Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mar del Plata and Rustenburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Rustenburg: $797 a month against $1,137 in Mar del Plata, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Mar del Plata
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Mar del Plata Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Rustenburg
Learn more

Rustenburg Living Index

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Mar del Plata

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,137

/mo nomad

Rustenburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$797

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mar del Plata and in Rustenburg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,137 in Mar del Plata versus $797 in Rustenburg.

Mar del Plata $1,137
Rustenburg $797

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,096 in Mar del Plata versus $1,316 in Rustenburg.

Mar del Plata $2,096
Rustenburg $1,316

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,055 in Mar del Plata versus $1,834 in Rustenburg.

Mar del Plata $3,055
Rustenburg $1,834

Living in Mar del Plata is roughly 43% more expensive than in Rustenburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Mar del Plata 16% lower, Rustenburg 41% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.64 ARS 30.1K

$4.87 R 81.3

303.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.1 ARS 119.7K

$45.11 R 754

73.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.58 ARS 17.8K

$6.22 R 104

86.17%

Cappuccino

$3.26 ARS 4,997

$1.66 R 27.75

96.39%

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

$2.60 ARS 3,988

$1.02 R 17.03

154.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 ARS 3,108

$0.50 R 8.38

306.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.41 ARS 5,237

$1.48 R 24.77

130.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.60 ARS 5,515

$2.13 R 35.57

69.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 ARS 1,882

$1.03 R 17.19

19.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 ARS 3,410

$0.90 R 15.00

146.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.84 ARS 4,362

$1.70 R 28.40

67.06%

Eggs

$3.25 ARS 4,993

$2.61 R 43.60

24.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.40 ARS 19.0K

$7.57 R 127

63.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.72 ARS 11.8K

$5.04 R 84.3

53.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.60 ARS 17.8K

$6.28 R 105

84.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 ARS 4,724

$1.78 R 29.73

73.03%

Banana (1kg)

$2.41 ARS 3,698

$1.57 R 26.20

53.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 ARS 2,947

$1.80 R 30.00

6.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.60 ARS 3,994

$1.07 R 17.94

142.99%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 ARS 1,135

$1.31 R 21.94

-43.51%

Onion (1kg)

$0.78 ARS 1,194

$1.08 R 18.12

-27.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.34 R 22.34

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 ARS 1,056

$0.86 R 14.34

-19.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.55 ARS 5,453

$3.07 R 51.2

15.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.16 ARS 6,382

$6.02 R 101

-30.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.28 ARS 3,496

$0.59 R 9.80

286.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 ARS 8,020

$0.92 R 15.34

468.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.31 ARS 2,004

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.42 ARS 2,174

$0.81 R 13.60

75.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.80 ARS 1,232

$0.89 R 14.86

-10.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.26 ARS 9,604

$14.27 R 238

-56.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.38 ARS 2,118

$1.45 R 24.16

-4.83%

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

$31.2K ARS 47.9M

$31.6K R 527.3K

-1.13%

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

$45.7K ARS 70.1M

$31.7K R 529.2K

44.33%

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

$107 ARS 164.9K

$76.1 R 1,271

41.31%

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

$10.60 ARS 16.3K

$13.47 R 225

-21.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.56 ARS 36.1K

$37.07 R 619

-36.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.49 ARS 48.3K

$38.12 R 637

-17.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.32 ARS 49.6K

$6.11 R 102

428.97%

Cinema Ticket

$9.82 ARS 15.1K

$4.90 R 81.9

100.41%

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

$254 ARS 389.3K

$110 R 1,842

130.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,832 ARS 8.9M

$5,453 R 91.1K

6.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.2 ARS 139.9K

$41.73 R 697

118.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$69.9 ARS 107.3K

$44.31 R 740

57.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 ARS 167.9K

$112 R 1,863

-1.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.3 ARS 84.8K

$53.3 R 890

3.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$489 ARS 750.5K

$336 R 5,614

45.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$251 ARS 384.6K

$237 R 3,955

5.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$823 ARS 1.3M

$716 R 12.0K

15.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$857 ARS 1.3M

$515 R 8,609

66.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,039 ARS 1.6M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,056 ARS 1.6M

$1,065 R 17.8K

-0.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.9

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

Last update for Mar del Plata: October 26, 2026

Last update for Rustenburg: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Eating Out

Mar del Plata

$274 24.1%

Rustenburg

$95 12% 65.2% $178

Groceries & Markets

Mar del Plata

$262 * 23.1%

Rustenburg

$173 21.7% 34.1% $90

Accommodation & Living

Mar del Plata

$251 22.1%

Rustenburg

$237 29.7% 5.6% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Mar del Plata

$147 12.9%

Rustenburg

$113 14.2% 23% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mar del Plata

$142 12.5%

Rustenburg

$127 15.9% 10.6% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Mar del Plata

$51 4.5%

Rustenburg

$48 6% 6.3% $3.2

Getting Around

Mar del Plata

$11 * 0.9%

Rustenburg

$5.3 * 0.7% 50.7% $5.4

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 $489 in Mar del Plata and $336 in Rustenburg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $78 in Mar del Plata vs $45 in Rustenburg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $262 vs $173 per month, with Rustenburg cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Mar del Plata

🇿🇦 Rustenburg

🕒 Local time

20:13 8:13 PM

01:13 1:13 AM

5 h ahead of Mar del Plata

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

593,337

549,575

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.52 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR

100 ZAR = 5.99 USD

100 ZAR = 5.36 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 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1,534 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.52 USD). 1 EUR = 1,713 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 16.71 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.99 USD). 1 EUR = 18.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.36 EUR).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mar del Plata Rustenburg 7,860 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Mar del Plata
Rustenburg

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 Rustenburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rustenburg wins on cost – living expenses run 30% lower than in Mar del Plata. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Rustenburg the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,705 in Mar del Plata and $1,196 in Rustenburg 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: $489 in Mar del Plata versus $336 in Rustenburg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 52% higher in Mar del Plata. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,137 per month in Mar del Plata versus $797 in Rustenburg – Rustenburg is about 30% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $797 in Rustenburg versus $1,137 in Mar del Plata, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Rustenburg but tight or insufficient in Mar del Plata. The gap between the two cities makes Rustenburg 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.