Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Santander

For one person, living costs are similar in Buenos Aires and in Santander: $1,656 and $1,632 a month, rent and utilities included.

80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Santander
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Santander Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Santander

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,632

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $1,632 in Santander.

Buenos Aires $1,656
Santander $1,632

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $2,578 in Santander.

Buenos Aires $2,697
Santander $2,578

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $3,524 in Santander.

Buenos Aires $3,737
Santander $3,524

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 2% more expensive than in Santander, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Buenos Aires 23% above, Santander 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

$16.42 €14.61

16.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

$56.6 €50.3

16.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$11.38 €10.12

15.99%

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,841

$2.47 €2.20

55.87%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,020

$2.46 €2.19

-19.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,430

$1.77 €1.57

-9.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,959

$3.41 €3.03

15.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 7,003

$3.80 €3.38

21.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,272

$1.30 €1.16

15.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,837

$2.82 €2.51

-10.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,445

$2.40 €2.14

-32.92%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,316

$3.70 €3.29

-23.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$22.23 €19.77

-53.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$7.82 €6.96

27.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

$13.93 €12.39

-4.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,366

$2.41 €2.14

19.50%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,334

$2.25 €2.00

-2.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,120

$2.89 €2.57

-51.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 3,004

$3.48 €3.09

-43.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,835

$1.88 €1.67

-35.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,910

$2.52 €2.24

-50.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,592

$1.45 €1.29

17.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,603

$0.78 €0.69

120.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,505

$7.72 €6.87

-44.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,645

$5.65 €5.02

0.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,288

$1.21 €1.08

79.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,188

$2.28 €2.03

21.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,141

$1.55 €1.38

-51.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

$18.17 €16.16

50.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,375

$5.52 €4.91

-71.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,558

$2.28 €2.03

-54.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

$38.67 €34.39

-79.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,160

$1.74 €1.55

-18.39%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

$37.5K €33.3K

-25.45%

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

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

$30.4K €27.1K

14.96%

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

$195 ARS 296.2K

$166 €148

17.53%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

$34.79 €30.95

-27.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

$37.29 €33.17

-15.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

$46.49 €41.35

9.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

$19.73 €17.55

-15.21%

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

$9.03 €8.04

14.51%

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

$463 ARS 703.2K

$471 €419

-1.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

$8,911 €7,927

-1.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.8K

$128 €114

-6.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

$65.5 €58.3

45.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 173.1K

$89.4 €79.5

27.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 211.4K

$113 €100

23.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

$832 €740

-9.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 788.8K

$557 €496

-6.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

$1,471 €1,308

8.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

$1,113 €990

7.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

$3,180 €2,829

-14.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

$2,630 €2,339

-27.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$938 ARS 1.4M

$1,863 €1,657

-49.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

3.5

1535.71%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for Santander: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Santander

$557 34.2% 7.2% $38

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

Santander

$315 19.3% 11.3% $32

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

Santander

$237 14.5% 16% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

Santander

$238 14.6% 5.4% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

Santander

$178 10.9% 15.6% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

Santander

$65 4% 9.8% $7

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Santander

$41 2.5% 11.6% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $756 in Buenos Aires and $832 in Santander. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santander pays 99% 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 $57.0 in Santander. Groceries flip the comparison at $283 vs $315, with Buenos Aires cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇪🇸 Santander

🕒 Local time

17:26 5:26 PM

22:26 10:26 PM

5 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

172,726

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Santander 10,290 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Santander

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 Santander: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Santander differ by about 2% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $1,632 including rent). Santander is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 99% lower in Santander. 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 $832 in Santander. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $463 in Buenos Aires versus $471 in Santander. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Buenos Aires pay roughly 11% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,632 in Santander versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Santander but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Santander 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 Santander 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 Santander gentler on the wallet – expenses run 2% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.