Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ashgabat and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Buenos Aires: $1,685 a month against $3,331 in Ashgabat, rent and utilities included – about $19,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Ashgabat
🇹🇲 Turkmenistan
$3,331
/mo nomad
Buenos Aires
🇦🇷 Argentina
$1,685
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ashgabat 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 Ashgabat and in Buenos Aires actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,331 in Ashgabat versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires.

  • Ashgabat $3,331
  • Buenos Aires $1,685

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,094 in Ashgabat versus $2,742 in Buenos Aires.

  • Ashgabat $5,094
  • Buenos Aires $2,742

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,857 in Ashgabat versus $3,799 in Buenos Aires.

  • Ashgabat $6,857
  • Buenos Aires $3,799

Living in Ashgabat is roughly 98% more expensive than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ashgabat 149% above, Buenos Aires 26% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Ashgabat
Buenos Aires
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$31.23 TMT 105
$18.73 ARS 28.4K
66.74%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$85.1 TMT 285
$64.5 ARS 97.7K
31.96%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$12.65 TMT 42.39
$12.88 ARS 19.5K
-1.79%
Cappuccino
$6.59 TMT 22.07
$3.98 ARS 6,027
65.58%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.53 TMT 5.14
$2.05 ARS 3,102
-25.37%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.82 TMT 2.74
$1.55 ARS 2,348
-47.10%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.67 TMT 18.98
$3.84 ARS 5,828
47.66%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$13.74 TMT 46.04
$4.60 ARS 6,968
198.70%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Ashgabat
Buenos Aires
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$4.48 TMT 15.00
$1.44 ARS 2,180
211.11%
White Bread (500g)
$2.05 TMT 6.88
$2.46 ARS 3,737
-16.67%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$5.82 TMT 19.48
$1.63 ARS 2,466
257.06%
Eggs
$5.93 TMT 19.87
$2.89 ARS 4,384
105.19%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$37.90 TMT 127
$10.65 ARS 16.1K
255.87%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$20.09 TMT 67.3
$10.00 ARS 15.2K
100.90%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$23.50 TMT 78.7
$13.74 ARS 20.8K
71.03%
Apples (1kg)
$4.98 TMT 16.70
$2.75 ARS 4,165
81.09%
Banana (1kg)
$8.53 TMT 28.58
$2.18 ARS 3,299
291.28%
Oranges (1kg)
$7.32 TMT 24.52
$1.45 ARS 2,204
404.83%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.61 TMT 12.09
$1.99 ARS 3,012
81.41%
Potato (1kg)
$2.33 TMT 7.80
$1.24 ARS 1,884
87.90%
Onion (1kg)
$1.46 TMT 4.90
$1.27 ARS 1,920
14.96%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.69 TMT 9.00
$1.70 ARS 2,574
58.24%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.12 TMT 3.74
$1.73 ARS 2,616
-35.26%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$25.56 TMT 85.6
$4.18 ARS 6,335
511.48%
Wine (Bottle)
$42.09 TMT 141
$5.80 ARS 8,787
625.69%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$5.26 TMT 17.62
$2.09 ARS 3,162
151.67%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.89 TMT 9.67
$2.77 ARS 4,197
4.33%
🚌 Getting Around
Ashgabat
Buenos Aires
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.15 TMT 0.49
$0.75 ARS 1,131
-80.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$9.89 TMT 33.13
$27.15 ARS 41.2K
-63.57%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.90 TMT 9.73
$1.62 ARS 2,450
79.01%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.88 TMT 2.96
$0.98 ARS 1,480
-10.20%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$8.41 TMT 28.17
$7.72 ARS 11.7K
8.94%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.44 TMT 1.48
$1.36 ARS 2,057
-67.65%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$44.6K TMT 149.3K
$28.0K ARS 42.5M
59.07%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$57.2K TMT 191.5K
$34.5K ARS 52.3M
65.52%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ashgabat
Buenos Aires
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$580 TMT 1,944
$216 ARS 326.8K
169.18%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$56.8 TMT 190
$25.61 ARS 38.8K
121.87%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$103 TMT 347
$31.36 ARS 47.5K
229.97%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Ashgabat
Buenos Aires
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$191 TMT 640
$49.82 ARS 75.5K
283.58%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$45.50 TMT 152
$17.06 ARS 25.9K
166.71%
Cinema Ticket
$8.53 TMT 28.58
$10.43 ARS 15.8K
-18.22%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Ashgabat
Buenos Aires
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$23.05 TMT 77.2
$466 ARS 706.5K
-95.05%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$24.8K TMT 83.0K
$9,057 ARS 13.7M
173.68%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Ashgabat
Buenos Aires
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$54.8 TMT 184
$122 ARS 185.1K
-55.11%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$115 TMT 385
$97.4 ARS 147.7K
17.87%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$365 TMT 1,224
$117 ARS 177.3K
212.31%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$189 TMT 632
$140 ARS 211.8K
34.95%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Ashgabat
Buenos Aires
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,402 TMT 4,695
$763 ARS 1.2M
83.61%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,000 TMT 3,351
$505 ARS 765.8K
98.00%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,288 TMT 7,663
$1,598 ARS 2.4M
43.11%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,920 TMT 6,433
$1,185 ARS 1.8M
62.06%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,527 TMT 11.8K
$2,678 ARS 4.1M
31.71%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,813 TMT 9,422
$1,858 ARS 2.8M
51.37%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Ashgabat
Buenos Aires
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$736 TMT 2,467
$954 ARS 1.4M
-22.83%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
9.5
57.25
-83.41%

