Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mar del Plata and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Mar del Plata: $1,161 a month against $1,527 in Cape Town, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cape Town outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

55

Cost of Living Index in Mar del Plata
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Mar del Plata Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
Learn more

Cape Town Living Index

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Mar del Plata

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,161

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mar del Plata and in Cape Town

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

A single person spends $1,161 per month in Mar del Plata vs $1,527 in Cape Town, rent included.

Mar del Plata $1,161
Cape Town $1,527

A couple spends around $2,072 per month in Mar del Plata vs $2,417 in Cape Town, rent included.

Mar del Plata $2,072
Cape Town $2,417

A family of three spends $2,983 per month in Mar del Plata vs $3,306 in Cape Town, rent included.

Mar del Plata $2,983
Cape Town $3,306

Mar del Plata is about 24% cheaper than Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Mar del Plata sits 14% below the global median, while Cape Town is 13% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.87 ARS 30.7K

$12.01 R 198

65.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.5 ARS 124.3K

$42.92 R 707

87.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.63 ARS 18.0K

$6.15 R 101

89.11%

Cappuccino

$3.28 ARS 5,064

$2.37 R 39.04

38.40%

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

$2.47 ARS 3,816

$1.27 R 20.96

94.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 ARS 3,124

$0.94 R 15.46

114.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.58 ARS 5,536

$2.96 R 48.77

20.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 ARS 5,297

$3.69 R 60.8

-7.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 ARS 1,884

$1.32 R 21.73

-7.58%

White Bread (500g)

$2.27 ARS 3,499

$1.21 R 19.87

87.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.76 ARS 4,269

$2.20 R 36.26

25.45%

Eggs

$3.95 ARS 6,097

$3.10 R 51.1

27.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.52 ARS 19.3K

$8.73 R 144

43.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.35 ARS 12.9K

$6.89 R 114

21.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.47 ARS 17.7K

$9.26 R 153

23.87%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 ARS 4,682

$1.83 R 30.08

65.57%

Banana (1kg)

$2.34 ARS 3,622

$1.95 R 32.12

20.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 ARS 2,991

$1.66 R 27.32

16.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 ARS 3,978

$2.14 R 35.19

20.56%

Potato (1kg)

$0.73 ARS 1,133

$1.58 R 26.01

-53.80%

Onion (1kg)

$0.73 ARS 1,131

$1.47 R 24.29

-50.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.18

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 ARS 1,064

$1.14 R 18.85

-39.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 59.0

Wine (Bottle)

$4.25 ARS 6,567

$6.05 R 99.7

-29.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.33 ARS 3,603

$1.39 R 22.95

67.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.17 ARS 7,980

$2.18 R 35.90

137.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 ARS 2,088

$1.40 R 23.02

-3.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 1,001

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.49 ARS 2,302

$0.93 R 15.26

60.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 ARS 1,219

$0.90 R 14.83

-12.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.32 ARS 9,765

$4.96 R 81.7

27.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 ARS 2,253

$1.54 R 25.37

-5.19%

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

$31.9K ARS 49.2M

$35.4K R 582.8K

-9.86%

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

$45.2K ARS 69.8M

$33.4K R 549.9K

35.48%

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

$106 ARS 164.0K

$117 R 1,929

-9.28%

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

$10.59 ARS 16.4K

$25.71 R 424

-58.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.56 ARS 36.4K

$39.41 R 649

-40.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.16 ARS 48.1K

$51.6 R 850

-39.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.29 ARS 49.9K

$11.35 R 187

184.49%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 ARS 15.2K

$8.89 R 146

10.69%

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

$257 ARS 396.5K

$308 R 5,069

-16.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,698 ARS 8.8M

$8,141 R 134.2K

-30.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$125 ARS 192.7K

$57.4 R 946

117.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.8 ARS 109.4K

$31.75 R 523

123.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 ARS 166.9K

$116 R 1,911

-6.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,660

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$492 ARS 760.1K

$1,047 R 17.2K

-52.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$279 ARS 430.5K

$669 R 11.0K

-58.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$932 ARS 1.4M

$1,861 R 30.7K

-49.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$777 ARS 1.2M

$1,407 R 23.2K

-44.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,006 ARS 1.6M

$1,570 R 25.9K

-35.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,336 ARS 2.1M

$1,630 R 26.9K

-18.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

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

Last update for Mar del Plata: November 3, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mar del Plata

$279 24%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 140% $390

Eating Out

Mar del Plata

$276 23.8%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 36.9% $102

Groceries & Markets

Mar del Plata

$268 * 23.1%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 16.6% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mar del Plata

$140 12.1%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 29.8% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Mar del Plata

$137 * 11.8%

Cape Town

$138 9% 0.7% $1

Sport & Entertainment

Mar del Plata

$51 4.4%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 36.5% $19

Getting Around

Mar del Plata

$11 * 0.9%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 562% $61

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $492 in Mar del Plata versus $1,047 in Cape Town. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 22% higher in Cape Town, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $80 in Mar del Plata versus $43 in Cape Town. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $268 vs $223 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Mar del Plata

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

11:26 11:26 AM

16:26 4:26 PM

5 h ahead of Mar del Plata

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

593,337

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.47 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.76 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1,544 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.47 USD). 1 EUR = 1,735 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.76 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mar del Plata Cape Town 6,660 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Mar del Plata
Cape Town

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

Mar del Plata vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cape Town costs about 32% more than Mar del Plata, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,742 per month in Mar del Plata and $2,291 in Cape Town. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Mar del Plata, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $492 there versus $1,047 in Cape Town.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,161 in Mar del Plata and $1,527 in Cape Town. That makes Mar del Plata about 24% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $257 per month in Mar del Plata and $308 in Cape Town. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,161 in Mar del Plata and $1,527 in Cape Town. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Mar del Plata – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Mar del Plata. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cape Town makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.