Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mar del Plata and San Rafael, Argentina

Name: San Rafael
Address: San Rafael, AR

For one person, living is cheaper in Mar del Plata: $1,161 a month against $1,353 in San Rafael, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Mar del Plata
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Mar del Plata Living Index
64

Cost of Living Index in San Rafael
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San Rafael Living Index

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Mar del Plata

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,161

/mo nomad

San Rafael

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,353

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mar del Plata and in San Rafael

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,161 in Mar del Plata versus $1,353 in San Rafael.

Mar del Plata $1,161
San Rafael $1,353

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,072 in Mar del Plata versus $2,224 in San Rafael.

Mar del Plata $2,072
San Rafael $2,224

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,983 in Mar del Plata versus $3,096 in San Rafael.

Mar del Plata $2,983
San Rafael $3,096

Living in Mar del Plata costs roughly 14% less than in San Rafael, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.87 ARS 30.7K

$11.01 ARS 17.0K

80.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.5 ARS 124.3K

$50.9 ARS 78.7K

58.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.63 ARS 18.0K

$14.49 ARS 22.4K

-19.74%

Cappuccino

$3.28 ARS 5,064

$4.44 ARS 6,855

-26.13%

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

$2.47 ARS 3,816

$2.43 ARS 3,759

1.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 ARS 3,124

$1.90 ARS 2,931

6.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.58 ARS 5,536

$3.89 ARS 6,014

-7.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 ARS 5,297

$4.38 ARS 6,766

-21.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 ARS 1,884

$1.39 ARS 2,147

-12.23%

White Bread (500g)

$2.27 ARS 3,499

$2.19 ARS 3,375

3.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.76 ARS 4,269

$2.78 ARS 4,295

-0.72%

Eggs

$3.95 ARS 6,097

$3.19 ARS 4,920

23.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.52 ARS 19.3K

$14.27 ARS 22.0K

-12.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.35 ARS 12.9K

$6.11 ARS 9,443

36.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.47 ARS 17.7K

$11.04 ARS 17.1K

3.89%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 ARS 4,682

$2.36 ARS 3,638

28.39%

Banana (1kg)

$2.34 ARS 3,622

$2.23 ARS 3,446

4.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 ARS 2,991

$1.37 ARS 2,108

41.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 ARS 3,978

$3.33 ARS 5,148

-22.52%

Potato (1kg)

$0.73 ARS 1,133

$2.03 ARS 3,128

-64.04%

Onion (1kg)

$0.73 ARS 1,131

$1.52 ARS 2,351

-51.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.00 ARS 3,091

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 ARS 1,064

$2.57 ARS 3,966

-73.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.68 ARS 4,136

Wine (Bottle)

$4.25 ARS 6,567

$5.07 ARS 7,835

-16.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.33 ARS 3,603

$1.80 ARS 2,784

29.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.17 ARS 7,980

$3.07 ARS 4,738

68.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 ARS 2,088

$0.98 ARS 1,508

37.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.49 ARS 2,302

$2.01 ARS 3,104

-25.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 ARS 1,219

$1.03 ARS 1,583

-23.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.32 ARS 9,765

$4.93 ARS 7,607

28.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 ARS 2,253

$1.22 ARS 1,879

19.67%

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

$31.9K ARS 49.2M

$27.4K ARS 42.2M

16.55%

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

$45.2K ARS 69.8M

$32.4K ARS 50.0M

39.69%

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

$106 ARS 164.0K

$146 ARS 225.9K

-27.38%

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

$10.59 ARS 16.4K

$17.25 ARS 26.6K

-38.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.56 ARS 36.4K

$23.80 ARS 36.8K

-1.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.16 ARS 48.1K

$31.51 ARS 48.7K

-1.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.29 ARS 49.9K

$21.04 ARS 32.5K

53.47%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 ARS 15.2K

$7.25 ARS 11.2K

35.72%

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

$257 ARS 396.5K

$174 ARS 268.7K

47.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,698 ARS 8.8M

$4,125 ARS 6.4M

38.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$125 ARS 192.7K

$125 ARS 193.2K

-0.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.8 ARS 109.4K

$142 ARS 219.8K

-50.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 ARS 166.9K

$141 ARS 218.5K

-23.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$158 ARS 243.7K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$492 ARS 760.1K

$511 ARS 788.5K

-3.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$279 ARS 430.5K

$336 ARS 519.7K

-17.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$932 ARS 1.4M

$1,049 ARS 1.6M

-11.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$777 ARS 1.2M

$825 ARS 1.3M

-5.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,006 ARS 1.6M

$1,272 ARS 2.0M

-20.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,336 ARS 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

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 San Rafael: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mar del Plata

$279 24%

San Rafael

$336 24.9% 20.7% $58

Eating Out

Mar del Plata

$276 23.8%

San Rafael

$230 17% 16.5% $46

Groceries & Markets

Mar del Plata

$268 * 23.1%

San Rafael

$287 21.2% 7.1% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mar del Plata

$140 12.1%

San Rafael

$187 13.9% 33.5% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Mar del Plata

$137 * 11.8%

San Rafael

$255 18.9% 86.6% $118

Sport & Entertainment

Mar del Plata

$51 4.4%

San Rafael

$46 3.4% 9.5% $4.8

Getting Around

Mar del Plata

$11 * 0.9%

San Rafael

$11 * 0.8% 1.8% $0.2

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 $492 in Mar del Plata and $511 in San Rafael. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $80 in Mar del Plata vs $51 in San Rafael. Groceries flip the comparison at $268 vs $287, with Mar del Plata cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Mar del Plata

🇦🇷 San Rafael

🕒 Local time

17:34 5:34 PM

Same time as Mar del Plata

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

593,337

118,850

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.47 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.79 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.47 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.79 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Mar del Plata San Rafael 1,040 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Mar del Plata
San Rafael

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 San Rafael: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mar del Plata wins on cost – living expenses run 14% lower than in San Rafael. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Mar del Plata the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $1,742 in Mar del Plata and $2,029 in San Rafael 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: $492 in Mar del Plata versus $511 in San Rafael. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 7% higher in San Rafael. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,161 per month in Mar del Plata versus $1,353 in San Rafael – Mar del Plata is about 14% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Mar del Plata is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 San Rafael are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.