:39 12:39 AM

1 h ahead of San Salvador

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

316,090 Capital

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

1 PEN = 0.292 USD

1 PEN = 0.26 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 October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.292 USD). 1 EUR = 3.84 PEN (1 PEN = 0.26 EUR).

PEN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

San Salvador Lima 3,160 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

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

San Salvador and Lima differ by about 67% in total monthly costs ($1,666 vs $996 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 75% 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: $906 in San Salvador versus $723 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $165 in San Salvador versus $182 in Lima. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in San Salvador. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $996 in Lima versus $1,666 in San Salvador, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in San Salvador. 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 67% less than in San Salvador. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.