Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Joao da Boa Vista and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Joao da Boa Vista: $823 a month against $1,012 in Lima, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Sao Joao da Boa Vista
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Sao Joao da Boa Vista Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Sao Joao da Boa Vista

🇧🇷 Brazil

$823

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sao Joao da Boa Vista 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 Sao Joao da Boa Vista and in Lima actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $823 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista versus $1,012 in Lima.

Sao Joao da Boa Vista $823
Lima $1,012

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,320 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista versus $1,589 in Lima.

Sao Joao da Boa Vista $1,320
Lima $1,589

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,818 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista versus $2,167 in Lima.

Sao Joao da Boa Vista $1,818
Lima $2,167

Living in Sao Joao da Boa Vista costs roughly 19% less than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sao Joao da Boa Vista 39% lower, Lima 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.62 R$28.22

$4.40 PEN 15.13

27.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.03 R$116

$35.17 PEN 121

-34.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.07 R$35.45

$6.89 PEN 23.69

2.61%

Cappuccino

$2.05 R$10.29

$3.26 PEN 11.22

-37.12%

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

$1.17 R$5.89

$1.12 PEN 3.84

4.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.92 R$4.62

$0.62 PEN 2.12

48.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.98 R$9.94

$2.65 PEN 9.11

-25.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 R$10.32

$4.41 PEN 15.17

-53.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.07 R$5.37

$1.63 PEN 5.62

-34.36%

White Bread (500g)

$1.64 R$8.23

$2.56 PEN 8.79

-35.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.98 R$4.90

$1.35 PEN 4.66

-27.41%

Eggs

$2.37 R$11.90

$2.90 PEN 9.97

-18.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.01 R$50.2

$8.85 PEN 30.43

13.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.00 R$25.09

$5.98 PEN 20.55

-16.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.07 R$50.5

$9.78 PEN 33.65

2.97%

Apples (1kg)

$1.95 R$9.80

$2.05 PEN 7.04

-4.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.17 R$5.88

$1.06 PEN 3.66

10.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.97 R$4.89

$1.35 PEN 4.65

-28.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 R$7.85

$1.50 PEN 5.16

4.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 R$4.15

$0.88 PEN 3.03

-5.68%

Onion (1kg)

$0.81 R$4.09

$0.92 PEN 3.16

-11.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.78 R$3.90

$0.89 PEN 3.08

-12.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 R$3.87

$0.90 PEN 3.11

-14.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.35 R$11.80

$5.90 PEN 20.31

-60.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.09 R$30.55

$8.52 PEN 29.31

-28.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 R$5.90

$1.88 PEN 6.46

-37.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 R$9.93

$3.22 PEN 11.07

-38.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 R$4.38

$0.68 PEN 2.34

27.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.48 R$223

$26.86 PEN 92.4

65.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 R$7.89

$3.81 PEN 13.11

-58.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 R$7.87

$2.02 PEN 6.94

-22.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.19 R$41.10

$7.11 PEN 24.45

15.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 R$5.35

$1.72 PEN 5.92

-37.79%

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

$19.8K R$99.3K

$22.3K PEN 76.7K

-11.32%

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

$33.3K R$166.9K

$25.5K PEN 87.7K

30.45%

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

$95.3 R$478

$73.1 PEN 251

30.44%

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

$9.88 R$49.55

$16.35 PEN 56.2

-39.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.70 R$98.8

$27.47 PEN 94.5

-28.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.59 R$143

$31.90 PEN 110

-10.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.76 R$159

$19.41 PEN 66.8

63.63%

Cinema Ticket

$5.49 R$27.56

$7.05 PEN 24.27

-22.13%

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

$280 R$1,403

$182 PEN 628

53.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.3K R$51.8K

$13.0K PEN 44.9K

-20.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.6 R$274

$53.8 PEN 185

1.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.79 R$190

$34.32 PEN 118

10.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.3 R$258

$82.8 PEN 285

-38.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.7 R$304

$78.2 PEN 269

-22.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$349 R$1,753

$721 PEN 2,481

-51.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$203 R$1,018

$343 PEN 1,181

-40.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 R$3,402

$1,219 PEN 4,193

-44.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$465 R$2,333

$651 PEN 2,239

-28.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,581 R$7,931

$2,414 PEN 8,306

-34.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,031 R$5,175

$1,357 PEN 4,668

-23.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$659 R$3,307

$648 PEN 2,229

1.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.79

8.94

43.06%

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

Last update for Sao Joao da Boa Vista: 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

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$203 24.7%

Lima

$343 33.9% 69.3% $141

Groceries & Markets

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$193 23.4%

Lima

$226 22.3% 17.2% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$125 15.2%

Lima

$117 11.6% 6.4% $8

Eating Out

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$113 13.8%

Lima

$124 12.3% 9.5% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$92 11.2%

Lima

$112 11.1% 21.9% $20

Getting Around

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$57 7%

Lima

$43 4.3% 24.2% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Joao da Boa Vista

$40 4.8%

Lima

$46 4.6% 16.2% $6.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $349 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista and $721 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sao Joao da Boa Vista pays 2% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $23.00 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista vs $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $193 vs $226 per month, with Sao Joao da Boa Vista cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Joao da Boa Vista

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

16:26 4:26 PM

14:26 2:26 PM

2 h behind Sao Joao da Boa Vista

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

92,547

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.199 USD

1 BRL = 0.178 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 5.02 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.62 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.85 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sao Joao da Boa Vista Lima 3,390 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Sao Joao da Boa Vista
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

Sao Joao da Boa Vista vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sao Joao da Boa Vista and Lima differ by about 23% in total monthly costs ($823 vs $1,012 including rent). Sao Joao da Boa Vista is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 2% higher in Sao Joao da Boa Vista, 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: $349 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista versus $721 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $280 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista 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 17% higher in Lima. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $823 in Sao Joao da Boa Vista versus $1,012 in Lima, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Sao Joao da Boa Vista but tight or insufficient in Lima. The gap between the two cities makes Sao Joao da Boa Vista 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 Sao Joao da Boa Vista gentler on the wallet – expenses run 23% less than in Lima. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.