Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ilopango and Buenos Aires

For one person, living costs are similar in Ilopango and in Buenos Aires: $1,625 and $1,685 a month, rent and utilities included.

79

Cost of Living Index in Ilopango
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Ilopango Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index

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Ilopango

🇸🇻 El Salvador

$1,625

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,625 in Ilopango versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires.

Ilopango $1,625
Buenos Aires $1,685

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,858 in Ilopango versus $2,742 in Buenos Aires.

Ilopango $1,858
Buenos Aires $2,742

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,090 in Ilopango versus $3,799 in Buenos Aires.

Ilopango $2,090
Buenos Aires $3,799

Living in Ilopango costs roughly 4% less than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ilopango 21% above, Buenos Aires 26% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.16 $3.16

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

-83.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.12 $44.12

$64.5 ARS 97.7K

-31.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.04 $5.04

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

-60.87%

Cappuccino

$2.94 $2.94

$3.98 ARS 6,027

-26.13%

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

$0.93 $0.93

$2.05 ARS 3,102

-54.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.97 $0.97

$1.55 ARS 2,348

-37.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.91 $0.91

$3.84 ARS 5,828

-76.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 $1.75

$4.60 ARS 6,968

-61.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.28 $3.28

$1.44 ARS 2,180

127.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 $1.44

$2.46 ARS 3,737

-41.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.07 $3.07

$1.63 ARS 2,466

88.34%

Eggs

$2.92 $2.92

$2.89 ARS 4,384

1.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.02 $5.02

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

-52.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.86 $5.86

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

-41.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.86 $9.86

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

-28.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 $2.92

$2.75 ARS 4,165

6.18%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 $2.02

$2.18 ARS 3,299

-7.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 $2.03

$1.45 ARS 2,204

40.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.99 ARS 3,012

-2.01%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 $2.02

$1.24 ARS 1,884

62.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 $1.97

$1.27 ARS 1,920

55.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 $0.93

$1.70 ARS 2,574

-45.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 $0.97

$1.73 ARS 2,616

-43.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.95 $3.95

$4.18 ARS 6,335

-5.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.18 $12.18

$5.80 ARS 8,787

110.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 $0.98

$2.09 ARS 3,162

-53.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 $2.06

$2.77 ARS 4,197

-25.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 $0.88

$0.75 ARS 1,131

17.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$35.67 $35.67

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

31.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.16 $7.16

$1.62 ARS 2,450

341.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.16 $2.16

$0.98 ARS 1,480

120.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.71 $4.71

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

-38.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.67 $0.67

$1.36 ARS 2,057

-50.74%

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

$19.9K $19.9K

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

-28.81%

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

$26.1K $26.1K

$34.5K ARS 52.3M

-24.50%

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

$34.38 $34.38

$216 ARS 326.8K

-84.05%

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

$9.97 $9.97

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

-61.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.70 $39.70

$31.36 ARS 47.5K

26.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.80 $39.80

$49.82 ARS 75.5K

-20.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.04 $10.04

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

-41.15%

Cinema Ticket

$4.97 $4.97

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

-52.35%

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

$104 $104

$466 ARS 706.5K

-77.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,904 $1,904

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

-78.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$20.18 $20.18

$122 ARS 185.1K

-83.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.95 $29.95

$97.4 ARS 147.7K

-69.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.4 $75.4

$117 ARS 177.3K

-35.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.9 $58.9

$140 ARS 211.8K

-57.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$677 $677

$763 ARS 1.2M

-11.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,038 $1,038

$505 ARS 765.8K

105.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$585 $585

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

-63.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$640 $640

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

-45.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,747 $1,747

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

-34.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$949 $949

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

-48.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$976 $976

$954 ARS 1.4M

2.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

-89.52%

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

Last update for Ilopango: October 3, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ilopango

$1K 62.9%

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4% 51.4% $533

Groceries & Markets

Ilopango

$248 15%

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1% 14.4% $36

Eating Out

Ilopango

$91 5.5%

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8% 205% $188

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ilopango

$84 5.1%

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4% 224% $188

Clothing & Footwear

Ilopango

$83 5%

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9% 158% $131

Getting Around

Ilopango

$57 3.5%

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2% 35.9% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Ilopango

$50 3%

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3% 42.1% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $677 in Ilopango and $763 in Buenos Aires. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ilopango pays 2% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $44.00 in Ilopango vs $64.0 in Buenos Aires for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $248 vs $284 per month, with Ilopango cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇻 Ilopango

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

23:07 11:07 PM

02:07 2:07 AM

3 h ahead of Ilopango

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

38,890

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.6 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,516 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.6 USD). 1 EUR = 1,700 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

ARS to USD in detail →

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Ilopango Buenos Aires 6,270 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

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Ilopango
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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

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

Ilopango and Buenos Aires differ by about 4% in total monthly costs ($1,625 vs $1,685 including rent). Ilopango is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 2% higher in Ilopango, 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: $677 in Ilopango versus $763 in Buenos Aires. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $104 in Ilopango versus $466 in Buenos Aires. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 14% higher in Buenos Aires. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,625 in Ilopango versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Ilopango but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Ilopango 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, Ilopango 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 Ilopango gentler on the wallet – expenses run 4% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.