Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Toronto and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $996 a month against $2,530 in Toronto, rent and utilities included – about $18,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Toronto
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Toronto Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Toronto

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,530

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$996

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,530 in Toronto versus $996 in Lima.

Toronto $2,530
Lima $996

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,646 in Toronto versus $1,594 in Lima.

Toronto $3,646
Lima $1,594

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,761 in Toronto versus $2,191 in Lima.

Toronto $4,761
Lima $2,191

Living in Toronto is roughly 154% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Toronto is 89% above, Lima is 26% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.67 CA$25.13

$4.42 PEN 15.21

299.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.4 CA$110

$35.04 PEN 121

120.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.47 CA$14.90

$6.84 PEN 23.52

53.07%

Cappuccino

$4.08 CA$5.80

$3.27 PEN 11.26

24.77%

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

$2.12 CA$3.01

$1.10 PEN 3.80

92.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 CA$2.50

$0.65 PEN 2.23

170.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.17 CA$8.78

$2.58 PEN 8.88

139.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.89 CA$9.80

$4.47 PEN 15.39

54.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.43 CA$3.46

$1.59 PEN 5.48

52.83%

White Bread (500g)

$2.75 CA$3.91

$2.58 PEN 8.89

6.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 CA$3.17

$1.36 PEN 4.67

63.97%

Eggs

$3.45 CA$4.90

$2.95 PEN 10.14

16.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.93 CA$12.71

$9.10 PEN 31.30

-1.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.44 CA$16.27

$5.81 PEN 19.98

96.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.61 CA$20.78

$9.83 PEN 33.80

48.63%

Apples (1kg)

$3.75 CA$5.33

$2.01 PEN 6.92

86.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.15 CA$1.63

$1.08 PEN 3.70

6.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.55 CA$5.05

$1.37 PEN 4.71

159.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 CA$6.09

$1.48 PEN 5.08

189.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 CA$2.62

$0.96 PEN 3.32

92.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.67 CA$2.37

$0.85 PEN 2.93

96.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.22 CA$3.15

$0.88 PEN 3.03

152.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 CA$1.72

$0.87 PEN 2.98

39.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.88 CA$19.74

$5.90 PEN 20.31

135.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.25 CA$20.27

$8.81 PEN 30.31

61.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.20 CA$3.12

$1.92 PEN 6.59

14.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 CA$3.44

$3.20 PEN 11.02

-24.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.42 CA$3.44

$0.68 PEN 2.33

255.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$111 CA$158

$26.74 PEN 92.0

314.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.90 CA$4.12

$3.81 PEN 13.10

-23.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.26 CA$1.79

$2.04 PEN 7.02

-38.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.03 CA$31.33

$7.14 PEN 24.57

208.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 CA$1.74

$1.65 PEN 5.67

-26.06%

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

$27.6K CA$39.3K

$22.2K PEN 76.3K

24.60%

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

$19.8K CA$28.2K

$25.7K PEN 88.3K

-22.78%

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

$122 CA$173

$73.0 PEN 251

66.87%

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

$32.03 CA$45.56

$16.26 PEN 55.9

96.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.92 CA$68.2

$27.60 PEN 94.9

73.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.90 CA$55.3

$33.07 PEN 114

17.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.24 CA$33.05

$19.49 PEN 67.1

19.24%

Cinema Ticket

$12.61 CA$17.94

$7.39 PEN 25.41

70.64%

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

$834 CA$1,186

$182 PEN 626

358.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.3K CA$33.2K

$13.3K PEN 45.8K

75.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 CA$74.8

$52.6 PEN 181

0.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.26 CA$57.3

$34.23 PEN 118

17.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.2 CA$137

$83.8 PEN 288

14.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 CA$175

$79.0 PEN 272

55.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 CA$2,273

$723 PEN 2,488

120.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,435 CA$2,041

$340 PEN 1,170

321.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,657 CA$3,779

$1,184 PEN 4,074

124.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 CA$2,981

$635 PEN 2,183

230.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,033 CA$11.4K

$2,449 PEN 8,423

228.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,557 CA$9,327

$1,372 PEN 4,718

378.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,743 CA$5,324

$653 PEN 2,245

473.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.47

8.94

-50.00%

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

Last update for Toronto: October 4, 2026

Last update for Lima: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Toronto

$1.4K 55.4%

Lima

$340 33.6% 76.3% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Toronto

$340 13.1%

Lima

$226 22.4% 33.5% $114

Eating Out

Toronto

$282 10.9%

Lima

$124 12.3% 56% $158

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Toronto

$202 7.8%

Lima

$117 11.6% 42.1% $85

Clothing & Footwear

Toronto

$140 5.4%

Lima

$112 11.1% 20% $28

Getting Around

Toronto

$130 5%

Lima

$43 4.3% 66.5% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Toronto

$64 2.5%

Lima

$48 4.7% 25.4% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,598 in Toronto and $723 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Toronto pays 474% 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: $77.0 in Toronto vs $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $340 vs $226 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Toronto

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

22:46 10:46 PM

21:46 9:46 PM

1 h behind Toronto

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,731,571

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.703 USD

1 CAD = 0.627 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 CAD (1 CAD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 CAD (1 CAD = 0.627 EUR).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 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

Toronto Lima 6,200 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Toronto
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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

Toronto vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Toronto and Lima differ by about 154% in total monthly costs ($2,530 vs $996 including rent). Lima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 474% higher in Toronto, 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: $1,598 in Toronto versus $723 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $834 in Toronto 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 50% higher in Toronto. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $996 in Lima versus $2,530 in Toronto, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Toronto. 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 154% less than in Toronto. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.