Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Luanda

For one person, living is cheaper in Luanda: $1,002 a month against $1,685 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
48

Cost of Living Index in Luanda
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Luanda Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

Luanda

🇦🇴 Angola

$1,002

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,685 in Buenos Aires versus $1,002 in Luanda.

Buenos Aires $1,685
Luanda $1,002

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,742 in Buenos Aires versus $1,894 in Luanda.

Buenos Aires $2,742
Luanda $1,894

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,799 in Buenos Aires versus $2,787 in Luanda.

Buenos Aires $3,799
Luanda $2,787

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 68% more expensive than in Luanda, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 26% above, Luanda is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

$5.32 AOA 4,859

252.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.5 ARS 97.8K

$36.65 AOA 33.5K

75.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

$6.69 AOA 6,110

92.53%

Cappuccino

$3.98 ARS 6,029

$2.65 AOA 2,417

50.19%

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

$2.05 ARS 3,103

$1.35 AOA 1,231

51.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 ARS 2,349

$1.15 AOA 1,046

34.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 ARS 5,830

$1.68 AOA 1,533

128.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 ARS 6,970

$1.63 AOA 1,487

182.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 ARS 2,181

$1.92 AOA 1,750

-25.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.46 ARS 3,738

$0.98 AOA 890

151.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 ARS 2,467

$1.62 AOA 1,479

0.62%

Eggs

$2.89 ARS 4,385

$1.89 AOA 1,729

52.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

$9.22 AOA 8,417

15.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$3.34 AOA 3,047

199.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

$7.81 AOA 7,130

75.93%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 ARS 4,166

$2.25 AOA 2,056

22.22%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 ARS 3,300

$0.92 AOA 841

136.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,205

$2.76 AOA 2,519

-47.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.99 ARS 3,013

$1.82 AOA 1,664

9.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ARS 1,885

$1.52 AOA 1,389

-18.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 ARS 1,921

$1.50 AOA 1,366

-15.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 ARS 2,575

$1.68 AOA 1,537

1.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 ARS 2,617

$0.36 AOA 332

380.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 ARS 6,337

$1.69 AOA 1,539

147.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.80 ARS 8,790

$6.15 AOA 5,614

-5.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 ARS 3,163

$0.43 AOA 388

386.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ARS 4,198

$0.92 AOA 840

201.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,132

$0.32 AOA 291

134.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

$33.30 AOA 30.4K

-18.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 ARS 2,451

$1.11 AOA 1,016

45.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 ARS 1,481

$0.83 AOA 762

18.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

$5.38 AOA 4,911

43.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 ARS 2,058

$0.32 AOA 289

325.00%

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

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

$14.3K AOA 13.1M

95.74%

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

$34.5K ARS 52.4M

$22.3K AOA 20.4M

54.59%

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

$216 ARS 326.9K

$101 AOA 92.2K

113.44%

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

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

$17.81 AOA 16.3K

43.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.36 ARS 47.6K

$76.8 AOA 70.1K

-59.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.82 ARS 75.6K

$46.31 AOA 42.3K

7.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

$15.27 AOA 13.9K

11.72%

Cinema Ticket

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

$3.65 AOA 3,332

185.75%

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

$466 ARS 706.7K

$750 AOA 684.4K

-37.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

$13.6K AOA 12.4M

-33.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$122 ARS 185.2K

$110 AOA 100.4K

10.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$97.4 ARS 147.8K

$63.6 AOA 58.1K

53.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ARS 177.4K

$96.3 AOA 87.9K

21.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 ARS 211.9K

$196 AOA 179.0K

-28.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$763 ARS 1.2M

$382 AOA 348.9K

99.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$505 ARS 766.1K

$203 AOA 185.2K

149.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

$2,087 AOA 1.9M

-23.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

$1,039 AOA 948.5K

14.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

$12.0K AOA 10.9M

-77.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

$868 AOA 792.2K

114.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$954 ARS 1.4M

$1,374 AOA 1.3M

-30.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

172.62%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Last update for Luanda: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4%

Luanda

$203 20.3% 59.8% $302

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1%

Luanda

$183 18.3% 35.7% $101

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8%

Luanda

$116 11.6% 58.4% $163

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4%

Luanda

$196 19.6% 28.2% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9%

Luanda

$210 21% 2.1% $4.6

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3%

Luanda

$54 5.4% 24.2% $17

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Luanda

$40 4% 8.8% $3.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $763 in Buenos Aires and $382 in Luanda. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Luanda pays 44% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $64.0 in Buenos Aires vs $37.00 in Luanda for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $284 vs $183 per month, with Luanda cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇦🇴 Luanda

🕒 Local time

03:19 3:19 AM

07:19 7:19 AM

4 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

2,600,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Angolan Kwanza AOA Kz

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

10,000 AOA = 10.96 USD

10,000 AOA = 9.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AOA, 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).

Angolan Kwanza exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 913 AOA (1,000 AOA = 1.1 USD). 1 EUR = 1,024 AOA (10,000 AOA = 9.77 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Luanda 7,780 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Luanda

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 Luanda: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Luanda differ by about 68% in total monthly costs ($1,685 vs $1,002 including rent). Luanda is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 44% lower in Luanda. 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: $763 in Buenos Aires versus $382 in Luanda. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $466 in Buenos Aires versus $750 in Luanda. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 56% higher in Buenos Aires. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,002 in Luanda versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Luanda but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Luanda 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 Luanda 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 Luanda gentler on the wallet – expenses run 68% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.