Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and South Africa

Name: South Africa
Address: ZA

For one person, living is cheaper in South Africa: $1,182 a month against $1,685 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in South Africa
Learn more

South Africa Living Index

Jump to prices

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,182

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Buenos Aires is 40% more expensive than South Africa without rent, and 42.6% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Buenos Aires is 40.6% more expensive than South Africa without rent, and 50.6% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

$10.64 R 176

76.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.5 ARS 97.8K

$41.40 R 683

55.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

$5.60 R 92.4

130.00%

Cappuccino

$3.98 ARS 6,029

$2.28 R 37.63

74.56%

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

$2.05 ARS 3,103

$1.16 R 19.17

76.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 ARS 2,349

$0.92 R 15.22

68.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 ARS 5,830

$2.45 R 40.40

56.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 ARS 6,970

$2.95 R 48.69

55.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 ARS 2,181

$1.19 R 19.63

21.01%

White Bread (500g)

$2.46 ARS 3,738

$1.12 R 18.42

119.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 ARS 2,467

$1.79 R 29.58

-8.94%

Eggs

$2.89 ARS 4,385

$2.48 R 40.88

16.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

$8.08 R 133

31.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$5.13 R 84.7

94.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

$7.81 R 129

75.93%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 ARS 4,166

$1.87 R 30.78

47.06%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 ARS 3,300

$1.66 R 27.42

31.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,205

$1.77 R 29.15

-18.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.99 ARS 3,013

$1.80 R 29.67

10.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ARS 1,885

$1.49 R 24.53

-16.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 ARS 1,921

$1.50 R 24.71

-15.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 ARS 2,575

$1.28 R 21.16

32.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 ARS 2,617

$1.09 R 17.97

58.72%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 ARS 6,337

$3.22 R 53.2

29.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.80 ARS 8,790

$4.93 R 81.3

17.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 ARS 3,163

$1.48 R 24.47

41.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ARS 4,198

$2.01 R 33.09

37.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,132

$1.60 R 26.39

-53.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

$60.7 R 1,001

-55.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 ARS 2,451

$1.09 R 17.98

48.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 ARS 1,481

$0.98 R 16.23

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

$7.42 R 122

4.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 ARS 2,058

$1.49 R 24.63

-8.72%

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

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

$35.0K R 578.2K

-20.08%

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

$34.5K ARS 52.4M

$31.6K R 521.1K

9.32%

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

$216 ARS 326.9K

$131 R 2,168

64.03%

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

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

$34.71 R 573

-26.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.36 ARS 47.6K

$39.94 R 659

-21.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.82 ARS 75.6K

$33.88 R 559

47.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

$11.39 R 188

49.78%

Cinema Ticket

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

$7.31 R 121

42.68%

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

$466 ARS 706.7K

$225 R 3,715

106.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

$5,485 R 90.5K

65.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$122 ARS 185.2K

$52.0 R 858

134.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$97.4 ARS 147.8K

$33.30 R 549

192.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ARS 177.4K

$99.4 R 1,640

17.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 ARS 211.9K

$87.4 R 1,441

59.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$763 ARS 1.2M

$480 R 7,918

59.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$505 ARS 766.1K

$406 R 6,692

24.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

$935 R 15.4K

70.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

$796 R 13.1K

48.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

$1,111 R 18.3K

141.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

$777 R 12.8K

139.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$954 ARS 1.4M

$1,476 R 24.4K

-35.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

11.23

409.80%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Last update for South Africa: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4%

South Africa

$406 33.6% 19.7% $100

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1%

South Africa

$196 16.2% 31.1% $88

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8%

South Africa

$156 12.9% 44.1% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4%

South Africa

$206 17.1% 24.4% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9%

South Africa

$122 10.1% 42.9% $92

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3%

South Africa

$49 4% 31.4% $22

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

South Africa

$73 6.1% 99.5% $36

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇿🇦 South Africa

🕒 Local time

06:53 6:53 AM

11:53 11:53 AM

5 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

62,027,503

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,699 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires South Africa 7,780 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
South Africa

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

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