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

Last update for Ashgabat: 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
Ashgabat
$1K
Buenos Aires
$505 49.5% $495
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Ashgabat
$741
Buenos Aires
$273 63.2% $468
Groceries & Markets
Ashgabat
$671
Buenos Aires
$284 57.6% $387
Eating Out
Ashgabat
$432
Buenos Aires
$279 35.4% $153
Clothing & Footwear
Ashgabat
$326
Buenos Aires
$214 34.2% $111
Sport & Entertainment
Ashgabat
$208
Buenos Aires
$71 66% $137
Getting Around
Ashgabat
$18
Buenos Aires
$37 106% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,402 in Ashgabat and $763 in Buenos Aires. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buenos Aires pays 30% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $85.0 in Ashgabat vs $64.0 in Buenos Aires for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $671 vs $284 per month, with Buenos Aires cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇹🇲 Ashgabat
🇦🇷 Buenos Aires
🕒 Local time
15:21 3:21 PM
07:21 7:21 AM
8 h behind Ashgabat
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
909,000 Capital
2,891,082 Capital
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to TMT – Turkmenistani Manat Converter

Turkmenistani Manat exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.35 TMT (1 TMT = 0.299 USD). 1 EUR = 3.75 TMT (1 TMT = 0.266 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,516 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.6 USD). 1 EUR = 1,699 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.89 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Ashgabat Buenos Aires 14,450 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Ashgabat
  • 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
Ashgabat vs Buenos Aires: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Ashgabat and in Buenos Aires?
Ashgabat and Buenos Aires differ by about 98% in total monthly costs ($3,331 vs $1,685 including rent). Buenos Aires is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 30% lower in Buenos Aires. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Ashgabat and in Buenos Aires?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,402 in Ashgabat versus $763 in Buenos Aires. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Ashgabat and Buenos Aires?
Childcare runs $23.05 in Ashgabat versus $466 in Buenos Aires. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Supermarket bills run roughly 136% higher in Ashgabat. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Which city is more doable on $3,000 per month?
At $1,685 in Buenos Aires versus $3,331 in Ashgabat, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Buenos Aires but tight or insufficient in Ashgabat. The gap between the two cities makes Buenos Aires the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Ashgabat and Buenos Aires?
Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.
Is Ashgabat or Buenos Aires safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Ashgabat and Buenos Aires are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Where should expats move: Ashgabat or Buenos Aires?
Expats usually find Buenos Aires gentler on the wallet – expenses run 98% less than in Ashgabat. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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