Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Elmina

For one person, living is cheaper in Elmina: $668 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
33

Cost of Living Index in Elmina
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Elmina Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Elmina

🇬🇭 Ghana

$668

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $668 in Elmina.

Buenos Aires $1,656
Elmina $668

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $1,125 in Elmina.

Buenos Aires $2,697
Elmina $1,125

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $1,582 in Elmina.

Buenos Aires $3,737
Elmina $1,582

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 148% more expensive than in Elmina, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 23% above, Elmina is 51% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 28.9K

$7.82 GHS 90.8

144.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.5K

$50.8 GHS 590

29.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$10.26 GHS 119

28.65%

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,821

$4.46 GHS 51.7

-13.68%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,010

$1.53 GHS 17.80

30.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,422

$0.44 GHS 5.11

263.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,940

$1.81 GHS 20.98

117.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 6,979

$2.17 GHS 25.12

112.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,264

$3.67 GHS 42.57

-59.13%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,825

$1.67 GHS 19.32

51.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,437

$3.06 GHS 35.54

-47.39%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,302

$2.68 GHS 31.13

5.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$12.03 GHS 140

-14.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.1K

$7.08 GHS 82.1

41.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.1K

$9.62 GHS 112

38.25%

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,351

$3.61 GHS 41.82

-20.22%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,323

$1.40 GHS 16.28

57.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,113

$1.77 GHS 20.53

-20.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 2,994

$3.56 GHS 41.34

-44.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,829

$2.69 GHS 31.21

-55.02%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,904

$2.65 GHS 30.74

-52.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,583

$0.72 GHS 8.32

137.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,595

$0.60 GHS 7.01

186.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,484

$2.51 GHS 29.12

70.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,617

$7.06 GHS 81.9

-19.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,277

$1.21 GHS 14.07

79.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,174

$2.33 GHS 27.07

18.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,137

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,367

$1.74 GHS 20.24

-9.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,553

$1.26 GHS 14.61

-18.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 11.9K

$4.30 GHS 49.87

83.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,153

$1.34 GHS 15.54

5.97%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.3M

$7,913 GHS 91.8K

253.19%

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

$35.0K ARS 52.9M

$9,662 GHS 112.1K

261.95%

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

$195 ARS 295.2K

$73.7 GHS 855

164.86%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.0K

$19.07 GHS 221

31.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.7K

$42.25 GHS 490

-25.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.0K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.3K

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.6K

$12.66 GHS 147

-18.33%

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

$463 ARS 700.9K

$470 GHS 5,450

-1.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

$18.6K GHS 216.0K

-52.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.2K

$14.18 GHS 164

745.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.4K

$18.59 GHS 216

413.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 172.6K

$36.74 GHS 426

210.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 210.7K

$52.0 GHS 603

167.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 786.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$938 ARS 1.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

26.75

114.02%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for Elmina: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Elmina

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

Elmina

$276 41.4% 2.4% $6.9

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

Elmina

$168 25.2% 40.3% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

Elmina

$135 20.2% 46.4% $117

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

Elmina

$55 8.2% 74.1% $156

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

Elmina

$25 * 3.8% 64.7% $46

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Elmina

$8 * 1.2% 78.3% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $66.0 in Buenos Aires vs $51.0 in Elmina for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $283 vs $276 per month, with Elmina cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇬🇭 Elmina

🕒 Local time

08:33 8:33 AM

11:33 11:33 AM

3 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

34,403

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Ghanaian Cedi GHS ₵

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.61 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.89 EUR

100 GHS = 8.62 USD

100 GHS = 7.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GHS, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 1,513 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.61 USD). 1 EUR = 1,696 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.89 EUR).

Ghanaian Cedi exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 11.6 GHS (100 GHS = 8.62 USD). 1 EUR = 13.01 GHS (100 GHS = 7.69 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Elmina 7,420 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Elmina

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 Elmina: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Elmina differ by about 148% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $668 including rent). Elmina is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,484 in Buenos Aires and $1,001 in Elmina 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.

Childcare runs $463 in Buenos Aires versus $470 in Elmina. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Elmina – a meal for two runs $51.0 versus $66.0 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $668 in Elmina versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Elmina but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Elmina 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 Elmina 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 Elmina gentler on the wallet – expenses run 148% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.