Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and San Juan del Sur

For one person, living is cheaper in San Juan del Sur: $1,058 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in San Juan del Sur
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San Juan del Sur Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

San Juan del Sur

🇳🇮 Nicaragua

$1,058

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Buenos Aires and in San Juan del Sur

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 San Juan del Sur actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $1,058 in San Juan del Sur.

Buenos Aires $1,656
San Juan del Sur $1,058

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $1,682 in San Juan del Sur.

Buenos Aires $2,697
San Juan del Sur $1,682

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $2,307 in San Juan del Sur.

Buenos Aires $3,737
San Juan del Sur $2,307

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 57% more expensive than in San Juan del Sur, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 23% above, San Juan del Sur is 22% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

$4.17 NIO 153

357.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

$34.08 NIO 1,248

93.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$5.57 NIO 204

136.98%

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,841

$2.56 NIO 93.7

50.39%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,020

$0.86 NIO 31.37

131.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,430

$0.68 NIO 25.02

135.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,959

$1.47 NIO 53.8

167.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 7,003

$2.23 NIO 81.8

106.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,272

$1.24 NIO 45.36

20.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,837

$1.53 NIO 55.9

65.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,445

$1.19 NIO 43.56

35.29%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,316

$2.44 NIO 89.2

16.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$7.71 NIO 283

33.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$6.15 NIO 225

62.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

$7.84 NIO 287

69.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,366

$4.10 NIO 150

-29.76%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,334

$0.62 NIO 22.71

254.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,120

$1.84 NIO 67.3

-23.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 3,004

$2.45 NIO 89.9

-19.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,835

$3.11 NIO 114

-61.09%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,910

$2.18 NIO 79.9

-42.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,592

$1.05 NIO 38.54

62.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,603

$1.05 NIO 38.52

63.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,505

$2.76 NIO 101

55.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,645

$9.76 NIO 357

-41.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,288

$1.42 NIO 51.9

52.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,188

$2.18 NIO 79.7

26.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,141

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,375

$1.58 NIO 58.0

-0.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,558

$1.64 NIO 60.3

-37.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

$6.87 NIO 252

14.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,160

$1.34 NIO 49.13

5.97%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

$22.8K NIO 836.8K

22.33%

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

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

$26.7K NIO 977.1K

31.07%

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

$195 ARS 296.2K

$60.8 NIO 2,225

221.26%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

$10.32 NIO 378

143.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

$33.01 NIO 1,209

-4.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

$30.51 NIO 1,118

66.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

$9.23 NIO 338

12.03%

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

$463 ARS 703.2K

$233 NIO 8,530

98.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

$6,128 NIO 224.4K

43.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.8K

$61.1 NIO 2,237

96.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

$66.1 NIO 2,421

44.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 173.1K

$123 NIO 4,500

-7.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 211.4K

$146 NIO 5,331

-4.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

$423 NIO 15.5K

78.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 788.8K

$393 NIO 14.4K

32.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

$930 NIO 34.1K

71.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

$797 NIO 29.2K

50.27%

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

$346 NIO 12.7K

171.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

11.92

380.29%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for San Juan del Sur: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

San Juan del Sur

$393 37.2% 24.4% $127

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

San Juan del Sur

$225 21.3% 20.6% $58

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

San Juan del Sur

$99 9.3% 65% $183

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

San Juan del Sur

$104 9.8% 58.7% $148

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

San Juan del Sur

$178 16.8% 15.6% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

San Juan del Sur

$49 4.6% 31.6% $23

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

San Juan del Sur

$9.8 * 0.9% 73.5% $27

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 $423 in San Juan del Sur. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buenos Aires pays 171% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $66.0 in Buenos Aires vs $34.00 in San Juan del Sur for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $283 vs $225 per month, with San Juan del Sur cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇳🇮 San Juan del Sur

🕒 Local time

20:48 8:48 PM

17:48 5:48 PM

3 h behind Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

14,741

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Nicaraguan Córdoba NIO C$

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

100 NIO = 2.73 USD

100 NIO = 2.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NIO, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

Nicaraguan Córdoba exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 36.62 NIO (100 NIO = 2.73 USD). 1 EUR = 41.17 NIO (100 NIO = 2.43 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires San Juan del Sur 5,860 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
San Juan del Sur

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 San Juan del Sur: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and San Juan del Sur differ by about 57% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $1,058 including rent). San Juan del Sur is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 171% higher in Buenos Aires, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $756 in Buenos Aires versus $423 in San Juan del Sur. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $463 in Buenos Aires versus $233 in San Juan del Sur. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in San Juan del Sur – a meal for two runs $34.00 versus $66.0 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,058 in San Juan del Sur versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $2,000 budget is realistic in San Juan del Sur but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes San Juan del Sur 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 San Juan del Sur 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 San Juan del Sur gentler on the wallet – expenses run 57% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.