Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Dourados

For one person, living is cheaper in Dourados: $834 a month against $1,685 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Dourados
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Dourados Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

Dourados

🇧🇷 Brazil

$834

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,685 in Buenos Aires versus $834 in Dourados.

Buenos Aires $1,685
Dourados $834

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,742 in Buenos Aires versus $1,332 in Dourados.

Buenos Aires $2,742
Dourados $1,332

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,799 in Buenos Aires versus $1,830 in Dourados.

Buenos Aires $3,799
Dourados $1,830

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 102% more expensive than in Dourados, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 26% above, Dourados is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

$5.71 R$28.50

228.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.5 ARS 97.8K

$30.70 R$153

110.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

$7.07 R$35.31

82.18%

Cappuccino

$3.98 ARS 6,029

$1.94 R$9.68

105.15%

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

$2.05 ARS 3,103

$1.22 R$6.11

68.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 ARS 2,349

$0.72 R$3.58

115.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 ARS 5,830

$1.94 R$9.69

97.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 ARS 6,970

$2.85 R$14.24

61.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 ARS 2,181

$1.00 R$4.98

44.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.46 ARS 3,738

$1.59 R$7.94

54.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 ARS 2,467

$1.21 R$6.02

34.71%

Eggs

$2.89 ARS 4,385

$2.10 R$10.50

37.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

$9.26 R$46.21

15.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$4.06 R$20.25

146.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

$8.23 R$41.08

66.95%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 ARS 4,166

$2.11 R$10.54

30.33%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 ARS 3,300

$1.27 R$6.35

71.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,205

$1.12 R$5.59

29.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.99 ARS 3,013

$1.54 R$7.66

29.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ARS 1,885

$1.19 R$5.96

4.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 ARS 1,921

$1.03 R$5.13

23.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 ARS 2,575

$0.74 R$3.70

129.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 ARS 2,617

$0.79 R$3.95

118.99%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 ARS 6,337

$2.44 R$12.20

71.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.80 ARS 8,790

$7.71 R$38.51

-24.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 ARS 3,163

$1.20 R$6.00

74.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ARS 4,198

$2.01 R$10.06

37.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,132

$0.99 R$4.93

-24.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

$42.47 R$212

-36.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 ARS 2,451

$1.21 R$6.02

33.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 ARS 1,481

$0.86 R$4.31

13.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

$7.62 R$38.04

1.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 ARS 2,058

$1.25 R$6.24

8.80%

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

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

$23.2K R$115.7K

20.81%

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

$34.5K ARS 52.4M

$31.4K R$156.9K

9.88%

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

$216 ARS 326.9K

$71.4 R$356

202.13%

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

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

$12.18 R$60.8

110.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.36 ARS 47.6K

$20.18 R$101

55.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.82 ARS 75.6K

$24.67 R$123

101.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

$26.16 R$131

-34.79%

Cinema Ticket

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

$6.95 R$34.71

50.07%

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

$466 ARS 706.7K

$283 R$1,413

64.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

$6,853 R$34.2K

32.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$122 ARS 185.2K

$52.9 R$264

130.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$97.4 ARS 147.8K

$48.31 R$241

101.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ARS 177.4K

$90.1 R$450

29.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 ARS 211.9K

$69.2 R$346

101.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$763 ARS 1.2M

$343 R$1,712

122.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$505 ARS 766.1K

$233 R$1,163

116.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

$656 R$3,273

143.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

$458 R$2,288

158.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

$1,626 R$8,117

64.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

$1,112 R$5,553

67.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$954 ARS 1.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

420.45%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Last update for Dourados: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4%

Dourados

$233 27.6% 53.9% $272

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1%

Dourados

$186 22% 34.6% $98

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8%

Dourados

$113 13.4% 59.4% $166

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4%

Dourados

$104 12.3% 61.9% $169

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9%

Dourados

$117 13.9% 45.3% $97

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3%

Dourados

$39 4.6% 45.4% $32

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Dourados

$52 6.2% 41.8% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $763 in Buenos Aires and $343 in Dourados. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $64.0 in Buenos Aires vs $31.00 in Dourados for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $284 vs $186 per month, with Dourados cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇧🇷 Dourados

🕒 Local time

07:16 7:16 AM

06:16 6:16 AM

1 h behind Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

243,367

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, 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 = 1,699 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.59 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Dourados 1,420 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Dourados

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 Dourados: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Dourados differ by about 102% in total monthly costs ($1,685 vs $834 including rent). Dourados is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,528 in Buenos Aires and $1,252 in Dourados 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: $763 in Buenos Aires versus $343 in Dourados. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $466 in Buenos Aires versus $283 in Dourados. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 53% higher in Buenos Aires. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $834 in Dourados versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Dourados but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Dourados 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 Dourados 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 Dourados gentler on the wallet – expenses run 102% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.