Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arequipa and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Arequipa: $719 a month against $1,685 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Arequipa
Learn more

Arequipa Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index

Jump to prices

Arequipa

🇵🇪 Peru

$719

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Arequipa and in Buenos Aires

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Arequipa and in Buenos Aires actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $719 per month in Arequipa vs $1,685 in Buenos Aires, rent included.

Arequipa $719
Buenos Aires $1,685

A couple spends around $1,114 per month in Arequipa vs $2,742 in Buenos Aires, rent included.

Arequipa $1,114
Buenos Aires $2,742

A family of three spends $1,510 per month in Arequipa vs $3,799 in Buenos Aires, rent included.

Arequipa $1,510
Buenos Aires $3,799

Arequipa is about 57% cheaper than Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Arequipa sits 46% below the global median, while Buenos Aires is 26% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.41 PEN 11.73

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

-81.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.27 PEN 93.8

$64.5 ARS 97.7K

-57.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.68 PEN 19.53

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

-55.90%

Cappuccino

$2.47 PEN 8.48

$3.98 ARS 6,027

-37.94%

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

$0.82 PEN 2.82

$2.05 ARS 3,102

-60.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.38 PEN 1.32

$1.55 ARS 2,348

-75.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.07 PEN 7.12

$3.84 ARS 5,828

-46.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.40 PEN 15.13

$4.60 ARS 6,968

-4.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.33 PEN 4.59

$1.44 ARS 2,180

-7.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 PEN 4.69

$2.46 ARS 3,737

-44.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 PEN 5.22

$1.63 ARS 2,466

-6.75%

Eggs

$2.25 PEN 7.75

$2.89 ARS 4,384

-22.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.39 PEN 21.97

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

-40.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.37 PEN 15.04

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

-56.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.48 PEN 25.74

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

-45.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 PEN 6.09

$2.75 ARS 4,165

-35.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.22 PEN 4.20

$2.18 ARS 3,299

-44.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.13 PEN 3.90

$1.45 ARS 2,204

-22.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.03 PEN 3.53

$1.99 ARS 3,012

-48.24%

Potato (1kg)

$0.64 PEN 2.20

$1.24 ARS 1,884

-48.39%

Onion (1kg)

$0.67 PEN 2.31

$1.27 ARS 1,920

-47.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.54 PEN 1.87

$1.70 ARS 2,574

-68.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 PEN 2.61

$1.73 ARS 2,616

-56.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 PEN 17.82

$4.18 ARS 6,335

23.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.04 PEN 17.32

$5.80 ARS 8,787

-13.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 PEN 9.37

$2.09 ARS 3,162

30.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 PEN 7.58

$2.77 ARS 4,197

-20.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 PEN 0.95

$0.75 ARS 1,131

-62.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.01 PEN 6.90

$1.62 ARS 2,450

24.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.97 PEN 6.78

$0.98 ARS 1,480

101.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.00 PEN 44.70

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

68.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 PEN 5.28

$1.36 ARS 2,057

12.50%

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

$19.2K PEN 65.9K

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

-31.56%

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

$25.0K PEN 86.1K

$34.5K ARS 52.3M

-27.48%

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

$24.05 PEN 82.7

$216 ARS 326.8K

-88.84%

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

$10.15 PEN 34.91

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

-60.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.01 PEN 79.2

$31.36 ARS 47.5K

-26.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.05 PEN 86.2

$49.82 ARS 75.5K

-49.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.13 PEN 27.97

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

-52.34%

Cinema Ticket

$7.41 PEN 25.48

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

-28.95%

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

$74.8 PEN 257

$466 ARS 706.5K

-83.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,596 PEN 22.7K

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

-27.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.85 PEN 168

$122 ARS 185.1K

-60.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.46 PEN 91.0

$97.4 ARS 147.7K

-72.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.0 PEN 234

$117 ARS 177.3K

-41.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.3 PEN 197

$140 ARS 211.8K

-59.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$354 PEN 1,217

$763 ARS 1.2M

-53.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$236 PEN 812

$505 ARS 765.8K

-53.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$714 PEN 2,458

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

-55.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$418 PEN 1,436

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

-64.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,991 PEN 6,847

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

-25.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$974 PEN 3,351

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

-47.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$617 PEN 2,122

$954 ARS 1.4M

-35.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

-73.80%

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

Last update for Arequipa: October 5, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Arequipa

$236 33.3%

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4% 114% $269

Groceries & Markets

Arequipa

$174 24.6%

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1% 63.3% $110

Eating Out

Arequipa

$98 13.8%

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8% 185% $181

Clothing & Footwear

Arequipa

$90 12.7%

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9% 138% $124

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arequipa

$57 8.1%

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4% 376% $215

Sport & Entertainment

Arequipa

$40 5.6%

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3% 77.3% $31

Getting Around

Arequipa

$13 * 1.8%

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2% 183% $24

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $354 in Arequipa versus $763 in Buenos Aires. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 55% higher in Buenos Aires, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27.00 in Arequipa versus $64.0 in Buenos Aires. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $174 vs $284 – making Arequipa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Arequipa

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

22:44 10:44 PM

00:44 12:44 AM

2 h ahead of Arequipa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,062

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.6 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.44 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,516 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.6 USD). 1 EUR = 1,700 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Arequipa Buenos Aires 2,410 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Arequipa
Buenos Aires

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

Arequipa vs Buenos Aires: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires costs about 135% more than Arequipa, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,078 per month in Arequipa and $2,528 in Buenos Aires. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Arequipa, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27.00 in Arequipa and $64.0 in Buenos Aires. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 63% more in Buenos Aires, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Arequipa, where all-in costs run around $719, than in Buenos Aires at $1,685. In Arequipa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Buenos Aires it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Arequipa costs $719 versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Arequipa. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Buenos Aires makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.