Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Mexico City

For one person, living is cheaper in Mexico City: $1,567 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. The total is higher in Buenos Aires despite lower rent and utilities.

80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Buenos Aires and in Mexico City

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $1,567 in Mexico City.

Buenos Aires $1,656
Mexico City $1,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $2,450 in Mexico City.

Buenos Aires $2,697
Mexico City $2,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $3,333 in Mexico City.

Buenos Aires $3,737
Mexico City $3,333

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 6% more expensive than in Mexico City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Buenos Aires 23% above, Mexico City 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

$10.75 MX$199

77.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

$50.3 MX$929

30.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$11.10 MX$205

18.92%

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,841

$3.68 MX$68.1

4.62%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,020

$1.65 MX$30.42

20.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,430

$1.30 MX$24.08

23.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,959

$3.32 MX$61.3

18.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 7,003

$5.54 MX$102

-16.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,272

$1.77 MX$32.68

-15.25%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,837

$3.05 MX$56.4

-17.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,445

$2.01 MX$37.20

-19.90%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,316

$2.77 MX$51.1

2.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$11.91 MX$220

-13.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$9.33 MX$172

7.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

$15.02 MX$278

-11.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,366

$3.08 MX$56.8

-6.49%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,334

$1.95 MX$35.97

12.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,120

$2.03 MX$37.54

-31.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 3,004

$2.21 MX$40.92

-10.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,835

$2.02 MX$37.41

-40.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,910

$1.82 MX$33.67

-30.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,592

$1.52 MX$28.07

12.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,603

$1.28 MX$23.65

34.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,505

$5.27 MX$97.4

-18.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,645

$16.12 MX$298

-64.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,288

$1.95 MX$36.05

11.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,188

$4.25 MX$78.6

-35.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,141

$0.31 MX$5.82

141.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

$19.85 MX$367

37.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,375

$2.00 MX$36.93

-21.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,558

$0.53 MX$9.86

94.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

$5.62 MX$104

40.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,160

$1.52 MX$28.07

-6.58%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

$21.0K MX$388.7K

32.89%

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

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

$25.2K MX$465.3K

38.88%

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

$195 ARS 296.2K

$62.5 MX$1,155

212.37%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

$28.77 MX$532

-12.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

$34.45 MX$637

-8.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

$57.1 MX$1,055

-10.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

$24.81 MX$458

-32.57%

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

$6.67 MX$123

55.02%

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

$463 ARS 703.2K

$431 MX$7,964

7.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

$11.7K MX$216.9K

-25.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.8K

$70.8 MX$1,308

69.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

$51.8 MX$958

84.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 173.1K

$109 MX$2,011

4.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 211.4K

$112 MX$2,076

24.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

$1,051 MX$19.4K

-28.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 788.8K

$665 MX$12.3K

-21.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

$2,346 MX$43.3K

-32.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

$1,227 MX$22.7K

-2.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

$3,554 MX$65.7K

-23.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

$1,977 MX$36.5K

-3.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$938 ARS 1.4M

$975 MX$18.0K

-3.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

11.3

406.64%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mexico City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Mexico City

$665 42.4% 27.9% $145

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

Mexico City

$323 20.6% 13.9% $39

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

Mexico City

$203 13% 28% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

Mexico City

$126 8% 50.1% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

Mexico City

$155 9.9% 26.7% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

Mexico City

$70 4.5% 1.6% $1.2

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Mexico City

$26 1.6% 30.3% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $756 in Buenos Aires and $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mexico City pays 4% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66.0 in Buenos Aires vs $50.0 in Mexico City. Groceries flip the comparison at $283 vs $323, with Buenos Aires cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🕒 Local time

05:32 5:32 AM

02:32 2:32 AM

3 h behind Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, 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).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Mexico City 7,390 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Mexico City

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 Mexico City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Mexico City differ by about 6% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $1,567 including rent). Mexico City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 4% lower in Mexico City. 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: $756 in Buenos Aires versus $1,051 in Mexico City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $463 in Buenos Aires versus $431 in Mexico City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Buenos Aires pay roughly 14% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,567 in Mexico City versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mexico City but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Mexico City 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 Mexico City 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 Mexico City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.