Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Montana

For one person, living is cheaper in Montana: $833 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Montana
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Montana Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Montana

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$833

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $833 in Montana.

Buenos Aires $1,656
Montana $833

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $1,339 in Montana.

Buenos Aires $2,697
Montana $1,339

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $1,846 in Montana.

Buenos Aires $3,737
Montana $1,846

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 99% more expensive than in Montana, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 23% above, Montana is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 28.9K

$9.04 BGN 15.83

111.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.6K

$36.16 BGN 63.3

81.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$9.85 BGN 17.24

34.01%

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,823

$1.39 BGN 2.43

176.98%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,011

$1.38 BGN 2.42

44.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,423

$1.11 BGN 1.94

44.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,942

$1.28 BGN 2.24

207.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 6,982

$1.01 BGN 1.77

356.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,265

$1.69 BGN 2.96

-11.24%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,826

$1.00 BGN 1.76

153.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,438

$2.10 BGN 3.68

-23.33%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,303

$2.72 BGN 4.77

4.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$9.73 BGN 17.03

5.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.1K

$3.25 BGN 5.68

207.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.1K

$12.63 BGN 22.10

5.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,353

$1.21 BGN 2.12

138.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,324

$1.78 BGN 3.12

23.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,114

$1.76 BGN 3.07

-20.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 2,995

$2.56 BGN 4.49

-22.66%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,830

$0.70 BGN 1.23

72.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,905

$0.93 BGN 1.62

35.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,584

$0.90 BGN 1.58

90.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,596

$0.49 BGN 0.86

251.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,486

$3.68 BGN 6.44

16.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,619

$6.31 BGN 11.04

-9.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,278

$0.89 BGN 1.55

143.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,175

$1.12 BGN 1.97

146.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,137

$0.89 BGN 1.56

-15.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.3K

$24.29 BGN 42.50

12.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,368

$0.66 BGN 1.15

137.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,554

$0.47 BGN 0.83

119.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 11.9K

$10.36 BGN 18.12

-23.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,154

$1.58 BGN 2.76

-10.13%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.3M

$19.6K BGN 34.3K

42.60%

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

$35.0K ARS 52.9M

$23.7K BGN 41.5K

47.64%

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

$195 ARS 295.3K

$99.8 BGN 175

95.65%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.1K

$18.72 BGN 32.77

34.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.7K

$8.52 BGN 14.90

270.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.0K

$29.86 BGN 52.3

70.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.3K

$17.20 BGN 30.10

-2.73%

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.6K

$5.31 BGN 9.29

94.73%

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

$463 ARS 701.1K

$522 BGN 914

-11.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

$5,479 BGN 9,589

60.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.3K

$67.8 BGN 119

76.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.5K

$42.05 BGN 73.6

127.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 172.6K

$94.7 BGN 166

20.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 210.8K

$105 BGN 183

33.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

$214 BGN 374

253.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 786.5K

$160 BGN 280

225.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

$404 BGN 707

293.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

$304 BGN 532

294.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

$1,329 BGN 2,326

104.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

$1,078 BGN 1,886

76.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$938 ARS 1.4M

$992 BGN 1,737

-5.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

3.1

1746.77%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for Montana: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Montana

$160 19.2% 69.2% $360

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

Montana

$199 23.9% 29.8% $84

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

Montana

$137 16.4% 51.4% $145

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

Montana

$127 15.2% 49.6% $125

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

Montana

$139 16.7% 34% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

Montana

$40 4.9% 43.5% $31

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Montana

$31 3.7% 16.5% $6.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $756 in Buenos Aires and $214 in Montana. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Montana pays 6% 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 $36.00 in Montana for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $283 vs $199 per month, with Montana cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇧🇬 Montana

🕒 Local time

19:51 7:51 PM

01:51 1:51 AM

6 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

44,502

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.61 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.9 EUR

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.51 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 1,513 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.61 USD). 1 EUR = 1,696 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.9 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.51 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

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Buenos Aires Montana 11,970 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Montana

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 Montana: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Montana differ by about 99% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $833 including rent). Montana is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 6% lower in Montana. 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 $214 in Montana. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $463 in Buenos Aires versus $522 in Montana. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Buenos Aires. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $833 in Montana versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Montana but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Montana 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 Montana 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 Montana gentler on the wallet – expenses run 99% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.