Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Cajamarca

For one person, living is cheaper in Cajamarca: $695 a month against $1,685 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index
33

Cost of Living Index in Cajamarca
Learn more

Cajamarca Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

Cajamarca

🇵🇪 Peru

$695

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Cajamarca actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,685 in Buenos Aires versus $695 in Cajamarca.

Buenos Aires $1,685
Cajamarca $695

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,742 in Buenos Aires versus $1,177 in Cajamarca.

Buenos Aires $2,742
Cajamarca $1,177

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,799 in Buenos Aires versus $1,658 in Cajamarca.

Buenos Aires $3,799
Cajamarca $1,658

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 142% more expensive than in Cajamarca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 26% above, Cajamarca is 48% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

$3.57 PEN 12.25

424.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.5 ARS 97.8K

$28.96 PEN 99.3

122.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

$5.95 PEN 20.39

116.47%

Cappuccino

$3.98 ARS 6,029

$2.64 PEN 9.05

50.76%

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

$2.05 ARS 3,103

$0.79 PEN 2.71

159.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 ARS 2,349

$0.62 PEN 2.11

150.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 ARS 5,830

$2.30 PEN 7.89

66.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 ARS 6,970

$3.64 PEN 12.46

26.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 ARS 2,181

$1.38 PEN 4.75

4.35%

White Bread (500g)

$2.46 ARS 3,738

$3.27 PEN 11.21

-24.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 ARS 2,467

$1.29 PEN 4.42

26.36%

Eggs

$2.89 ARS 4,385

$2.28 PEN 7.82

26.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

$7.58 PEN 26.00

40.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$6.28 PEN 21.52

59.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

$13.12 PEN 44.97

4.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 ARS 4,166

$1.06 PEN 3.65

159.43%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 ARS 3,300

$0.78 PEN 2.68

179.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,205

$1.23 PEN 4.20

17.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.99 ARS 3,013

$1.08 PEN 3.70

84.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ARS 1,885

$0.74 PEN 2.52

67.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 ARS 1,921

$1.00 PEN 3.41

27.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 ARS 2,575

$0.72 PEN 2.48

136.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 ARS 2,617

$0.75 PEN 2.56

130.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 ARS 6,337

$8.98 PEN 30.79

-53.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.80 ARS 8,790

$10.19 PEN 34.93

-43.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 ARS 3,163

$2.59 PEN 8.89

-19.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ARS 4,198

$2.45 PEN 8.41

13.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,132

$0.56 PEN 1.93

33.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

$8.93 PEN 30.62

204.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 ARS 2,451

$1.76 PEN 6.03

-7.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 ARS 1,481

$1.33 PEN 4.55

-26.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

$5.05 PEN 17.31

52.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 ARS 2,058

$1.51 PEN 5.19

-9.93%

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

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

$23.7K PEN 81.3K

18.04%

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

$34.5K ARS 52.4M

$25.9K PEN 88.6K

33.54%

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

$216 ARS 326.9K

$49.76 PEN 171

333.22%

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

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

$9.79 PEN 33.57

161.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.36 ARS 47.6K

$29.01 PEN 99.5

8.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.82 ARS 75.6K

$30.97 PEN 106

60.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

$20.52 PEN 70.3

-16.86%

Cinema Ticket

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

$4.76 PEN 16.32

119.12%

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

$466 ARS 706.7K

$137 PEN 471

239.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

$4,463 PEN 15.3K

102.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$122 ARS 185.2K

$51.7 PEN 177

136.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$97.4 ARS 147.8K

$29.33 PEN 101

232.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ARS 177.4K

$80.8 PEN 277

44.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 ARS 211.9K

$80.9 PEN 277

72.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$763 ARS 1.2M

$199 PEN 681

284.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$505 ARS 766.1K

$103 PEN 353

390.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

$527 PEN 1,806

203.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

$317 PEN 1,085

274.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

$2,338 PEN 8,015

14.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$954 ARS 1.4M

$727 PEN 2,491

31.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

10.5

445.24%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Last update for Cajamarca: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4%

Cajamarca

$103 14.9% 79.6% $402

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1%

Cajamarca

$229 33.1% 19.4% $55

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8%

Cajamarca

$103 14.8% 63.2% $176

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4%

Cajamarca

$89 12.8% 67.5% $184

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9%

Cajamarca

$109 15.8% 49% $105

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3%

Cajamarca

$40 5.9% 42.7% $30

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Cajamarca

$20 2.8% 46.6% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $763 in Buenos Aires and $199 in Cajamarca. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buenos Aires pays 31% 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 $29.00 in Cajamarca for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $284 vs $229 per month, with Cajamarca cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇵🇪 Cajamarca

🕒 Local time

03:24 3:24 AM

01:24 1:24 AM

2 h behind Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

218,741

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

1 PEN = 0.292 USD

1 PEN = 0.26 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, 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).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.292 USD). 1 EUR = 3.84 PEN (1 PEN = 0.26 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Cajamarca 3,680 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Cajamarca

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 Cajamarca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Cajamarca differ by about 142% in total monthly costs ($1,685 vs $695 including rent). Cajamarca is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 31% 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 $199 in Cajamarca. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $466 in Buenos Aires versus $137 in Cajamarca. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 24% higher in Buenos Aires. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $695 in Cajamarca versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cajamarca but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Cajamarca 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, Buenos Aires and Cajamarca 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 Cajamarca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 142% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.