Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cerro de Pasco and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Cerro de Pasco: $555 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $13,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

27

Cost of Living Index in Cerro de Pasco
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Cerro de Pasco Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index

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Cerro de Pasco

🇵🇪 Peru

$555

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cerro de Pasco 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 Cerro de Pasco and in Buenos Aires actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $555 in Cerro de Pasco versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires.

Cerro de Pasco $555
Buenos Aires $1,656

Estimated couple costs with rent: $891 in Cerro de Pasco versus $2,697 in Buenos Aires.

Cerro de Pasco $891
Buenos Aires $2,697

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,227 in Cerro de Pasco versus $3,737 in Buenos Aires.

Cerro de Pasco $1,227
Buenos Aires $3,737

Living in Cerro de Pasco costs roughly 66% less than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cerro de Pasco is 59% below, Buenos Aires is 23% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.83 PEN 9.70

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

-85.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.34 PEN 101

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

-55.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.74 PEN 23.16

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

-48.94%

Cappuccino

$2.05 PEN 7.03

$3.85 ARS 5,841

-46.75%

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

$0.76 PEN 2.61

$1.99 ARS 3,020

-61.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 PEN 1.55

$1.60 ARS 2,430

-71.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.69 PEN 9.22

$3.93 ARS 5,959

-31.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.44 PEN 15.27

$4.61 ARS 7,003

-3.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 PEN 5.23

$1.50 ARS 2,272

1.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.35 PEN 8.07

$2.53 ARS 3,837

-7.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.26 PEN 4.34

$1.61 ARS 2,445

-21.74%

Eggs

$2.47 PEN 8.47

$2.84 ARS 4,316

-13.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.18 PEN 31.53

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

-10.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.04 PEN 20.74

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

-39.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.92 PEN 27.20

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

-40.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.00 PEN 6.86

$2.88 ARS 4,366

-30.56%

Banana (1kg)

$0.76 PEN 2.61

$2.20 ARS 3,334

-65.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.43 PEN 1.46

$1.40 ARS 2,120

-69.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 PEN 3.91

$1.98 ARS 3,004

-42.42%

Potato (1kg)

$0.70 PEN 2.41

$1.21 ARS 1,835

-42.15%

Onion (1kg)

$0.54 PEN 1.87

$1.26 ARS 1,910

-57.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.83 PEN 2.85

$1.71 ARS 2,592

-51.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 PEN 2.88

$1.72 ARS 2,603

-51.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.78 PEN 19.84

$4.29 ARS 6,505

34.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.19 PEN 24.68

$5.70 ARS 8,645

26.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.92 PEN 6.60

$2.17 ARS 3,288

-11.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.65 PEN 9.11

$2.76 ARS 4,188

-3.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,141

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 PEN 13.68

$1.57 ARS 2,375

153.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.99 PEN 6.84

$1.03 ARS 1,558

93.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.46 PEN 25.62

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

-5.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.67 PEN 5.74

$1.42 ARS 2,160

17.61%

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

$22.2K PEN 76.4K

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

-20.40%

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

$26.2K PEN 89.9K

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

-25.16%

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

$72.8 PEN 250

$195 ARS 296.2K

-62.69%

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

$16.46 PEN 56.5

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

-34.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.53 PEN 94.6

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

-12.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

Cinema Ticket

$7.15 PEN 24.56

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

-30.85%

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

$176 PEN 606

$463 ARS 703.2K

-61.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.9K PEN 44.4K

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

46.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 PEN 183

$120 ARS 181.8K

-55.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.36 PEN 121

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

-62.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.2 PEN 286

$114 ARS 173.1K

-27.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.6 PEN 267

$139 ARS 211.4K

-44.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 788.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$408 PEN 1,400

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

-74.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$470 PEN 1,616

$938 ARS 1.4M

-49.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.94

57.25

-84.38%

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

Last update for Cerro de Pasco: October 12, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cerro de Pasco

$203 36.6%

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1% 39.6% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cerro de Pasco

$117 21.1%

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2% 116% $135

Clothing & Footwear

Cerro de Pasco

$112 20.2%

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7% 87.9% $99

Eating Out

Cerro de Pasco

$95 17%

Buenos Aires

$282 17% 198% $187

Sport & Entertainment

Cerro de Pasco

$14 * 2.6%

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3% 401% $57

Getting Around

Cerro de Pasco

$14 * 2.5%

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2% 165% $23

Accommodation & Living

Cerro de Pasco

- * 0%

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Buenos Aires pays 99% 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: $29.00 in Cerro de Pasco vs $66.0 in Buenos Aires for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $203 vs $283 per month, with Cerro de Pasco cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Cerro de Pasco

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

07:54 7:54 AM

09:54 9:54 AM

2 h ahead of Cerro de Pasco

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,899

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.291 USD

1 PEN = 0.259 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 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 PEN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cerro de Pasco Buenos Aires 3,220 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cerro de Pasco
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

Cerro de Pasco vs Buenos Aires: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cerro de Pasco and Buenos Aires differ by about 199% in total monthly costs ($555 vs $1,656 including rent). Cerro de Pasco is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 99% lower in Buenos Aires. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Childcare runs $176 in Cerro de Pasco versus $463 in Buenos Aires. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Cerro de Pasco – a meal for two runs $29.00 versus $66.0 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $555 in Cerro de Pasco versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cerro de Pasco but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Cerro de Pasco 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, Cerro de Pasco 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 Cerro de Pasco gentler on the wallet – expenses run 199% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.