Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cambridge and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Buenos Aires: $1,656 a month against $2,398 in Cambridge, rent and utilities included – about $8,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

118

Cost of Living Index in Cambridge
Learn more

Cambridge Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index

Jump to prices

Cambridge

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,398

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Cambridge and in Buenos Aires actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,398 in Cambridge versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires.

Cambridge $2,398
Buenos Aires $1,656

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,402 in Cambridge versus $2,697 in Buenos Aires.

Cambridge $3,402
Buenos Aires $2,697

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,406 in Cambridge versus $3,737 in Buenos Aires.

Cambridge $4,406
Buenos Aires $3,737

Living in Cambridge is roughly 45% more expensive than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cambridge 78% above, Buenos Aires 23% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.30 CA$24.45

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

-9.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.8 CA$78.9

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

-15.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 CA$14.07

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

-24.55%

Cappuccino

$3.51 CA$4.96

$3.85 ARS 5,841

-8.83%

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

$1.98 CA$2.79

$1.99 ARS 3,020

-0.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 CA$1.86

$1.60 ARS 2,430

-17.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.11 CA$7.22

$3.93 ARS 5,959

30.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.24 CA$8.82

$4.61 ARS 7,003

35.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.06 CA$2.91

$1.50 ARS 2,272

37.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 CA$3.36

$2.53 ARS 3,837

-5.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.09 CA$4.36

$1.61 ARS 2,445

91.93%

Eggs

$3.20 CA$4.53

$2.84 ARS 4,316

12.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.84 CA$15.33

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

5.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.33 CA$16.02

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

13.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.30 CA$20.22

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

7.52%

Apples (1kg)

$3.95 CA$5.58

$2.88 ARS 4,366

37.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.18 CA$1.67

$2.20 ARS 3,334

-46.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.00 CA$5.66

$1.40 ARS 2,120

185.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.68 CA$5.20

$1.98 ARS 3,004

85.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.61 CA$3.69

$1.21 ARS 1,835

115.70%

Onion (1kg)

$1.98 CA$2.79

$1.26 ARS 1,910

57.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.04 CA$2.88

$1.71 ARS 2,592

19.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 CA$2.00

$1.72 ARS 2,603

-18.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.82 CA$18.13

$4.29 ARS 6,505

198.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.20 CA$17.25

$5.70 ARS 8,645

114.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.57 CA$3.63

$2.17 ARS 3,288

18.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.85 CA$5.44

$2.76 ARS 4,188

39.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.44 CA$3.44

$0.75 ARS 1,141

225.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.9 CA$90.3

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

134.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 CA$3.42

$1.57 ARS 2,375

54.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 CA$2.52

$1.03 ARS 1,558

72.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.60 CA$31.95

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

186.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.16 CA$1.63

$1.42 ARS 2,160

-18.31%

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

$25.8K CA$36.5K

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

-7.53%

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

$18.5K CA$26.2K

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

-47.02%

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

$149 CA$211

$195 ARS 296.2K

-23.69%

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

$42.05 CA$59.5

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

67.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.52 CA$70.0

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

57.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.59 CA$40.42

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

-43.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

Cinema Ticket

$10.28 CA$14.53

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

-0.58%

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

$528 CA$746

$463 ARS 703.2K

13.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.2K CA$22.8K

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

83.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.2 CA$76.7

$120 ARS 181.8K

-54.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.82 CA$42.16

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

-68.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.3 CA$105

$114 ARS 173.1K

-34.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 CA$146

$139 ARS 211.4K

-25.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,305 CA$1,845

$756 ARS 1.1M

72.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,299 CA$1,837

$520 ARS 788.8K

149.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,509 CA$3,547

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

57.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,989 CA$2,812

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

65.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,236 CA$5,989

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

56.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,850 CA$5,443

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

102.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,938 CA$4,153

$938 ARS 1.4M

213.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.09

57.25

-91.11%

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

Last update for Cambridge: October 12, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cambridge

$1.3K 54.2%

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4% 60% $780

Groceries & Markets

Cambridge

$345 14.4%

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1% 17.8% $61

Eating Out

Cambridge

$262 10.9%

Buenos Aires

$282 17% 7.7% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cambridge

$241 10%

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2% 4.7% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Cambridge

$118 4.9%

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7% 79.2% $93

Getting Around

Cambridge

$85 3.5%

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2% 56.5% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Cambridge

$49 2.1%

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3% 45.7% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,305 in Cambridge and $756 in Buenos Aires. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cambridge pays 213% 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: $56.0 in Cambridge vs $66.0 in Buenos Aires. Groceries flip the comparison at $345 vs $283, with Buenos Aires cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Cambridge

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

17:50 5:50 PM

18:50 6:50 PM

1 h ahead of Cambridge

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

138,479

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cambridge Buenos Aires 8,950 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cambridge
Buenos Aires

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

Cambridge vs Buenos Aires: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cambridge and Buenos Aires differ by about 45% in total monthly costs ($2,398 vs $1,656 including rent). Buenos Aires is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 213% higher in Cambridge, 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: $1,305 in Cambridge versus $756 in Buenos Aires. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $528 in Cambridge versus $463 in Buenos Aires. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in Cambridge. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,656 in Buenos Aires versus $2,398 in Cambridge, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Buenos Aires but tight or insufficient in Cambridge. 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, Cambridge and Buenos Aires 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 45% less than in Cambridge. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.