Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mar del Plata and El Calafate

For one person, living is cheaper in El Calafate: $961 a month against $1,081 in Mar del Plata, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Mar del Plata
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Mar del Plata Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in El Calafate
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El Calafate Living Index

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Mar del Plata

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,081

/mo nomad

El Calafate

🇦🇷 Argentina

$961

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mar del Plata and in El Calafate

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 El Calafate actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,081 in Mar del Plata versus $961 in El Calafate.

Mar del Plata $1,081
El Calafate $961

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,026 in Mar del Plata versus $1,574 in El Calafate.

Mar del Plata $2,026
El Calafate $1,574

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,971 in Mar del Plata versus $2,187 in El Calafate.

Mar del Plata $2,971
El Calafate $2,187

Living in Mar del Plata is roughly 12% more expensive than in El Calafate, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Mar del Plata 20% lower, El Calafate 29% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.07 ARS 30.5K

$10.66 ARS 16.2K

88.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.4 ARS 120.5K

$33.87 ARS 51.4K

134.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.55 ARS 17.5K

$8.85 ARS 13.4K

30.51%

Cappuccino

$3.26 ARS 4,947

$2.77 ARS 4,198

17.69%

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

$2.60 ARS 3,939

$1.64 ARS 2,484

58.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 ARS 2,955

$1.49 ARS 2,268

30.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.47 ARS 5,265

$2.08 ARS 3,157

66.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 ARS 5,202

$2.93 ARS 4,452

17.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 ARS 1,853

$1.24 ARS 1,887

-1.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.15 ARS 3,257

$1.61 ARS 2,446

33.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.79 ARS 4,231

$1.93 ARS 2,930

44.56%

Eggs

$3.16 ARS 4,796

$2.20 ARS 3,346

43.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.75 ARS 11.8K

$10.29 ARS 15.6K

-24.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.50 ARS 11.4K

$6.07 ARS 9,209

23.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.62 ARS 17.6K

$9.50 ARS 14.4K

22.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 ARS 4,491

$1.95 ARS 2,963

51.79%

Banana (1kg)

$2.39 ARS 3,624

$2.11 ARS 3,205

13.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 ARS 2,950

$1.33 ARS 2,015

45.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.66 ARS 4,043

$2.62 ARS 3,973

1.53%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 ARS 1,128

$1.19 ARS 1,808

-37.82%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 ARS 1,211

$1.20 ARS 1,821

-33.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 ARS 1,973

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ARS 962

$1.48 ARS 2,245

-57.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.52 ARS 5,342

$3.16 ARS 4,800

11.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.20 ARS 6,375

$4.97 ARS 7,536

-15.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ARS 3,582

$2.06 ARS 3,133

14.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 ARS 7,944

$3.16 ARS 4,799

65.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 ARS 2,062

$0.76 ARS 1,159

78.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.44 ARS 2,188

$1.51 ARS 2,293

-4.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.87 ARS 1,318

$0.87 ARS 1,322

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 ARS 9,764

$5.89 ARS 8,934

9.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 ARS 1,963

$1.05 ARS 1,600

22.86%

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

$31.4K ARS 47.6M

$27.4K ARS 41.6M

14.29%

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

$45.8K ARS 69.4M

$30.2K ARS 45.9M

51.41%

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

$106 ARS 160.4K

$66.5 ARS 100.9K

58.97%

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

$6.49 ARS 9,850

$16.85 ARS 25.6K

-61.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.16 ARS 35.1K

$22.42 ARS 34.0K

3.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.15 ARS 47.3K

$26.64 ARS 40.4K

16.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.91 ARS 49.9K

$13.53 ARS 20.5K

143.24%

Cinema Ticket

$9.83 ARS 14.9K

$6.34 ARS 9,617

55.05%

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

$252 ARS 382.3K

$224 ARS 340.0K

12.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,679 ARS 4.1M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.2 ARS 136.9K

$72.7 ARS 110.3K

24.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.7 ARS 107.3K

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 ARS 162.6K

$114 ARS 173.7K

-6.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$54.5 ARS 82.8K

$114 ARS 172.2K

-51.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$337 ARS 510.8K

$342 ARS 518.6K

-1.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$248 ARS 375.9K

$235 ARS 357.2K

5.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$798 ARS 1.2M

$695 ARS 1.1M

14.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$882 ARS 1.3M

$533 ARS 809.3K

65.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,043 ARS 1.6M

$1,600 ARS 2.4M

-34.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,058 ARS 1.6M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

58.5

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

Last update for Mar del Plata: October 11, 2026

Last update for El Calafate: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Eating Out

Mar del Plata

$277 25.6%

El Calafate

$174 18.1% 37.2% $103

Accommodation & Living

Mar del Plata

$248 22.9%

El Calafate

$235 24.5% 5% $12

Groceries & Markets

Mar del Plata

$245 * 22.7%

El Calafate

$231 24% 5.8% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mar del Plata

$135 12.5%

El Calafate

$106 11% 21.9% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Mar del Plata

$113 * 10.5%

El Calafate

$167 17.4% 47.4% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Mar del Plata

$51 4.7%

El Calafate

$39 4.1% 22.6% $12

Getting Around

Mar del Plata

$11 * 1%

El Calafate

$8.9 * 0.9% 20.5% $2.3

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $337 in Mar del Plata and $342 in El Calafate. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $79.0 in Mar del Plata vs $34.00 in El Calafate for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $245 vs $231 per month, with El Calafate cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Mar del Plata

🇦🇷 El Calafate

🕒 Local time

05:55 5:55 AM

Same time as Mar del Plata

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

593,337

22,844

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Mar del Plata El Calafate 1,800 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mar del Plata
El Calafate

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 El Calafate: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mar del Plata and El Calafate differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($1,081 vs $961 including rent). El Calafate is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,621 in Mar del Plata and $1,442 in El Calafate to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $337 in Mar del Plata versus $342 in El Calafate. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $252 in Mar del Plata versus $224 in El Calafate. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in El Calafate – a meal for two runs $34.00 versus $79.0 in Mar del Plata. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $961 in El Calafate versus $1,081 in Mar del Plata, a $2,000 budget is realistic in El Calafate but tight or insufficient in Mar del Plata. The gap between the two cities makes El Calafate 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, Mar del Plata and El Calafate 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 El Calafate gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Mar del Plata. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.