Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Ushuaia

For one person, living is cheaper in Ushuaia: $960 a month against $1,633 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Ushuaia
Learn more

Ushuaia Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,633

/mo nomad

Ushuaia

🇦🇷 Argentina

$960

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,633 in Buenos Aires versus $960 in Ushuaia.

Buenos Aires $1,633
Ushuaia $960

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,640 in Buenos Aires versus $1,575 in Ushuaia.

Buenos Aires $2,640
Ushuaia $1,575

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,646 in Buenos Aires versus $2,190 in Ushuaia.

Buenos Aires $3,646
Ushuaia $2,190

Living in Buenos Aires is roughly 70% more expensive than in Ushuaia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Buenos Aires is 20% above, Ushuaia is 29% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.24 ARS 28.1K

$10.44 ARS 16.1K

74.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.3 ARS 101.9K

$33.71 ARS 51.8K

96.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.96 ARS 19.9K

$9.19 ARS 14.1K

41.02%

Cappuccino

$3.73 ARS 5,742

$2.68 ARS 4,119

39.18%

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

$2.03 ARS 3,128

$1.73 ARS 2,655

17.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.70 ARS 2,612

$1.55 ARS 2,389

9.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.06 ARS 6,243

$2.06 ARS 3,170

97.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.75 ARS 7,301

$2.94 ARS 4,522

61.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 ARS 2,249

$1.26 ARS 1,936

15.87%

White Bread (500g)

$2.54 ARS 3,904

$1.62 ARS 2,485

56.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.58 ARS 2,434

$2.02 ARS 3,106

-21.78%

Eggs

$2.68 ARS 4,123

$2.24 ARS 3,449

19.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.14 ARS 17.1K

$10.03 ARS 15.4K

11.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.08 ARS 15.5K

$6.35 ARS 9,762

58.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.18 ARS 20.3K

$9.09 ARS 14.0K

44.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.76 ARS 4,250

$1.96 ARS 3,012

40.82%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 ARS 3,384

$2.15 ARS 3,311

2.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 ARS 2,148

$1.27 ARS 1,954

10.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.99 ARS 3,055

$2.60 ARS 3,993

-23.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.20 ARS 1,845

$1.14 ARS 1,758

5.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ARS 1,774

$1.19 ARS 1,830

-3.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.63 ARS 2,500

$1.26 ARS 1,941

29.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 ARS 2,769

$1.44 ARS 2,216

25.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.21 ARS 6,478

$3.20 ARS 4,921

31.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.51 ARS 8,480

$5.02 ARS 7,727

9.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.07 ARS 3,177

$2.04 ARS 3,140

1.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ARS 4,254

$3.05 ARS 4,699

-9.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.74 ARS 1,143

$0.77 ARS 1,180

-3.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.83 ARS 45.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.61 ARS 2,481

$1.54 ARS 2,374

4.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.97 ARS 1,497

$0.92 ARS 1,416

5.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.15 ARS 12.5K

$6.15 ARS 9,463

32.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 ARS 2,160

$1.10 ARS 1,686

27.27%

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

$23.2K ARS 35.7M

$27.8K ARS 42.8M

-16.54%

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

$32.8K ARS 50.5M

$30.3K ARS 46.6M

8.51%

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

$196 ARS 301.9K

$66.4 ARS 102.1K

195.62%

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

$23.91 ARS 36.8K

$17.26 ARS 26.6K

38.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.50 ARS 48.5K

$22.37 ARS 34.4K

40.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.01 ARS 73.8K

$26.18 ARS 40.3K

83.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.62 ARS 25.6K

$14.02 ARS 21.6K

18.54%

Cinema Ticket

$10.57 ARS 16.3K

$6.27 ARS 9,638

68.58%

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

$501 ARS 770.1K

$222 ARS 341.6K

125.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,870 ARS 13.6M

$2,648 ARS 4.1M

235.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$121 ARS 186.8K

$73.6 ARS 113.2K

65.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$95.6 ARS 147.0K

$68.9 ARS 106.0K

38.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 ARS 178.5K

$116 ARS 179.1K

-0.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 ARS 213.2K

$111 ARS 171.5K

24.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$731 ARS 1.1M

$336 ARS 517.1K

117.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$503 ARS 773.8K

$237 ARS 364.5K

112.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,477 ARS 2.3M

$673 ARS 1.0M

119.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,119 ARS 1.7M

$543 ARS 835.5K

106.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,703 ARS 4.2M

$1,889 ARS 2.9M

43.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,940 ARS 3.0M

$1,281 ARS 2.0M

51.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$921 ARS 1.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

58.5

-2.14%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 26, 2026

Last update for Ushuaia: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$503 30.8%

Ushuaia

$237 24.7% 52.9% $266

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$284 17.4%

Ushuaia

$230 24% 18.9% $54

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$274 16.8%

Ushuaia

$173 18% 37.1% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$252 15.4%

Ushuaia

$106 11% 57.9% $146

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$212 13%

Ushuaia

$167 17.4% 21.5% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$69 4.2%

Ushuaia

$39 4% 44% $30

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$39 2.4%

Ushuaia

$9.2 * 1% 76.5% $30

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 $731 in Buenos Aires and $336 in Ushuaia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $66 in Buenos Aires vs $34 in Ushuaia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $284 vs $230 per month, with Ushuaia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Ushuaia

🕒 Local time

21:13 9:13 PM

Same time as Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

79,538

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Buenos Aires Ushuaia 2,370 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
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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 Ushuaia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,633 in Buenos Aires and $960 in Ushuaia, so Ushuaia is about 41% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,450 in Buenos Aires and $1,440 in Ushuaia 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: $731 in Buenos Aires versus $336 in Ushuaia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $501 in Buenos Aires versus $222 in Ushuaia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Ushuaia – a meal for two runs $34 versus $66 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $960 in Ushuaia versus $1,633 in Buenos Aires, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Ushuaia but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Ushuaia 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 Ushuaia are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.