Phone setup

Apps for Tourists in Peru

Written by the Peruvify team in Lima, from the catalog of 205 dishes, drinks, desserts and fruits. Last updated October 20, 2026.

The useful apps for tourists in Peru are ordinary ones: a map, a ride app in the big cities, a translator for printed menus, a messaging app, and a way to name the food. There is no single super-app. Yape and Plin, the wallets on every counter, usually need a Peruvian ID and a local account, so they are a poor plan for a short visit.

Pick the app for the job

Install these before you leave hotel Wi-Fi. Download the offline map for the next city the same day you arrive.

Apps visitors open in Peru, by the problem they solve.
Job	App	Works well	Stops working when
Finding the street	Google Maps or Apple Maps	Walking, restaurants, bus terminals	You did not download the city and the signal drops
A car in Lima	Uber, DiDi, inDrive, Cabify	A fare you can see before you sit down	You are in a small town, or late on a Cusco side street
A menu in Spanish	Google Translate	Camera translation of a printed list	The dish name is Quechua or a local nickname
The plate itself	Peruvify	Name, region and rarity of a Peruvian dish you photograph	You want a restaurant booking. This one is a collection game, and the iPhone app is still on the way
Hotels and drivers	WhatsApp	Confirming a pickup or a room	You have no data and no local SIM
Paying a market	Cash soles	Stalls, small picanterías, tips	You only brought a wallet app from home

Getting around

In Lima, Uber, DiDi, inDrive and Cabify are the apps people open. The fare is on the screen, which matters more than saving two soles. Outside the biggest cities the coverage thins out. In Cusco and Arequipa you can still get a car, and you should still agree a price before you get into a taxi that is not on an app.

Download the map for Lima, then Cusco, before you need it. Sacred Valley roads and jungle towns are exactly where a live map likes to spin. Apple Maps and Google Maps both work. Use the one you already know how to drive with.

Menus, and the dish in front of you

Google Translate will turn a printed menu into rough English. It will not tell you that rocoto is a different heat from ají amarillo, or that cecina is smoked pork. Those names are the trip. The city food guides are the short version to read before you sit down.

Peruvify is the camera side of the same catalog: 205 dishes, drinks, desserts and fruits, each with a number. You photograph the plate, the app names it, and it stays in a collection. It does not book a table, and it is not a ranked list of restaurants. The iPhone app is coming soon, which is also what the home page says.

Money on a phone

The currency is the sol. Cards are normal in Lima restaurants, hotels and supermarkets. Markets, juice stands and a lot of Sunday stews are still cash.

Yape and Plin are how Peruvians pay a person or a small counter. Signing up expects a Peruvian ID and, for most visitors, a local bank account you will not open on a two-week trip. Carry soles. A card that does not punish foreign charges covers the rest.

Questions

Does Uber work in Cusco?

Sometimes, and less reliably than in Lima. Treat a ride app in Cusco or Arequipa as a bonus. Have cash soles and agree the fare if you hail a car on the street.

Can a tourist use Yape?

Usually no, not in a useful way. Yape and Plin are built around a Peruvian ID and a soles account. Counters still take cash. Do not plan market lunches around a QR code you cannot pay.

What should I download before a long bus?

The offline map for the city you are leaving and the one you are entering, plus WhatsApp. Tell the hotel the plate of the bus in a message so someone knows when you meant to arrive.

Is there an app that identifies Peruvian food?

Peruvify does that for the dishes in its catalog. Point the camera at the plate and it names the dish, the region and how rare it is. It is a game about the collection, not a directory of restaurants.