Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Villa María and Lima

For one person, living is cheaper in Lima: $1,012 a month against $1,245 in Villa María, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Villa María
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Villa María Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Lima
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Lima Living Index

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Villa María

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,245

/mo nomad

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru

$1,012

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,245 in Villa María versus $1,012 in Lima.

Villa María $1,245
Lima $1,012

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,044 in Villa María versus $1,589 in Lima.

Villa María $2,044
Lima $1,589

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,842 in Villa María versus $2,167 in Lima.

Villa María $2,842
Lima $2,167

Living in Villa María is roughly 23% more expensive than in Lima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Villa María 8% lower, Lima 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.53 ARS 22.1K

$4.40 PEN 15.10

230.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.4 ARS 87.2K

$35.17 PEN 121

63.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.75 ARS 22.4K

$6.89 PEN 23.65

114.08%

Cappuccino

$4.29 ARS 6,517

$3.26 PEN 11.20

31.60%

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

$2.03 ARS 3,079

$1.12 PEN 3.84

81.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 ARS 2,462

$0.62 PEN 2.11

161.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.09 ARS 6,212

$2.65 PEN 9.09

54.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 ARS 6,712

$4.41 PEN 15.15

0.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 ARS 1,770

$1.63 PEN 5.61

-28.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.92 ARS 2,917

$2.56 PEN 8.78

-25.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.71 ARS 2,596

$1.35 PEN 4.65

26.67%

Eggs

$2.80 ARS 4,251

$2.90 PEN 9.96

-3.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ARS 15.8K

$8.85 PEN 30.38

17.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.56 ARS 11.5K

$5.98 PEN 20.52

26.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.07 ARS 19.8K

$9.78 PEN 33.59

33.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 ARS 3,296

$2.05 PEN 7.02

5.85%

Banana (1kg)

$2.52 ARS 3,819

$1.06 PEN 3.66

137.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.46 ARS 2,213

$1.35 PEN 4.64

8.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.35 ARS 3,572

$1.50 PEN 5.15

56.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.10 ARS 1,666

$0.88 PEN 3.03

25.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.90 ARS 1,360

$0.92 PEN 3.15

-2.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 PEN 3.07

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 ARS 2,308

$0.90 PEN 3.10

68.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.42 ARS 5,188

$5.90 PEN 20.27

-42.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.70 ARS 7,139

$8.52 PEN 29.26

-44.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 ARS 2,672

$1.88 PEN 6.45

-6.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.64 ARS 5,516

$3.22 PEN 11.05

13.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 ARS 1,407

$0.68 PEN 2.33

36.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.86 PEN 92.2

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.41 ARS 2,145

$3.81 PEN 13.09

-62.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 PEN 6.93

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.11 PEN 24.41

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 ARS 1,779

$1.72 PEN 5.91

-31.98%

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

$28.4K ARS 43.1M

$22.3K PEN 76.6K

27.37%

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

$29.1K ARS 44.1M

$25.5K PEN 87.6K

13.99%

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

$121 ARS 183.0K

$73.1 PEN 251

65.01%

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

$16.55 ARS 25.1K

$16.35 PEN 56.2

1.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.71 ARS 36.0K

$27.47 PEN 94.3

-13.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.73 ARS 42.1K

$31.90 PEN 110

-13.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.41 PEN 66.7

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 ARS 15.8K

$7.05 PEN 24.23

47.80%

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

$297 ARS 450.7K

$182 PEN 627

62.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K PEN 44.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.4 ARS 138.7K

$53.8 PEN 185

69.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.32 PEN 118

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$132 ARS 200.5K

$82.8 PEN 284

59.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 ARS 199.9K

$78.2 PEN 269

68.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$452 ARS 686.0K

$721 PEN 2,476

-37.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$365 ARS 553.7K

$343 PEN 1,179

6.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$933 ARS 1.4M

$1,219 PEN 4,186

-23.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$819 ARS 1.2M

$651 PEN 2,235

25.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,414 PEN 8,292

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,357 PEN 4,660

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$648 PEN 2,226

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

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

Last update for Villa María: 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

Villa María

$365 29.3%

Lima

$343 33.9% 5.9% $21

Eating Out

Villa María

$256 20.6%

Lima

$124 12.3% 51.6% $132

Groceries & Markets

Villa María

$250 * 20.1%

Lima

$226 22.3% 9.5% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Villa María

$161 12.9%

Lima

$117 11.6% 27.3% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Villa María

$160 * 12.8%

Lima

$112 11.1% 29.9% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Villa María

$49 3.9%

Lima

$46 4.6% 5.3% $2.6

Getting Around

Villa María

$5.1 * 0.4%

Lima

$43 4.3% 749% $38

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 $452 in Villa María and $721 in Lima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $57.0 in Villa María vs $35.00 in Lima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $250 vs $226 per month, with Lima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Villa María

🇵🇪 Lima

🕒 Local time

21:55 9:55 PM

19:55 7:55 PM

2 h behind Villa María

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

80,006

9,989,369 Capital

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 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 ARS in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Villa María Lima 2,660 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Villa María
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

Villa María vs Lima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Villa María and Lima differ by about 23% in total monthly costs ($1,245 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 $1,867 in Villa María 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: $452 in Villa María versus $721 in Lima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 10% higher in Villa María. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,245 per month in Villa María versus $1,012 in Lima – a 23% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,012 in Lima versus $1,245 in Villa María, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lima but tight or insufficient in Villa María. 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.

Safety-wise, Villa María and Lima are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Lima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 23% less than in Villa María. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.