Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Baghdad

For one person, living is cheaper in Baghdad: $1,148 a month against $1,685 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Baghdad
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Baghdad Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

Baghdad

🇮🇶 Iraq

$1,148

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,685 in Buenos Aires versus $1,148 in Baghdad.

Buenos Aires $1,685
Baghdad $1,148

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,742 in Buenos Aires versus $1,702 in Baghdad.

Buenos Aires $2,742
Baghdad $1,702

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,799 in Buenos Aires versus $2,256 in Baghdad.

Buenos Aires $3,799
Baghdad $2,256

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 47% more expensive than in Baghdad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 26% above, Baghdad is 14% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

$4.87 IQD 7,354

284.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.5 ARS 97.8K

$34.91 IQD 52.7K

84.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

$7.52 IQD 11.4K

71.28%

Cappuccino

$3.98 ARS 6,029

$3.19 IQD 4,827

24.76%

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

$2.05 ARS 3,103

$0.36 IQD 548

469.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 ARS 2,349

$0.25 IQD 379

520.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 ARS 5,830

$3.83 IQD 5,788

0.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 ARS 6,970

$3.90 IQD 5,892

17.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 ARS 2,181

$1.03 IQD 1,563

39.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.46 ARS 3,738

$0.85 IQD 1,284

189.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 ARS 2,467

$1.53 IQD 2,308

6.54%

Eggs

$2.89 ARS 4,385

$1.92 IQD 2,901

50.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

$3.95 IQD 5,965

169.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$4.60 IQD 6,954

117.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

$14.07 IQD 21.3K

-2.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 ARS 4,166

$1.14 IQD 1,722

141.23%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 ARS 3,300

$1.09 IQD 1,647

100.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,205

$1.04 IQD 1,567

39.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.99 ARS 3,013

$0.74 IQD 1,125

168.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ARS 1,885

$0.68 IQD 1,034

82.35%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 ARS 1,921

$0.64 IQD 970

98.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 ARS 2,575

$0.66 IQD 1,003

157.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 ARS 2,617

$0.68 IQD 1,020

154.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 ARS 6,337

$1.93 IQD 2,922

116.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.80 ARS 8,790

$13.58 IQD 20.5K

-57.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 ARS 3,163

$2.13 IQD 3,219

-1.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ARS 4,198

$2.18 IQD 3,296

27.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,132

$0.68 IQD 1,030

10.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

$23.19 IQD 35.0K

17.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 ARS 2,451

$2.25 IQD 3,402

-28.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 ARS 1,481

$1.57 IQD 2,373

-37.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

$7.68 IQD 11.6K

0.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 ARS 2,058

$0.68 IQD 1,030

100.00%

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

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

$19.1K IQD 28.8M

46.84%

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

$34.5K ARS 52.4M

$19.4K IQD 29.3M

78.05%

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

$216 ARS 326.9K

$218 IQD 330.0K

-1.30%

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

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

$19.65 IQD 29.7K

30.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.36 ARS 47.6K

$42.88 IQD 64.8K

-26.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.82 ARS 75.6K

$47.30 IQD 71.5K

5.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

$21.47 IQD 32.4K

-20.54%

Cinema Ticket

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

$10.64 IQD 16.1K

-1.97%

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

$466 ARS 706.7K

$168 IQD 253.1K

178.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

$3,430 IQD 5.2M

164.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$122 ARS 185.2K

$28.72 IQD 43.4K

325.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$97.4 ARS 147.8K

$32.11 IQD 48.5K

203.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ARS 177.4K

$68.4 IQD 103.3K

71.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 ARS 211.9K

$49.01 IQD 74.1K

185.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$763 ARS 1.2M

$577 IQD 871.8K

32.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$505 ARS 766.1K

$361 IQD 545.2K

40.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

$1,008 IQD 1.5M

58.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

$669 IQD 1.0M

77.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

$4,647 IQD 7.0M

-42.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

$1,569 IQD 2.4M

18.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$954 ARS 1.4M

$593 IQD 895.6K

61.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

4.12

1289.56%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Last update for Baghdad: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4%

Baghdad

$361 31.6% 28.6% $144

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1%

Baghdad

$186 16.3% 34.5% $98

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8%

Baghdad

$129 11.3% 53.7% $150

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4%

Baghdad

$281 24.6% 3.1% $8.4

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9%

Baghdad

$80 7% 62.6% $134

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3%

Baghdad

$69 6% 3% $2.1

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Baghdad

$36 3.2% 1.7% $0.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $763 in Buenos Aires and $577 in Baghdad. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buenos Aires pays 61% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $64.0 in Buenos Aires vs $35.00 in Baghdad for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $284 vs $186 per month, with Baghdad cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇮🇶 Baghdad

🕒 Local time

05:26 5:26 AM

11:26 11:26 AM

6 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

7,216,040 Capital

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IQD, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

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).

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,695 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Buenos Aires Baghdad 13,090 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Baghdad

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

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

Baghdad wins on cost – living expenses run 47% lower than in Buenos Aires. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Baghdad the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 61% higher in Buenos Aires, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $763 in Buenos Aires versus $577 in Baghdad. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Baghdad runs roughly 17% less than in Buenos Aires. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $466 in Buenos Aires versus $168 in Baghdad. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,148 in Baghdad versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Baghdad but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Baghdad the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Baghdad delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,148 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Baghdad hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Buenos Aires and Baghdad 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 Baghdad gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.