Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Turrialba

For one person, living costs are similar in Buenos Aires and in Turrialba: $1,646 and $1,726 a month, rent and utilities included.

79

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in Turrialba
Learn more

Turrialba Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,646

/mo nomad

Turrialba

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,726

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,646 in Buenos Aires versus $1,726 in Turrialba.

Buenos Aires $1,646
Turrialba $1,726

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,680 in Buenos Aires versus $2,753 in Turrialba.

Buenos Aires $2,680
Turrialba $2,753

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,714 in Buenos Aires versus $3,779 in Turrialba.

Buenos Aires $3,714
Turrialba $3,779

Living in Buenos Aires costs roughly 5% less than in Turrialba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Buenos Aires 21% above, Turrialba 27% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.81 ARS 27.0K

$11.97 ₡5,370

48.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.2 ARS 98.9K

$60.9 ₡27.3K

6.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.12 ARS 19.9K

$11.78 ₡5,283

11.38%

Cappuccino

$3.86 ARS 5,863

$4.34 ₡1,946

-11.06%

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

$2.06 ARS 3,133

$2.75 ₡1,233

-25.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 ARS 2,542

$1.94 ₡871

-13.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.10 ARS 6,218

$3.32 ₡1,488

23.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.73 ARS 7,181

$4.40 ₡1,973

7.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 ARS 2,285

$2.35 ₡1,052

-35.74%

White Bread (500g)

$2.60 ARS 3,950

$3.06 ₡1,372

-15.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.57 ARS 2,380

$2.53 ₡1,134

-37.94%

Eggs

$2.73 ARS 4,144

$3.60 ₡1,612

-24.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.86 ARS 16.5K

$10.54 ₡4,726

3.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.07 ARS 15.3K

$10.32 ₡4,630

-2.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.22 ARS 20.1K

$14.16 ₡6,352

-6.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 ARS 4,255

$5.07 ₡2,273

-44.77%

Banana (1kg)

$2.09 ARS 3,170

$1.57 ₡705

33.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,194

$4.74 ₡2,124

-69.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.00 ARS 3,040

$3.97 ₡1,782

-49.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.20 ARS 1,826

$3.91 ₡1,754

-69.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.20 ARS 1,821

$3.71 ₡1,663

-67.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.69 ARS 2,569

$1.13 ₡505

49.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 ARS 2,711

$3.19 ₡1,431

-43.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.00 ARS 6,074

$6.07 ₡2,724

-34.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.53 ARS 8,388

$20.24 ₡9,076

-72.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.12 ARS 3,219

$2.84 ₡1,274

-25.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ARS 4,212

$3.60 ₡1,613

-22.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 ARS 1,049

$1.28 ₡574

-46.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.90 ARS 42.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.63 ARS 2,471

$2.45 ₡1,101

-33.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.97 ARS 1,478

$1.57 ₡704

-38.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.89 ARS 12.0K

$8.80 ₡3,948

-10.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,156

$1.50 ₡671

-5.33%

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

$23.3K ARS 35.4M

$22.2K ₡10.0M

4.92%

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

$31.9K ARS 48.5M

$34.6K ₡15.5M

-7.56%

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

$199 ARS 302.7K

$96.4 ₡43.2K

106.86%

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

$23.36 ARS 35.4K

$35.27 ₡15.8K

-33.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.44 ARS 47.7K

$59.2 ₡26.5K

-46.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.81 ARS 75.6K

$73.7 ₡33.0K

-32.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.63 ARS 25.2K

Cinema Ticket

$10.80 ARS 16.4K

$7.87 ₡3,527

37.23%

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

$462 ARS 701.7K

$993 ₡445.3K

-53.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,790 ARS 13.3M

$17.3K ₡7.8M

-49.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.6K

$72.0 ₡32.3K

66.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$94.6 ARS 143.6K

$56.4 ₡25.3K

67.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 ARS 176.4K

$128 ₡57.5K

-9.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$137 ARS 208.6K

$134 ₡60.1K

2.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$750 ARS 1.1M

$808 ₡362.3K

-7.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$514 ARS 780.5K

$626 ₡280.7K

-17.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,567 ARS 2.4M

$1,870 ₡838.7K

-16.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,196 ARS 1.8M

$1,287 ₡577.2K

-7.09%

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

8.62

564.15%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 19, 2026

Last update for Turrialba: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$514 31.3%

Turrialba

$626 36.3% 21.7% $112

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$285 17.3%

Turrialba

$402 23.3% 41.1% $117

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$273 16.6%

Turrialba

$227 13.2% 16.8% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$254 15.5%

Turrialba

$191 11.1% 24.9% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.8%

Turrialba

$176 10.2% 16.6% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3%

Turrialba

$89 5.2% 25.2% $18

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.3%

Turrialba

$15 * 0.9% 58.5% $22

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 $750 in Buenos Aires and $808 in Turrialba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $65.0 in Buenos Aires vs $61.0 in Turrialba. Groceries flip the comparison at $285 vs $402, with Buenos Aires cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇨🇷 Turrialba

🕒 Local time

09:32 9:32 AM

06:32 6:32 AM

3 h behind Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

27,000

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

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Buenos Aires Turrialba 5,620 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
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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 Turrialba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Turrialba differ by about 5% in total monthly costs ($1,646 vs $1,726 including rent). Buenos Aires 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 $2,589 in Turrialba 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $750 in Buenos Aires versus $808 in Turrialba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $462 in Buenos Aires versus $993 in Turrialba. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Buenos Aires – a meal for two runs $65.0 versus $61.0 in Turrialba. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,646 in Buenos Aires versus $1,726 in Turrialba, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Buenos Aires but tight or insufficient in Turrialba. The gap between the two cities makes Buenos Aires 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 Turrialba 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 Buenos Aires gentler on the wallet – expenses run 5% less than in Turrialba. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.