Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Polokwane

For one person, living is cheaper in Polokwane: $959 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Polokwane
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Polokwane Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Polokwane

🇿🇦 South Africa

$959

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $959 in Polokwane.

Buenos Aires $1,656
Polokwane $959

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $1,417 in Polokwane.

Buenos Aires $2,697
Polokwane $1,417

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $1,875 in Polokwane.

Buenos Aires $3,737
Polokwane $1,875

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 73% more expensive than in Polokwane, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 23% above, Polokwane is 29% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

$12.24 R 202

55.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

$29.66 R 489

121.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$7.46 R 123

76.94%

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,841

$2.38 R 39.26

61.76%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,020

$0.77 R 12.68

158.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,430

$0.88 R 14.47

81.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,959

$1.68 R 27.65

133.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 7,003

$1.88 R 30.95

145.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,272

$1.32 R 21.71

13.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,837

$1.08 R 17.82

134.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,445

$1.70 R 28.03

-5.29%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,316

$2.65 R 43.69

7.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$7.84 R 129

31.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$4.59 R 75.6

117.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

$6.04 R 99.6

120.20%

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,366

$2.01 R 33.19

43.28%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,334

$1.85 R 30.53

18.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,120

$1.81 R 29.80

-22.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 3,004

$1.96 R 32.30

1.02%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,835

$1.67 R 27.49

-27.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,910

$1.50 R 24.73

-16.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,592

$1.12 R 18.48

52.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,603

$0.82 R 13.46

109.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,505

$2.68 R 44.22

60.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,645

$4.87 R 80.2

17.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,288

$1.15 R 18.88

88.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,188

$1.61 R 26.54

71.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,141

$0.92 R 15.22

-18.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

$30.03 R 495

-9.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,375

$0.87 R 14.41

80.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,558

$0.95 R 15.66

8.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

$14.36 R 237

-44.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,160

$1.43 R 23.52

-0.70%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

$26.1K R 430.1K

7.06%

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

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

$28.5K R 469.0K

22.85%

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

$195 ARS 296.2K

$138 R 2,281

40.98%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

$38.10 R 628

-33.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

$32.99 R 544

-4.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

$23.29 R 384

118.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

$8.00 R 132

29.25%

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

$463 ARS 703.2K

$179 R 2,946

159.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

$1,452 R 23.9K

505.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.8K

$45.30 R 746

164.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

$37.73 R 622

153.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 173.1K

$80.6 R 1,328

41.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 211.4K

$93.7 R 1,544

48.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

$290 R 4,785

160.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 788.8K

$203 R 3,338

156.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

$420 R 6,922

278.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

$284 R 4,683

321.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$938 ARS 1.4M

$1,343 R 22.1K

-30.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

10.91

424.75%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for Polokwane: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Polokwane

$203 21.1% 61% $317

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

Polokwane

$185 19.3% 34.6% $98

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

Polokwane

$168 17.5% 40.5% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

Polokwane

$210 21.8% 16.8% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

Polokwane

$116 12.1% 45.1% $95

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

Polokwane

$39 4.1% 45.1% $32

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Polokwane

$39 4.1% 6.4% $2.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $756 in Buenos Aires and $290 in Polokwane. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Polokwane pays 43% 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 $30.00 in Polokwane for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $283 vs $185 per month, with Polokwane cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇿🇦 Polokwane

🕒 Local time

09:16 9:16 AM

14:16 2:16 PM

5 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

628,999

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Buenos Aires Polokwane 8,350 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Polokwane: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Polokwane differ by about 73% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $959 including rent). Polokwane is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 43% lower in Polokwane. 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 $290 in Polokwane. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $463 in Buenos Aires versus $179 in Polokwane. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 53% higher in Buenos Aires. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $959 in Polokwane versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Polokwane but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Polokwane 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 Polokwane 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 Polokwane gentler on the wallet – expenses run 73% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.