Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Asmara and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Asmara: $1,402 a month against $1,685 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Buenos Aires outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

67

Cost of Living Index in Asmara
Learn more

Asmara Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index

Jump to prices

Asmara

🇪🇷 Eritrea

$1,402

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,402 in Asmara versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires.

Asmara $1,402
Buenos Aires $1,685

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,192 in Asmara versus $2,742 in Buenos Aires.

Asmara $2,192
Buenos Aires $2,742

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,983 in Asmara versus $3,799 in Buenos Aires.

Asmara $2,983
Buenos Aires $3,799

Living in Asmara costs roughly 17% less than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Asmara 5% above, Buenos Aires 26% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.83 ERN 313

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

11.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.92 ERN 509

$64.5 ARS 97.8K

-47.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.04 ERN 90.7

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

-53.11%

Cappuccino

$0.77 ERN 11.54

$3.98 ARS 6,029

-80.65%

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

$0.97 ERN 14.60

$2.05 ARS 3,103

-52.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 ERN 15.28

$1.55 ARS 2,349

-34.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.62 ERN 9.30

$3.84 ARS 5,830

-83.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 ARS 6,970

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 ERN 24.67

$1.44 ARS 2,181

13.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.46 ARS 3,738

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 ERN 35.01

$1.63 ARS 2,467

42.94%

Eggs

$4.34 ERN 65.3

$2.89 ARS 4,385

50.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.98 ERN 44.76

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

-72.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$26.73 ERN 401

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

167.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.11 ERN 152

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

-26.42%

Apples (1kg)

$12.28 ERN 184

$2.75 ARS 4,166

346.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.32 ERN 19.79

$2.18 ARS 3,300

-39.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.95 ERN 29.31

$1.45 ARS 2,205

34.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 ERN 17.05

$1.99 ARS 3,013

-42.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.76 ERN 26.40

$1.24 ARS 1,885

41.94%

Onion (1kg)

$0.95 ERN 14.26

$1.27 ARS 1,921

-25.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 ARS 2,575

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 ERN 33.91

$1.73 ARS 2,617

30.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 ARS 6,337

Wine (Bottle)

$11.87 ERN 178

$5.80 ARS 8,790

104.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 ERN 14.76

$2.09 ARS 3,163

-53.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 ERN 15.27

$2.77 ARS 4,198

-63.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.14 ERN 2.13

$0.75 ARS 1,132

-81.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.17 ERN 123

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

-69.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 ARS 2,451

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 ERN 8.62

$0.98 ARS 1,481

-41.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.84 ERN 148

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

27.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.52 ERN 37.88

$1.36 ARS 2,058

85.29%

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

$66.4K ERN 997.5K

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

137.09%

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

$68.8K ERN 1.0M

$34.5K ARS 52.4M

99.32%

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

$25.13 ERN 377

$216 ARS 326.9K

-88.34%

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

$68.7 ERN 1,032

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

168.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$202 ERN 3,031

$31.36 ARS 47.6K

543.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.72 ERN 401

$49.82 ARS 75.6K

-46.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.91 ERN 73.8

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

-71.22%

Cinema Ticket

$1.22 ERN 18.40

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

-88.30%

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

$24.69 ERN 371

$466 ARS 706.7K

-94.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,594 ERN 39.0K

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

-71.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$136 ERN 2,039

$122 ARS 185.2K

11.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$120 ERN 1,800

$97.4 ARS 147.8K

22.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$203 ERN 3,056

$117 ARS 177.4K

73.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$152 ERN 2,276

$140 ARS 211.9K

8.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$246 ERN 3,700

$763 ARS 1.2M

-67.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$199 ERN 2,988

$505 ARS 766.1K

-60.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$457 ERN 6,867

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

-71.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$432 ERN 6,488

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

-63.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,284 ERN 19.3K

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

-52.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,487 ERN 37.4K

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

33.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$954 ARS 1.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

-79.04%

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

Last update for Asmara: October 5, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Asmara

$364 * 26.4%

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1% 21.9% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Asmara

$296 21.4%

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4% 7.8% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Asmara

$275 19.9%

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9% 22% $60

Eating Out

Asmara

$205 * 14.9%

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8% 36.1% $74

Accommodation & Living

Asmara

$199 14.4%

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4% 154% $306

Sport & Entertainment

Asmara

$29 2.1%

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3% 142% $42

Getting Around

Asmara

$12 * 0.8%

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2% 216% $25

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $246 in Asmara and $763 in Buenos Aires. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $34.00 in Asmara vs $64.0 in Buenos Aires. Groceries flip the comparison at $364 vs $284, with Buenos Aires cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇷 Asmara

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

08:25 8:25 AM

02:25 2:25 AM

6 h behind Asmara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

579,000 Capital

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

Eritrean Nakfa ERN ናቕፋ

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

100 ERN = 6.66 USD

100 ERN = 5.94 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to ERN – Eritrean Nakfa Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇷 Eritrean Nakfa (ናቕፋ)

Eritrean Nakfa exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 15.02 ERN (100 ERN = 6.66 USD). 1 EUR = 16.85 ERN (100 ERN = 5.94 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,701 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

USD to ERN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Asmara Buenos Aires 11,630 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Asmara
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

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

Asmara and Buenos Aires differ by about 20% in total monthly costs ($1,402 vs $1,685 including rent). Asmara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,103 in Asmara and $2,528 in Buenos Aires to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $246 in Asmara versus $763 in Buenos Aires. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Asmara runs roughly 232% less than in Buenos Aires. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $24.69 in Asmara versus $466 in Buenos Aires. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,402 in Asmara versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Asmara but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Asmara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Asmara 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.

Expats usually find Asmara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 20% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.