Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Invercargill

For one person, living is cheaper in Invercargill: $1,425 a month against $1,633 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
69

Cost of Living Index in Invercargill
Learn more

Invercargill Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,633

/mo nomad

Invercargill

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,425

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,633 in Buenos Aires versus $1,425 in Invercargill.

Buenos Aires $1,633
Invercargill $1,425

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,640 in Buenos Aires versus $2,122 in Invercargill.

Buenos Aires $2,640
Invercargill $2,122

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,646 in Buenos Aires versus $2,819 in Invercargill.

Buenos Aires $3,646
Invercargill $2,819

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 15% more expensive than in Invercargill, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Buenos Aires 20% above, Invercargill 5% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.24 ARS 28.1K

$14.31 NZ$25.51

27.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.3 ARS 101.9K

$62.1 NZ$111

6.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.96 ARS 19.9K

$8.28 NZ$14.76

56.52%

Cappuccino

$3.73 ARS 5,742

$3.17 NZ$5.65

17.67%

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

$2.03 ARS 3,128

$1.67 NZ$2.98

21.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.70 ARS 2,612

$2.13 NZ$3.80

-20.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.06 ARS 6,243

$2.79 NZ$4.98

45.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.75 ARS 7,301

$2.86 NZ$5.10

66.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 ARS 2,249

$1.73 NZ$3.07

-15.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.54 ARS 3,904

$1.91 NZ$3.40

32.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.58 ARS 2,434

$1.77 NZ$3.16

-10.73%

Eggs

$2.68 ARS 4,123

$5.78 NZ$10.29

-53.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.14 ARS 17.1K

$8.67 NZ$15.46

28.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.08 ARS 15.5K

$8.78 NZ$15.64

14.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.18 ARS 20.3K

$12.05 NZ$21.48

9.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.76 ARS 4,250

$2.70 NZ$4.82

2.22%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,384

$2.40 NZ$4.28

-8.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,148

$2.61 NZ$4.65

-46.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.99 ARS 3,055

$3.44 NZ$6.13

-42.15%

Potato (1kg)

$1.20 ARS 1,845

$3.29 NZ$5.87

-63.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ARS 1,774

$1.66 NZ$2.96

-30.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.63 ARS 2,500

$2.30 NZ$4.11

-29.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 ARS 2,769

$1.05 NZ$1.87

71.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.21 ARS 6,478

$21.03 NZ$37.48

-79.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.51 ARS 8,480

$8.42 NZ$15.01

-34.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.07 ARS 3,177

$2.90 NZ$5.16

-28.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ARS 4,254

$3.29 NZ$5.87

-15.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.74 ARS 1,143

$1.46 NZ$2.61

-49.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.83 ARS 45.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.61 ARS 2,481

$2.24 NZ$4.00

-28.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.97 ARS 1,497

$1.89 NZ$3.36

-48.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.15 ARS 12.5K

$28.04 NZ$49.97

-70.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 ARS 2,160

$1.58 NZ$2.82

-11.39%

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

$23.2K ARS 35.7M

$24.1K NZ$43.0K

-3.77%

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

$32.8K ARS 50.5M

$18.6K NZ$33.2K

76.55%

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

$196 ARS 301.9K

$113 NZ$202

73.31%

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

$23.91 ARS 36.8K

$32.59 NZ$58.1

-26.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.50 ARS 48.5K

$42.59 NZ$75.9

-26.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.01 ARS 73.8K

$28.26 NZ$50.4

69.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.62 ARS 25.6K

$14.12 NZ$25.16

17.71%

Cinema Ticket

$10.57 ARS 16.3K

$8.86 NZ$15.79

19.30%

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

$501 ARS 770.1K

$597 NZ$1,063

-16.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,870 ARS 13.6M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$121 ARS 186.8K

$59.1 NZ$105

105.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.6 ARS 147.0K

$35.27 NZ$62.9

170.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 ARS 178.5K

$70.3 NZ$125

65.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 213.2K

$78.2 NZ$139

77.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$731 ARS 1.1M

$611 NZ$1,090

19.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$503 ARS 773.8K

$550 NZ$981

-8.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,477 ARS 2.3M

$835 NZ$1,488

76.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,119 ARS 1.7M

$769 NZ$1,370

45.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,703 ARS 4.2M

$5,776 NZ$10.3K

-53.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 ARS 3.0M

$5,013 NZ$8,933

-61.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$921 ARS 1.4M

$2,756 NZ$4,912

-66.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

6.72

751.93%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 26, 2026

Last update for Invercargill: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$503 30.8%

Invercargill

$550 38.6% 9.4% $47

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$284 17.4%

Invercargill

$301 21.1% 6.1% $17

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$274 16.8%

Invercargill

$212 14.9% 22.6% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.4%

Invercargill

$188 13.2% 25.1% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$212 13%

Invercargill

$109 7.7% 48.5% $103

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$69 4.2%

Invercargill

$46 3.2% 33.5% $23

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$39 2.4%

Invercargill

$18 * 1.2% 55.4% $22

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 $731 in Buenos Aires and $611 in Invercargill. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Invercargill pays about 3 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66 in Buenos Aires vs $62 in Invercargill. Groceries flip the comparison at $284 vs $301, with Buenos Aires cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇳🇿 Invercargill

🕒 Local time

19:05 7:05 PM

11:05 11:05 AM

16 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

56,200

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR

1 NZD = 0.561 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,538 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD). 1 EUR = 1,712 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.561 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Buenos Aires Invercargill 9,860 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Invercargill

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 Invercargill: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,633 in Buenos Aires and $1,425 in Invercargill, so Invercargill is about 13% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 67% lower in Buenos Aires. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $731 in Buenos Aires versus $611 in Invercargill. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $501 in Buenos Aires versus $597 in Invercargill. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Invercargill – a meal for two runs $62 versus $66 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Invercargill is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Invercargill are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.