Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Smithers and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $2,340 in Smithers, rent and utilities included – about $15,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

108

Cost of Living Index in Smithers
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Smithers Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Smithers

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,340

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,340 in Smithers versus $1,012 in Lima.

Smithers $2,340
Lima $1,012

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,213 in Smithers versus $1,589 in Lima.

Smithers $3,213
Lima $1,589

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,086 in Smithers versus $2,167 in Lima.

Smithers $4,086
Lima $2,167

Living in Smithers is roughly 131% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Smithers is 73% above, Lima is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.65 CA$24.95

$4.40 PEN 15.10

301.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.1 CA$90.7

$35.17 PEN 121

82.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.80 CA$15.27

$6.89 PEN 23.65

56.75%

Cappuccino

$3.57 CA$5.05

$3.26 PEN 11.20

9.51%

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

$1.97 CA$2.79

$1.12 PEN 3.84

75.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 CA$2.21

$0.62 PEN 2.11

151.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.40 CA$7.63

$2.65 PEN 9.09

103.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.31 CA$7.51

$4.41 PEN 15.15

20.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.06 CA$2.91

$1.63 PEN 5.61

26.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.52 CA$3.57

$2.56 PEN 8.78

-1.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.34 CA$4.72

$1.35 PEN 4.65

147.41%

Eggs

$3.36 CA$4.75

$2.90 PEN 9.96

15.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.57 CA$13.54

$8.85 PEN 30.38

8.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.02 CA$15.58

$5.98 PEN 20.52

84.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.76 CA$20.87

$9.78 PEN 33.59

50.92%

Apples (1kg)

$3.77 CA$5.33

$2.05 PEN 7.02

83.90%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 CA$1.78

$1.06 PEN 3.66

18.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.56 CA$5.03

$1.35 PEN 4.64

163.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.73 CA$5.27

$1.50 PEN 5.15

148.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.41 CA$3.41

$0.88 PEN 3.03

173.86%

Onion (1kg)

$2.20 CA$3.11

$0.92 PEN 3.15

139.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 CA$3.47

$0.89 PEN 3.07

176.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 CA$2.20

$0.90 PEN 3.10

72.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.79 CA$18.08

$5.90 PEN 20.27

116.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.64 CA$17.86

$8.52 PEN 29.26

48.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 CA$3.75

$1.88 PEN 6.45

40.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 CA$3.77

$3.22 PEN 11.05

-17.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 CA$3.26

$0.68 PEN 2.33

238.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.1 CA$92.0

$26.86 PEN 92.2

142.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.93 CA$4.15

$3.81 PEN 13.09

-23.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.23 CA$1.73

$2.02 PEN 6.93

-39.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.08 CA$28.38

$7.11 PEN 24.41

182.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.14 CA$1.61

$1.72 PEN 5.91

-33.72%

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

$30.4K CA$43.0K

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

36.18%

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

$20.1K CA$28.4K

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

-21.12%

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

$119 CA$168

$73.1 PEN 251

62.52%

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

$36.58 CA$51.7

$16.35 PEN 56.2

123.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.68 CA$64.6

$27.47 PEN 94.3

66.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.18 CA$52.6

$31.90 PEN 110

16.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.51 CA$26.17

$19.41 PEN 66.7

-4.64%

Cinema Ticket

$10.81 CA$15.28

$7.05 PEN 24.23

53.33%

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

$642 CA$908

$182 PEN 627

252.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K CA$16.4K

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

-11.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.8 CA$76.0

$53.8 PEN 185

-0.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.56 CA$54.5

$34.32 PEN 118

12.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.7 CA$121

$82.8 PEN 284

3.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.8 CA$134

$78.2 PEN 269

21.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,240 CA$1,753

$721 PEN 2,476

71.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,262 CA$1,784

$343 PEN 1,179

267.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,967 CA$2,781

$1,219 PEN 4,186

61.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,619 CA$2,288

$651 PEN 2,235

148.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,672 CA$5,192

$2,414 PEN 8,292

52.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,113 CA$4,400

$1,357 PEN 4,660

129.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.66

8.94

-47.87%

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

Last update for Smithers: 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

Smithers

$1.3K 53.9%

Lima

$343 33.9% 72.8% $918

Groceries & Markets

Smithers

$344 14.7%

Lima

$226 22.3% 34.3% $118

Eating Out

Smithers

$268 11.5%

Lima

$124 12.3% 53.8% $144

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Smithers

$201 8.6%

Lima

$117 11.6% 41.8% $84

Clothing & Footwear

Smithers

$123 5.3%

Lima

$112 11.1% 8.7% $11

Getting Around

Smithers

$83 3.6%

Lima

$43 4.3% 47.8% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Smithers

$59 2.5%

Lima

$46 4.6% 21.7% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,240 in Smithers and $721 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $64.0 in Smithers vs $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $344 vs $226 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Smithers

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

13:20 1:20 PM

15:20 3:20 PM

2 h ahead of Smithers

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,400

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

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Between locations

Smithers Lima 8,780 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Smithers
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

Smithers vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Smithers and Lima differ by about 131% in total monthly costs ($2,340 vs $1,012 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,510 in Smithers and $1,518 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,240 in Smithers versus $721 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $642 in Smithers 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 52% higher in Smithers. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $2,340 in Smithers, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Smithers. 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 131% less than in Smithers. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.