Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Ragama

For one person, living is cheaper in Ragama: $503 a month against $1,646 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $13,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Ragama
Learn more

Ragama Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,646

/mo nomad

Ragama

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$503

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,646 in Buenos Aires versus $503 in Ragama.

Buenos Aires $1,646
Ragama $503

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,680 in Buenos Aires versus $814 in Ragama.

Buenos Aires $2,680
Ragama $814

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,714 in Buenos Aires versus $1,125 in Ragama.

Buenos Aires $3,714
Ragama $1,125

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 227% more expensive than in Ragama, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 21% above, Ragama is 63% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.81 ARS 27.0K

$3.73 LKR 1,237

377.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.2 ARS 98.9K

$24.62 LKR 8,154

164.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.12 ARS 19.9K

$7.63 LKR 2,528

71.95%

Cappuccino

$3.86 ARS 5,863

$2.50 LKR 828

54.40%

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

$2.06 ARS 3,133

$0.72 LKR 239

186.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 ARS 2,542

$0.25 LKR 82.7

572.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.10 ARS 6,218

$2.15 LKR 711

90.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.73 ARS 7,181

$2.99 LKR 990

58.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 ARS 2,285

$1.42 LKR 470

6.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.60 ARS 3,950

$0.47 LKR 155

453.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.57 ARS 2,380

$0.68 LKR 226

130.88%

Eggs

$2.73 ARS 4,144

$1.73 LKR 573

57.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.86 ARS 16.5K

$13.87 LKR 4,593

-21.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.07 ARS 15.3K

$4.74 LKR 1,571

112.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.22 ARS 20.1K

$7.33 LKR 2,428

80.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 ARS 4,255

$6.69 LKR 2,217

-58.15%

Banana (1kg)

$2.09 ARS 3,170

$0.81 LKR 268

158.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,194

$4.27 LKR 1,414

-66.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.00 ARS 3,040

$1.28 LKR 423

56.25%

Potato (1kg)

$1.20 ARS 1,826

$1.03 LKR 341

16.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.20 ARS 1,821

$0.77 LKR 254

55.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.69 ARS 2,569

$0.89 LKR 296

89.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 ARS 2,711

$0.45 LKR 149

297.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.00 ARS 6,074

$10.11 LKR 3,350

-60.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.53 ARS 8,388

$13.09 LKR 4,336

-57.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.12 ARS 3,219

$1.97 LKR 653

7.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ARS 4,212

$2.94 LKR 974

-5.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 ARS 1,049

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.90 ARS 42.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.63 ARS 2,471

$0.37 LKR 123

340.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.97 ARS 1,478

$0.35 LKR 115

177.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.89 ARS 12.0K

$0.93 LKR 308

748.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,156

$1.38 LKR 459

2.90%

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

$23.3K ARS 35.4M

$44.6K LKR 14.8M

-47.63%

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

$31.9K ARS 48.5M

$40.1K LKR 13.3M

-20.27%

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

$199 ARS 302.7K

$59.5 LKR 19.7K

235.10%

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

$23.36 ARS 35.4K

$4.28 LKR 1,416

445.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.44 ARS 47.7K

$21.08 LKR 6,982

49.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.81 ARS 75.6K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.63 ARS 25.2K

Cinema Ticket

$10.80 ARS 16.4K

$4.45 LKR 1,474

142.70%

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

$462 ARS 701.7K

$37.59 LKR 12.5K

1130.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,790 ARS 13.3M

$1,188 LKR 393.5K

639.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.6K

$18.21 LKR 6,030

557.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$94.6 ARS 143.6K

$16.89 LKR 5,595

460.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 ARS 176.4K

$79.8 LKR 26.4K

45.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$137 ARS 208.6K

$41.92 LKR 13.9K

227.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$750 ARS 1.1M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$514 ARS 780.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,567 ARS 2.4M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,196 ARS 1.8M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,632 ARS 4.0M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,874 ARS 2.8M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$924 ARS 1.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

12.69

351.14%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 19, 2026

Last update for Ragama: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$514 31.3%

Ragama

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$285 17.3%

Ragama

$233 46.4% 18.1% $52

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$273 16.6%

Ragama

$103 20.6% 62.2% $170

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$254 15.5%

Ragama

$85 16.9% 66.6% $169

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.8%

Ragama

$71 14% 66.5% $140

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3%

Ragama

$8.9 * 1.8% 87.5% $63

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.3%

Ragama

$2.1 * 0.4% 94.3% $35

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $65.0 in Buenos Aires vs $25.00 in Ragama for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $285 vs $233 per month, with Ragama cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇱🇰 Ragama

🕒 Local time

19:38 7:38 PM

04:08 4:08 AM

8 h 30 min ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

15,000

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, 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).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Ragama 14,770 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Ragama

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 Ragama: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Ragama differ by about 227% in total monthly costs ($1,646 vs $503 including rent). Ragama is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,468 in Buenos Aires and $754 in Ragama 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.

Childcare runs $462 in Buenos Aires versus $37.59 in Ragama. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Ragama – a meal for two runs $25.00 versus $65.0 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $503 in Ragama versus $1,646 in Buenos Aires, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Ragama but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Ragama 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 Ragama 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 Ragama gentler on the wallet – expenses run 227% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.