Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cordoba and La Merced

For one person, living is cheaper in La Merced: $565 a month against $1,368 in Cordoba, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Cordoba
🇦🇷 Argentina
$1,368
/mo nomad
La Merced
🇵🇪 Peru
$565
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cordoba and in La Merced

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

A single person spends $1,368 per month in Cordoba vs $565 in La Merced, rent included.

  • Cordoba $1,368
  • La Merced $565

A couple spends around $2,259 per month in Cordoba vs $917 in La Merced, rent included.

  • Cordoba $2,259
  • La Merced $917

A family of three spends $3,150 per month in Cordoba vs $1,269 in La Merced, rent included.

  • Cordoba $3,150
  • La Merced $1,269

Cordoba costs about 142% more than La Merced, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Cordoba sits 1% above the global median, while La Merced is 58% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cordoba
La Merced
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$13.43 ARS 20.4K
$4.38 PEN 15.04
206.62%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$54.9 ARS 83.3K
$34.69 PEN 119
58.14%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$13.03 ARS 19.8K
$6.77 PEN 23.26
92.47%
Cappuccino
$3.59 ARS 5,447
$3.16 PEN 10.84
13.61%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.55 ARS 3,871
$1.07 PEN 3.67
138.32%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.11 ARS 3,198
$0.64 PEN 2.20
229.69%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.38 ARS 5,132
$2.60 PEN 8.93
30.00%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.78 ARS 5,729
$4.33 PEN 14.87
-12.70%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cordoba
La Merced
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.68 ARS 2,553
$1.63 PEN 5.60
3.07%
White Bread (500g)
$2.76 ARS 4,194
$1.98 PEN 6.79
39.39%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.06 ARS 3,122
$1.28 PEN 4.40
60.94%
Eggs
$2.38 ARS 3,609
$2.34 PEN 8.04
1.71%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.06 ARS 15.3K
$7.09 PEN 24.34
41.89%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.02 ARS 12.2K
$5.88 PEN 20.21
36.39%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.62 ARS 17.6K
$8.65 PEN 29.69
34.34%
Apples (1kg)
$2.44 ARS 3,704
$1.01 PEN 3.45
141.58%
Banana (1kg)
$2.28 ARS 3,462
$0.46 PEN 1.58
395.65%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.61 ARS 2,436
$0.28 PEN 0.95
475.00%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.91 ARS 4,419
$0.75 PEN 2.57
288.00%
Potato (1kg)
$1.18 ARS 1,794
$0.30 PEN 1.05
293.33%
Onion (1kg)
$1.34 ARS 2,041
$0.42 PEN 1.45
219.05%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.23 ARS 1,861
$0.61 PEN 2.08
101.64%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.76 ARS 2,668
$0.91 PEN 3.14
93.41%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.10 ARS 7,734
$5.61 PEN 19.25
-9.09%
Wine (Bottle)
$4.86 ARS 7,372
$7.36 PEN 25.26
-33.97%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.26 ARS 3,424
$1.87 PEN 6.43
20.86%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.64 ARS 5,518
$3.23 PEN 11.10
12.69%
🚌 Getting Around
Cordoba
La Merced
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.27 ARS 1,921
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$55.5 ARS 84.2K
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.28 ARS 1,950
$3.82 PEN 13.12
-66.49%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.95 ARS 2,958
$2.08 PEN 7.14
-6.25%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$7.18 ARS 10.9K
$7.40 PEN 25.41
-2.97%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.16 ARS 1,757
$1.74 PEN 5.97
-33.33%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$35.6K ARS 54.1M
$22.1K PEN 76.0K
61.02%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$35.2K ARS 53.4M
$25.5K PEN 87.5K
37.99%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cordoba
La Merced
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$162 ARS 245.7K
$72.8 PEN 250
122.30%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$17.47 ARS 26.5K
$16.49 PEN 56.6
5.94%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$31.87 ARS 48.4K
$27.80 PEN 95.5
14.64%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cordoba
La Merced
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$28.21 ARS 42.8K
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$22.72 ARS 34.5K
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$9.91 ARS 15.0K
$7.34 PEN 25.22
35.01%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cordoba
La Merced
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$218 ARS 330.8K
$181 PEN 622
20.29%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,059 ARS 6.2M
$13.2K PEN 45.3K
-69.24%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cordoba
La Merced
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$125 ARS 190.0K
$52.6 PEN 181
138.26%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$105 ARS 158.8K
$35.20 PEN 121
197.27%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$139 ARS 211.4K
$82.0 PEN 282
69.78%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$134 ARS 203.4K
$79.1 PEN 272
69.38%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cordoba
La Merced
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$483 ARS 732.5K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$304 ARS 460.6K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$986 ARS 1.5M
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$784 ARS 1.2M
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,807 ARS 4.3M
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,613 ARS 2.4M
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cordoba
La Merced
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$658 ARS 998.3K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
48.5
8.94
442.51%

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

Last update for Cordoba: October 12, 2026

Last update for La Merced: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cordoba
$304
La Merced
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Cordoba
$275
La Merced
$186 32.5% $89
Eating Out
Cordoba
$233
La Merced
$122 47.7% $111
Clothing & Footwear
Cordoba
$226
La Merced
$112 50.5% $114
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cordoba
$211
La Merced
$117 44.6% $94
Getting Around
Cordoba
$72
La Merced
$14 * 80.1% $57
Sport & Entertainment
Cordoba
$48
La Merced
$15 * 69.4% $33

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55.0 in Cordoba versus $35.00 in La Merced. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $275 vs $186 – making La Merced the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇦🇷 Cordoba
🇵🇪 La Merced
🕒 Local time
00:47 12:47 AM
22:47 10:47 PM
2 h behind Cordoba
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,655,481
8,000
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

PEN, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

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).

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.291 USD). 1 EUR = 3.86 PEN (1 PEN = 0.259 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cordoba La Merced 2,780 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Cordoba
  • La Merced

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
Cordoba vs La Merced: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is La Merced cheaper than Cordoba?
Yes – Cordoba is pricier by about 142%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,052 per month in Cordoba and $848 in La Merced. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Is eating out cheaper in Cordoba or in La Merced?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $55.0 in Cordoba and $35.00 in La Merced. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Cordoba and in La Merced?
Groceries cost about 48% more in Cordoba, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Is $1,000 a realistic budget for living in Cordoba or in La Merced?
A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in La Merced, where all-in costs run around $565, than in Cordoba at $1,368. In La Merced it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cordoba it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Cordoba or La Merced more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward La Merced – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is safer, Cordoba or La Merced?
Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with La Merced. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cordoba makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Cordoba vs other spots: cost of living compared

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