Lima, OH, United States

Lima sits in western Ohio at 270 m above sea level, operating on America/New_York time and shaped by a continental climate with four distinct seasons. The city holds a population of 36 thousand, and expats who settle here tend to gravitate toward Lima West. That single named neighborhood is the anchor of the expat map, and with an expat community size of none, newcomers arrive to a place where English is widely spoken but where the social scene is built from scratch rather than inherited from an established international crowd.

Rent tells a story of modest but real variation. A 1-bedroom in the city center runs $1,293/mo, while the same unit outside the center drops to $1,250/mo. Three-bedroom units show a wider gap: $2,175/mo in the center against $1,808/mo outside it. Beyond rent, a single person spends about $1,000/mo excluding rent, and a family of four about $3,500/mo excluding rent. Utilities come to $223/mo, internet $68/mo, and a mobile phone plan $67/mo. A monthly public transport pass costs $43/mo and a gym membership $42/mo. Eating out is affordable: $22 for an inexpensive restaurant meal per person, $78 for a three-course mid-range meal for two, and $5 for a cappuccino. Against an average monthly net salary of $5,151/mo, the budget tier totals $1,394/mo, the mid-range tier $2,151/mo, and the comfortable tier $2,435/mo. The cost of living index sits at 64/100 with New York City at 100.

Safety leans favorable, with a safety index of 65/100 and a crime index of 35/100, where a lower crime figure is the better outcome. Air quality registers 52, a middling number on a scale where lower is cleaner. Healthcare quality is rated fair, which means routine care is available but residents with complex or specialized needs may look toward larger Ohio cities for certain treatments. Internet runs at an average speed of 150 Mbps, fast enough for remote work, streaming, and video calls without strain.

On the practical side, the nearest airport is AOH, 9 km away, which keeps departures and arrivals simple. Immigration pathways are handled through the standard federal channels that apply across the United States, and the city's scores reflect a specific profile: 64/100 overall for expats, 63/100 on the FIRE measure, 51/100 for retirees, and 64/100 for digital nomads. Lima suits remote workers, budget-conscious singles, and small families who want a low cost of living index, a manageable population, and a quiet continental setting, while retirees may find the 51/100 retiree score a signal to weigh their priorities carefully.