Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Cartagena

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartagena: $1,292 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Cartagena
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Cartagena Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Cartagena

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,292

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $1,292 in Cartagena.

Buenos Aires $1,656
Cartagena $1,292

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $2,165 in Cartagena.

Buenos Aires $2,697
Cartagena $2,165

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $3,039 in Cartagena.

Buenos Aires $3,737
Cartagena $3,039

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 28% more expensive than in Cartagena, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 23% above, Cartagena is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

$5.87 COP 18.6K

225.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

$143 COP 453.5K

-53.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$10.37 COP 32.9K

27.29%

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,841

$4.26 COP 13.5K

-9.62%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,020

$2.54 COP 8,063

-21.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,430

$2.36 COP 7,478

-32.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,959

$3.26 COP 10.3K

20.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 7,003

$4.96 COP 15.7K

-7.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,272

$1.91 COP 6,053

-21.47%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,837

$2.74 COP 8,692

-7.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,445

$1.45 COP 4,610

11.03%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,316

$5.06 COP 16.0K

-43.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$13.13 COP 41.6K

-21.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$17.37 COP 55.1K

-42.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,366

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,334

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,120

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 3,004

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,835

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,910

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,592

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,603

$1.99 COP 6,304

-13.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,505

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,645

$14.64 COP 46.4K

-61.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,288

$1.40 COP 4,436

55.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,188

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,141

$1.25 COP 3,972

-40.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

$58.4 COP 185.2K

-53.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,375

$4.74 COP 15.0K

-66.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,558

$3.68 COP 11.7K

-72.01%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

$9.49 COP 30.1K

-16.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,160

$1.34 COP 4,251

5.97%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

$23.4K COP 74.1M

19.59%

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

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

$34.4K COP 109.2M

1.54%

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

$195 ARS 296.2K

$78.4 COP 248.6K

148.92%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

$91.7 COP 290.8K

-44.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

$8.02 COP 25.4K

28.93%

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

$463 ARS 703.2K

$630 COP 2.0M

-26.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

$5,818 COP 18.4M

51.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.8K

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 173.1K

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 211.4K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

$1,035 COP 3.3M

-26.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 788.8K

$585 COP 1.9M

-11.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

$2,287 COP 7.3M

-30.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

$944 COP 3.0M

26.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

$924 COP 2.9M

105.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$938 ARS 1.4M

$467 COP 1.5M

100.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

281.67%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cartagena: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Cartagena

$585 45.3% 12.6% $65

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

Cartagena

$259 * 20% 8.6% $24

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

Cartagena

$175 13.5% 37.9% $107

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

Cartagena

$78 * 6.1% 68.9% $173

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

Cartagena

- * 0% 100%

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

Cartagena

$108 8.3% 50.5% $36

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Cartagena

$87 6.7% 134% $50

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 $756 in Buenos Aires and $1,035 in Cartagena. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buenos Aires pays 101% 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: $66.0 in Buenos Aires vs $143 in Cartagena. Groceries flip the comparison at $283 vs $259, with Cartagena cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇨🇴 Cartagena

🕒 Local time

11:46 11:46 AM

09:46 9:46 AM

2 h behind Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

1,028,736

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Cartagena 5,320 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Cartagena

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 Cartagena: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Cartagena differ by about 28% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $1,292 including rent). Cartagena is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 101% 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: $756 in Buenos Aires versus $1,035 in Cartagena. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $463 in Buenos Aires versus $630 in Cartagena. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 9% higher in Buenos Aires. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,292 in Cartagena versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cartagena but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Cartagena 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 Cartagena 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 Cartagena gentler on the wallet – expenses run 28% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.