Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manama and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Manama: $1,536 a month against $1,685 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. The total is higher in Buenos Aires despite lower rent and utilities.

76

Cost of Living Index in Manama
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Manama Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index

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Manama

🇧🇭 Bahrain

$1,536

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,536 in Manama versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires.

Manama $1,536
Buenos Aires $1,685

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,433 in Manama versus $2,742 in Buenos Aires.

Manama $2,433
Buenos Aires $2,742

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,331 in Manama versus $3,799 in Buenos Aires.

Manama $3,331
Buenos Aires $3,799

Living in Manama costs roughly 9% less than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Manama 15% above, Buenos Aires 26% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.24 BHD 1.98

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

-72.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.8 BHD 19.92

$64.5 ARS 97.8K

-18.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.30 BHD 2.75

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

-43.32%

Cappuccino

$4.86 BHD 1.83

$3.98 ARS 6,029

22.11%

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

$0.88 BHD 0.33

$2.05 ARS 3,103

-57.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 BHD 0.11

$1.55 ARS 2,349

-80.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.72 BHD 2.54

$3.84 ARS 5,830

75.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.99 BHD 3.77

$4.60 ARS 6,970

117.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 BHD 0.52

$1.44 ARS 2,181

-4.86%

White Bread (500g)

$1.11 BHD 0.42

$2.46 ARS 3,738

-54.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.28 BHD 0.86

$1.63 ARS 2,467

39.88%

Eggs

$2.20 BHD 0.83

$2.89 ARS 4,385

-23.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.47 BHD 3.19

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

-20.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.34 BHD 2.39

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

-36.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.42 BHD 3.18

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

-38.72%

Apples (1kg)

$2.41 BHD 0.91

$2.75 ARS 4,166

-12.36%

Banana (1kg)

$2.32 BHD 0.87

$2.18 ARS 3,300

6.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 BHD 0.71

$1.45 ARS 2,205

30.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 BHD 0.54

$1.99 ARS 3,013

-27.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 BHD 0.40

$1.24 ARS 1,885

-14.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.41 BHD 0.53

$1.27 ARS 1,921

11.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 BHD 0.58

$1.70 ARS 2,575

-9.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 BHD 0.31

$1.73 ARS 2,617

-52.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.34 BHD 2.01

$4.18 ARS 6,337

27.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.36 BHD 6.93

$5.80 ARS 8,790

216.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.63 BHD 1.37

$2.09 ARS 3,163

73.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 BHD 0.97

$2.77 ARS 4,198

-6.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.65 BHD 0.24

$0.75 ARS 1,132

-13.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.30 BHD 14.08

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

37.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.19 BHD 1.96

$1.62 ARS 2,451

220.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.38 BHD 1.27

$0.98 ARS 1,481

244.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.88 BHD 5.99

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

105.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.65 BHD 0.25

$1.36 ARS 2,058

-52.21%

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

$37.7K BHD 14.2K

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

34.75%

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

$20.9K BHD 7,896

$34.5K ARS 52.4M

-39.41%

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

$151 BHD 57.1

$216 ARS 326.9K

-29.81%

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

$24.40 BHD 9.21

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

-4.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.61 BHD 13.06

$31.36 ARS 47.6K

10.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.3 BHD 23.50

$49.82 ARS 75.6K

24.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.23 BHD 11.41

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

77.20%

Cinema Ticket

$10.77 BHD 4.06

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

3.26%

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

$488 BHD 184

$466 ARS 706.7K

4.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.2K BHD 4,238

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

23.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.7 BHD 19.13

$122 ARS 185.2K

-58.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.6 BHD 22.13

$97.4 ARS 147.8K

-39.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.1 BHD 32.51

$117 ARS 177.4K

-26.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.0 BHD 33.97

$140 ARS 211.9K

-35.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$997 BHD 376

$763 ARS 1.2M

30.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 BHD 245

$505 ARS 766.1K

28.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,040 BHD 770

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

27.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,399 BHD 528

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

18.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,643 BHD 997

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

-1.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,999 BHD 754

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

7.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,382 BHD 899

$954 ARS 1.4M

149.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.21

57.25

-89.15%

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

Last update for Manama: October 5, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manama

$650 41.6%

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4% 22.3% $145

Groceries & Markets

Manama

$248 15.9%

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1% 14.5% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manama

$210 13.5%

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4% 29.6% $62

Eating Out

Manama

$180 11.5%

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8% 54.6% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Manama

$128 8.2%

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9% 66.8% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Manama

$84 5.4%

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3% 15.7% $13

Getting Around

Manama

$62 4%

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2% 40.9% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $997 in Manama and $763 in Buenos Aires. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Manama pays 150% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $53.0 in Manama vs $64.0 in Buenos Aires for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $248 vs $284 per month, with Manama cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇭 Manama

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

08:09 8:09 AM

02:09 2:09 AM

6 h behind Manama

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

157,474 Capital

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

Bahraini Dinar BHD .د.ب

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BHD = 2.65 USD

1 BHD = 2.36 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to BHD – Bahraini Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇭 Bahraini Dinar (.د.ب)

Bahraini Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.377 BHD (1 BHD = 2.65 USD). 1 EUR = 0.423 BHD (1 BHD = 2.36 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,701 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

USD to BHD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Manama Buenos Aires 13,280 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Manama
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

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

Manama and Buenos Aires differ by about 10% in total monthly costs ($1,536 vs $1,685 including rent). Manama is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 150% higher in Manama, 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: $997 in Manama versus $763 in Buenos Aires. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $488 in Manama 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 15% higher in Buenos Aires. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,536 in Manama versus $1,685 in Buenos Aires, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Manama but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Manama 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, Manama 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 Manama gentler on the wallet – expenses run 10% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.