Cost of living: Lima vs. Tampa
Thinking of moving to the US? Compare the cost of living in any city with your hometown.
Compare cities
Pick your hometown and the US city you're comparing it with.
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At a glance
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Life in Tampa
Tampa's immigrant history runs through Ybor City, where Cuban and Spanish cigar workers arrived after 1885 and built what is now a National Historic Landmark District. The city sits on Tampa Bay along Florida's Gulf Coast, with hot, stormy summers and mild winters. Its economy leans on healthcare, finance, the state's largest port, and MacDill Air Force Base.
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Gulf Coast beaches and sunshine nearly all year.
Monthly breakdown
What everyday life costs in each city, side by side.
| Total |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Housing | $360 | $1,511 |
| Healthcare | $55 | $344 |
| Groceries | $115 | $421 |
| Utilities | $60 | $262 |
| Transit | $25 | $65 |
| Other | $375 | $487 |
Estimated monthly costs for one adult: typical rent across the metro area, USDA's moderate-cost food plan and U.S. government spending data — a typical budget, not a minimum.
Sources, updated September 2026: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (Regional Price Parities, 2024); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Consumer Expenditure Surveys, 2024; Consumer Price Index); U.S. Department of Agriculture (Food Plans, July 2026); Federal Communications Commission (Urban Rate Survey, 2026); U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (Fair Market Rents, FY2026); U.S. Energy Information Administration (weekly retail gasoline prices); official fare pages of each city's transit agency; Latin America: crowdsourced cost-of-living platforms, used for reference.
Lima figures are collected from online sources.
Cost of living by US city
15 cities, ranked by monthly cost for one person
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Frequently asked questions
Is Tampa more expensive than Lima?
For one adult, Tampa is 3.1× more expensive than Lima: about $3,090 a month, compared with about $990 in Lima.
What is the monthly cost difference between Lima and Tampa?
About $2,100 a month for one adult: $3,090 in Tampa versus $990 in Lima. Change the number of adults above to see your household's figures.
Which costs change the most between Lima and Tampa?
Healthcare shows the biggest jump: it costs 6.3× as much in Tampa as in Lima.
How does rent compare between Lima and Tampa?
A one-bedroom apartment rents for about $1,511 a month in Tampa and about $360 in Lima. Rents exclude utilities.
Can a minimum-wage job cover the costs in Tampa?
A full-time minimum-wage job in Tampa ($14.00 an hour) pays about $2,427 a month before taxes. Typical costs for one adult there are about $3,090 a month. Add your income above to see what would be left each month.
How is the cost of living measured?
We add up typical monthly costs for one adult in six categories: housing, healthcare, groceries, utilities, transit and other everyday spending. U.S. figures are calculated from government data (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bureau of Economic Analysis, HUD and the Energy Information Administration) plus transit agencies' published fares. Latin American figures come from crowdsourced cost-of-living platforms, and their healthcare costs are a modeled estimate. Minimum wages are each city's local rate where it has one, otherwise the state rate published by the U.S. Department of Labor. Both cities' figures were last updated in 2026.
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