Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Taos, NM and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $2,793 in Taos, NM, rent and utilities included – about $21,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

135

Cost of Living Index in Taos, NM
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Taos, NM Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Taos, NM

🇺🇸 United States

$2,793

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,793 in Taos, NM versus $1,012 in Lima.

Taos, NM $2,793
Lima $1,012

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,132 in Taos, NM versus $1,589 in Lima.

Taos, NM $4,132
Lima $1,589

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,471 in Taos, NM versus $2,167 in Lima.

Taos, NM $5,471
Lima $2,167

Living in Taos, NM is roughly 176% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Taos, NM is 107% above, Lima is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.74 $16.74

$4.40 PEN 15.10

280.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.1 $67.1

$35.17 PEN 121

90.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.52 $9.52

$6.89 PEN 23.65

38.17%

Cappuccino

$3.98 $3.98

$3.26 PEN 11.20

22.09%

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

$2.20 $2.20

$1.12 PEN 3.84

96.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 $2.20

$0.62 PEN 2.11

254.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.06 $5.06

$2.65 PEN 9.09

90.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 $5.44

$4.41 PEN 15.15

23.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.83 $0.83

$1.63 PEN 5.61

-49.08%

White Bread (500g)

$3.08 $3.08

$2.56 PEN 8.78

20.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$1.35 PEN 4.65

221.48%

Eggs

$3.99 $3.99

$2.90 PEN 9.96

37.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.87 $11.87

$8.85 PEN 30.38

34.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.69 $9.69

$5.98 PEN 20.52

62.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.10 $11.10

$9.78 PEN 33.59

13.50%

Apples (1kg)

$4.75 $4.75

$2.05 PEN 7.02

131.71%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 $1.46

$1.06 PEN 3.66

37.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.25 $4.25

$1.35 PEN 4.64

214.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.07 $5.07

$1.50 PEN 5.15

238.00%

Potato (1kg)

$3.10 $3.10

$0.88 PEN 3.03

252.27%

Onion (1kg)

$3.27 $3.27

$0.92 PEN 3.15

255.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.06 $2.06

$0.89 PEN 3.07

131.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.49 $2.49

$0.90 PEN 3.10

176.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.52 $10.52

$5.90 PEN 20.27

78.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.72 $13.72

$8.52 PEN 29.26

61.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.51 $2.51

$1.88 PEN 6.45

33.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 $3.18

$3.22 PEN 11.05

-1.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 PEN 2.33

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 $3.69

$3.81 PEN 13.09

-3.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.04 $2.04

$2.02 PEN 6.93

0.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.20 $32.20

$7.11 PEN 24.41

352.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 $0.95

$1.72 PEN 5.91

-44.77%

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

$30.6K $30.6K

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

37.00%

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

$24.4K $24.4K

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

-4.28%

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

$161 $161

$73.1 PEN 251

119.71%

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

$62.8 $62.8

$16.35 PEN 56.2

284.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$61.6 $61.6

$27.47 PEN 94.3

124.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$95.3 $95.3

$31.90 PEN 110

198.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$8.63 $8.63

$7.05 PEN 24.23

22.41%

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

$1,509 $1,509

$182 PEN 627

726.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.2K $25.2K

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

93.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.6 $54.6

$53.8 PEN 185

1.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.88 $43.88

$34.32 PEN 118

27.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 $104

$82.8 PEN 284

25.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 $120

$78.2 PEN 269

53.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,806 $1,806

$721 PEN 2,476

150.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 $1,608

$343 PEN 1,179

368.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,497 $3,497

$1,219 PEN 4,186

186.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 $2,853

$651 PEN 2,235

338.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,366 $4,366

$2,414 PEN 8,292

80.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,376 $4,376

$1,357 PEN 4,660

222.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,687 $2,687

$648 PEN 2,226

314.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.3

8.94

-29.53%

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

Last update for Taos, NM: October 13, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Taos, NM

$1.6K 57.6%

Lima

$343 33.9% 78.6% $1.3K

Groceries & Markets

Taos, NM

$365 13.1%

Lima

$226 22.3% 38.1% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Taos, NM

$285 10.2%

Lima

$117 11.6% 59% $168

Eating Out

Taos, NM

$264 9.5%

Lima

$124 12.3% 53.1% $140

Clothing & Footwear

Taos, NM

$145 5.2%

Lima

$112 11.1% 22.6% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Taos, NM

$113 4%

Lima

$46 4.6% 59.1% $67

Getting Around

Taos, NM

$14 * 0.5%

Lima

$43 4.3% 213% $30

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,806 in Taos, NM and $721 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Taos, NM pays 315% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $67.0 in Taos, NM vs $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $365 vs $226 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Taos, NM

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

16:56 4:56 PM

17:56 5:56 PM

1 h ahead of Taos, NM

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

6,000

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 October 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

PEN to USD in detail →

On the map

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Taos, NM Lima 6,160 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Taos, NM
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

Taos, NM vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Taos, NM and Lima differ by about 176% in total monthly costs ($2,793 vs $1,012 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 315% higher in Taos, NM, 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: $1,806 in Taos, NM versus $721 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 62% higher in Taos, NM. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,793 per month in Taos, NM versus $1,012 in Lima – a 176% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $2,793 in Taos, NM, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Taos, NM. 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 176% less than in Taos, NM. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.