Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Mardan

For one person, living is cheaper in Mardan: $492 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Mardan
Learn more

Mardan Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Mardan

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$492

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $492 in Mardan.

Buenos Aires $1,656
Mardan $492

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $768 in Mardan.

Buenos Aires $2,697
Mardan $768

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $1,045 in Mardan.

Buenos Aires $3,737
Mardan $1,045

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 237% more expensive than in Mardan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 23% above, Mardan is 64% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

$3.54 PKR 980

439.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

$23.75 PKR 6,572

177.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$5.44 PKR 1,506

142.65%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 PKR 1,023

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.81 PKR 1,885

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,841

$2.72 PKR 753

41.54%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,020

$0.32 PKR 89.6

521.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,430

$0.23 PKR 63.8

595.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,959

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 7,003

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,272

$0.91 PKR 252

64.84%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,837

$0.72 PKR 199

251.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,445

$1.28 PKR 354

25.78%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,316

$1.16 PKR 320

144.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$2.82 PKR 781

265.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$3.14 PKR 870

218.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

$3.89 PKR 1,076

241.90%

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,366

$0.93 PKR 258

209.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,334

$0.71 PKR 196

209.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,120

$1.07 PKR 296

30.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 3,004

$0.38 PKR 104

421.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,835

$0.27 PKR 73.8

348.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,910

$0.36 PKR 99.1

250.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,592

$0.28 PKR 77.1

510.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,603

$0.37 PKR 103

364.86%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.79 PKR 495

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 PKR 332

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 PKR 651

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,505

$1.83 PKR 507

134.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,645

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,288

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,188

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,141

$0.16 PKR 43.24

368.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

$10.19 PKR 2,821

167.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,375

$1.25 PKR 346

25.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,558

$0.69 PKR 192

49.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

$1.58 PKR 436

400.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,160

$1.06 PKR 292

33.96%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

$21.8K PKR 6.0M

28.42%

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

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

$24.6K PKR 6.8M

42.09%

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

$195 ARS 296.2K

$101 PKR 27.9K

93.94%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

$5.88 PKR 1,628

327.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

$16.89 PKR 4,674

86.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

$16.54 PKR 4,578

207.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

$7.15 PKR 1,978

133.99%

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

$4.42 PKR 1,224

133.94%

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

$463 ARS 703.2K

$75.8 PKR 21.0K

511.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

$1,028 PKR 284.5K

755.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.8K

$25.76 PKR 7,131

365.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

$34.46 PKR 9,537

177.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 173.1K

$94.6 PKR 26.2K

20.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 211.4K

$40.80 PKR 11.3K

241.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

$127 PKR 35.0K

497.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 788.8K

$75.6 PKR 20.9K

587.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

$253 PKR 69.9K

529.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

$149 PKR 41.3K

702.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

$830 PKR 229.7K

226.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

$443 PKR 122.7K

328.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$938 ARS 1.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

13.08

337.69%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mardan: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Mardan

$76 15.4% 85.4% $444

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

Mardan

$84 17.1% 70.3% $199

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

Mardan

$80 16.2% 71.8% $202

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

Mardan

$123 25.1% 51% $128

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

Mardan

$88 17.9% 58.3% $123

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

Mardan

$25 5.2% 64.5% $46

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Mardan

$16 3.2% 58% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $756 in Buenos Aires and $127 in Mardan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $66.0 in Buenos Aires vs $24.00 in Mardan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $283 vs $84.0 per month, with Mardan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇵🇰 Mardan

🕒 Local time

01:23 1:23 AM

09:23 9:23 AM

8 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

358,604

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Mardan 15,520 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Mardan

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 Mardan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Mardan differ by about 237% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $492 including rent). Mardan 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 $737 in Mardan 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: $756 in Buenos Aires versus $127 in Mardan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $463 in Buenos Aires versus $75.8 in Mardan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 237% higher in Buenos Aires. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $492 in Mardan versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Mardan but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Mardan 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 Mardan 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 Mardan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 237% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.