Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Ungheni

For one person, living is cheaper in Ungheni: $652 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Ungheni
Learn more

Ungheni Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Ungheni

🇲🇩 Moldova

$652

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $652 in Ungheni.

Buenos Aires $1,656
Ungheni $652

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,697 in Buenos Aires versus $1,019 in Ungheni.

Buenos Aires $2,697
Ungheni $1,019

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,737 in Buenos Aires versus $1,385 in Ungheni.

Buenos Aires $3,737
Ungheni $1,385

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 154% more expensive than in Ungheni, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 23% above, Ungheni is 52% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

$7.49 MDL 133

154.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

$22.20 MDL 394

196.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

$6.57 MDL 117

100.91%

Cappuccino

$3.85 ARS 5,841

$1.42 MDL 25.24

171.13%

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

$1.99 ARS 3,020

$0.70 MDL 12.36

184.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ARS 2,430

$0.44 MDL 7.79

263.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.93 ARS 5,959

$0.99 MDL 17.59

296.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 ARS 7,003

$1.42 MDL 25.24

224.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 ARS 2,272

$1.71 MDL 30.30

-12.28%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ARS 3,837

$0.35 MDL 6.27

622.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 ARS 2,445

$0.87 MDL 15.51

85.06%

Eggs

$2.84 ARS 4,316

$1.89 MDL 33.57

50.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

$10.15 MDL 180

1.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$3.99 MDL 70.9

150.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

$8.17 MDL 145

62.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.88 ARS 4,366

$0.44 MDL 7.78

554.55%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,334

$1.25 MDL 22.13

76.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,120

$1.08 MDL 19.25

29.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.98 ARS 3,004

$1.14 MDL 20.18

73.68%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 ARS 1,835

$0.47 MDL 8.36

157.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ARS 1,910

$0.35 MDL 6.23

260.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 ARS 2,592

$2.21 MDL 39.33

-22.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,603

$0.77 MDL 13.61

123.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.29 ARS 6,505

$3.37 MDL 59.8

27.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ARS 8,645

$4.12 MDL 73.2

38.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 ARS 3,288

$1.43 MDL 25.46

51.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 ARS 4,188

$1.63 MDL 28.97

69.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,141

$0.36 MDL 6.34

108.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.57 ARS 2,375

$1.64 MDL 29.17

-4.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,558

$0.38 MDL 6.72

171.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

$3.71 MDL 66.0

112.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ARS 2,160

$1.36 MDL 24.13

4.41%

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

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

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

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

$20.2K MDL 358.3K

73.35%

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

$195 ARS 296.2K

$136 MDL 2,422

43.16%

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

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

$11.08 MDL 197

127.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

$15.88 MDL 282

98.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

$14.19 MDL 252

258.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

Cinema Ticket

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

$3.88 MDL 69.0

166.49%

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

$463 ARS 703.2K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$120 ARS 181.8K

$47.80 MDL 849

150.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

$16.72 MDL 297

471.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 ARS 173.1K

$34.18 MDL 607

233.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 211.4K

$68.3 MDL 1,213

103.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

$251 MDL 4,449

201.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 788.8K

$113 MDL 2,003

360.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

$333 MDL 5,909

377.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

$277 MDL 4,914

333.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

$2,280 MDL 40.5K

19.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

$1,706 MDL 30.3K

11.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$938 ARS 1.4M

$552 MDL 9,805

69.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

615.63%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Last update for Ungheni: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Ungheni

$113 17.3% 78.3% $407

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1%

Ungheni

$165 25.3% 41.7% $118

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$282 17%

Ungheni

$109 16.7% 61.3% $173

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2%

Ungheni

$163 25% 35.2% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7%

Ungheni

$75 11.5% 64.4% $136

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3%

Ungheni

$22 3.4% 69.3% $50

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Ungheni

$5 * 0.8% 86.6% $32

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 $251 in Ungheni. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buenos Aires pays 70% 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 $22.00 in Ungheni for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $283 vs $165 per month, with Ungheni cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇲🇩 Ungheni

🕒 Local time

21:03 9:03 PM

03:03 3:03 AM

6 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

38,000

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Moldovan Leu MDL L

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

100 MDL = 5.63 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MDL, USD, EUR 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).

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 17.76 MDL (100 MDL = 5.63 USD). 1 EUR = 19.97 MDL (100 MDL = 5.01 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Ungheni 12,490 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Ungheni

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 Ungheni: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buenos Aires and Ungheni differ by about 154% in total monthly costs ($1,656 vs $652 including rent). Ungheni is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 70% 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 $251 in Ungheni. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Ungheni – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $66.0 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,656 per month in Buenos Aires versus $652 in Ungheni – a 154% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $652 in Ungheni versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Ungheni but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Ungheni 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 Ungheni 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 Ungheni gentler on the wallet – expenses run 154% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.