Cost of living comparison
Lake Charles vs. Lima Cost of Living Summary
Lake Charles is 73.1% more expensive than Lima.
- Restaurants
-
pay 3.0 times more in Lake Charles
- Groceries
-
pay 90.7% more in Lake Charles
- Transportation
-
pay 15.8% less in Lake Charles
- Housing
-
pay 2.1 times more in Lake Charles
- Childcare
-
pay 2.6 times more in Lake Charles
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 48.2% more in Lake Charles
- Clothing
-
pay 10.6% less in Lake Charles
The cost of restaurants, childcare, housing, groceries, and entertainment and sports in Lake Charles are more expensive than in Lima. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in Lake Charles. Notably, restaurants, childcare, and housing are significantly more expensive in Lake Charles.
Lake Charles vs. Lima Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Lake Charles instead of Lima, you would:
pay 3.0 times more for restaurants
|
Lima
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$4.36
PEN15.03
|
$26.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$6.94
PEN23.95
|
$11.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.09
PEN3.76
|
$2.00
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.63
PEN2.18
|
$1.25
|
|
pay 90.7% more for groceries
|
Lima
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.57
PEN8.89
|
$4.12
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.53
PEN15.65
|
$7.78
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.09
PEN21.01
|
$5.14
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.91
PEN10.05
|
$5.38
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.68
PEN9.27
|
$4.61
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.91
PEN3.14
|
$1.99
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.48
PEN1.65
|
$0.59
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.63
PEN2.18
|
$0.89
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.68
PEN2.34
|
$2.53
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.42
PEN1.45
|
$1.96
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.40
PEN1.38
|
$0.99
|
|
pay 15.8% less for transportation
|
Lima
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.39
PEN22.04
|
$3.16
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$26.51
PEN91.51
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$21,990.00
PEN75,904.49
|
$35,578.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$20.18
PEN69.66
|
$15.43
|
|
pay 2.1 times more for housing
|
Lima
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$27.55
PEN95.09
|
$57.50
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$734.53
PEN2,535.44
|
$1,020.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$337.21
PEN1,163.99
|
$904.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$55.42
PEN191.31
|
$200.34
|
|
pay 2.6 times more for childcare
|
Lima
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$179.06
PEN618.06
|
$1,563.89
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,095.48
PEN45,202.64
|
$10,230.00
|
|
pay 48.2% more for entertainment and sports
|
Lima
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.61
PEN9.02
|
$5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.24
PEN11.18
|
$5.43
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$5.76
PEN19.89
|
$8.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$32.49
PEN112.14
|
$32.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$7.26
PEN25.06
|
$12.00
|
|
pay 10.6% less for clothing
|
Lima
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$52.80
PEN182.25
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$34.89
PEN120.44
|
$43.07
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$83.72
PEN288.98
|
$60.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$78.93
PEN272.43
|
$120.31
|
|
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this
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