Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Monteria

For one person, living is cheaper in Monteria: $1,227 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Monteria
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Monteria Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Monteria

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,227

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $1,227 in Monteria.

Buenos Aires $1,656
Monteria $1,227

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $1,997 in Monteria.

Buenos Aires $2,697
Monteria $1,997

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $2,767 in Monteria.

Buenos Aires $3,737
Monteria $2,767

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 35% more expensive than in Monteria, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 23% above, Monteria is 9% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 28.9K

$5.73 COP 18.2K

233.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.6K

$41.91 COP 133.3K

57.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$10.31 COP 32.8K

28.03%

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,823

$2.57 COP 8,178

49.81%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,011

$2.57 COP 8,188

-22.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,423

$2.27 COP 7,209

-29.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,942

$3.29 COP 10.5K

19.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 6,982

$5.16 COP 16.4K

-10.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,265

$1.90 COP 6,052

-21.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,826

$2.78 COP 8,857

-8.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,438

$1.43 COP 4,537

12.59%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,303

$4.83 COP 15.4K

-41.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$7.98 COP 25.4K

29.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.1K

$9.46 COP 30.1K

5.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.1K

$13.49 COP 42.9K

-1.41%

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,353

$3.16 COP 10.1K

-8.86%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,324

$1.24 COP 3,951

77.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,114

$2.07 COP 6,580

-32.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 2,995

$1.81 COP 5,751

9.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,830

$1.68 COP 5,332

-27.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,905

$1.58 COP 5,020

-20.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,584

$1.22 COP 3,887

40.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,596

$1.16 COP 3,698

48.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,486

$4.07 COP 12.9K

5.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,619

$14.66 COP 46.6K

-61.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,278

$1.46 COP 4,630

48.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,175

$2.34 COP 7,443

17.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,137

$1.19 COP 3,777

-36.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,368

$1.57 COP 5,006

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,554

$3.68 COP 11.7K

-72.01%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 11.9K

$9.57 COP 30.4K

-17.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,154

$1.30 COP 4,132

9.23%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.3M

$23.5K COP 74.8M

18.80%

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

$35.0K ARS 52.9M

$34.4K COP 109.3M

1.73%

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

$195 ARS 295.3K

$78.0 COP 248.1K

150.26%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.1K

$14.49 COP 46.1K

73.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.7K

$25.19 COP 80.1K

25.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.0K

$43.38 COP 138.0K

17.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.3K

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.6K

$8.24 COP 26.2K

25.49%

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

$463 ARS 701.1K

$618 COP 2.0M

-25.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

$5,835 COP 18.6M

50.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.3K

$75.5 COP 240.1K

58.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.5K

$55.4 COP 176.2K

72.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 172.6K

$132 COP 420.5K

-13.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 210.8K

$109 COP 345.9K

28.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

$736 COP 2.3M

2.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 786.5K

$411 COP 1.3M

26.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

$1,022 COP 3.3M

55.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

$913 COP 2.9M

31.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

$2,174 COP 6.9M

24.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

$1,691 COP 5.4M

12.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$938 ARS 1.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

281.67%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for Monteria: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Monteria

$411 33.5% 20.9% $109

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

Monteria

$293 23.8% 3.3% $9.3

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

Monteria

$154 12.5% 45.4% $128

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

Monteria

$118 9.6% 53.3% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

Monteria

$167 13.6% 20.7% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

Monteria

$60 4.9% 16.4% $12

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Monteria

$25 * 2% 33.1% $12

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 $756 in Buenos Aires and $736 in Monteria. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $66.0 in Buenos Aires vs $42.00 in Monteria. Groceries flip the comparison at $283 vs $293, with Buenos Aires cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇨🇴 Monteria

🕒 Local time

07:19 7:19 AM

05:19 5:19 AM

2 h behind Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

454,032

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.61 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.9 EUR

10,000 COP = 3.14 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, 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 = 1,694 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.9 EUR).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 3,181 COP (10,000 COP = 3.14 USD). 1 EUR = 3,562 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

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Buenos Aires Monteria 5,160 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Monteria

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 Monteria: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Monteria differ by about 35% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $1,227 including rent). Monteria 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 $1,840 in Monteria 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 $736 in Monteria. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $463 in Buenos Aires versus $618 in Monteria. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Monteria – a meal for two runs $42.00 versus $66.0 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,227 in Monteria versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Monteria but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Monteria 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 Monteria 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 Monteria gentler on the wallet – expenses run 35% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.