Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Marion, IL and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Buenos Aires: $1,646 a month against $2,437 in Marion, IL, rent and utilities included – about $9,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in Marion, IL
Learn more

Marion, IL Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index

Jump to prices

Marion, IL

🇺🇸 United States

$2,437

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,646

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,437 in Marion, IL versus $1,646 in Buenos Aires.

Marion, IL $2,437
Buenos Aires $1,646

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,587 in Marion, IL versus $2,680 in Buenos Aires.

Marion, IL $3,587
Buenos Aires $2,680

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,737 in Marion, IL versus $3,714 in Buenos Aires.

Marion, IL $4,737
Buenos Aires $3,714

Living in Marion, IL is roughly 48% more expensive than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Marion, IL 80% above, Buenos Aires 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.67 $17.67

$17.81 ARS 27.0K

-0.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.3 $76.3

$65.2 ARS 98.9K

17.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.15 $12.15

$13.12 ARS 19.9K

-7.39%

Cappuccino

$5.73 $5.73

$3.86 ARS 5,863

48.45%

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

$2.36 $2.36

$2.06 ARS 3,133

14.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 $1.98

$1.68 ARS 2,542

17.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.89 $6.89

$4.10 ARS 6,218

68.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.96 $7.96

$4.73 ARS 7,181

68.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.77 $0.77

$1.51 ARS 2,285

-49.01%

White Bread (500g)

$1.63 $1.63

$2.60 ARS 3,950

-37.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.94 $3.94

$1.57 ARS 2,380

150.96%

Eggs

$2.99 $2.99

$2.73 ARS 4,144

9.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$10.86 ARS 16.5K

-60.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.43 $11.43

$10.07 ARS 15.3K

13.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.99 $18.99

$13.22 ARS 20.1K

43.65%

Apples (1kg)

$5.77 $5.77

$2.80 ARS 4,255

106.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 $1.74

$2.09 ARS 3,170

-16.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.71 $5.71

$1.45 ARS 2,194

293.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.77 $4.77

$2.00 ARS 3,040

138.50%

Potato (1kg)

$3.27 $3.27

$1.20 ARS 1,826

172.50%

Onion (1kg)

$4.26 $4.26

$1.20 ARS 1,821

255.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.64 $2.64

$1.69 ARS 2,569

56.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 $2.16

$1.79 ARS 2,711

20.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.08 $9.08

$4.00 ARS 6,074

127.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.17 $10.17

$5.53 ARS 8,388

83.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 $1.71

$2.12 ARS 3,219

-19.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.59 $1.59

$2.78 ARS 4,212

-42.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.82 $1.82

$0.69 ARS 1,049

163.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.90 ARS 42.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.01 $2.01

$1.63 ARS 2,471

23.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.39 $1.39

$0.97 ARS 1,478

43.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.20 $20.20

$7.89 ARS 12.0K

156.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.42 ARS 2,156

-30.28%

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

$28.3K $28.3K

$23.3K ARS 35.4M

21.46%

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

$26.6K $26.6K

$31.9K ARS 48.5M

-16.65%

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

$150 $150

$199 ARS 302.7K

-24.71%

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

$84.3 $84.3

$23.36 ARS 35.4K

260.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$73.7 $73.7

$31.44 ARS 47.7K

134.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.51 $41.51

$49.81 ARS 75.6K

-16.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.63 ARS 25.2K

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 $9.84

$10.80 ARS 16.4K

-8.89%

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

$1,694 $1,694

$462 ARS 701.7K

266.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.4K $24.4K

$8,790 ARS 13.3M

177.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.46 $25.46

$120 ARS 181.6K

-78.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.36 $33.36

$94.6 ARS 143.6K

-64.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.9 $74.9

$116 ARS 176.4K

-35.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.1 $86.1

$137 ARS 208.6K

-37.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,576 $1,576

$750 ARS 1.1M

110.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,287 $1,287

$514 ARS 780.5K

150.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,503 $2,503

$1,567 ARS 2.4M

59.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,135 $2,135

$1,196 ARS 1.8M

78.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,461 $2,461

$2,632 ARS 4.0M

-6.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,586 $2,586

$1,874 ARS 2.8M

37.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$924 ARS 1.4M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.6

57.25

-88.47%

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

Last update for Marion, IL: October 18, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Marion, IL

$1.3K 52.8%

Buenos Aires

$514 31.3% 60% $773

Groceries & Markets

Marion, IL

$352 14.4%

Buenos Aires

$285 17.3% 19% $67

Eating Out

Marion, IL

$314 12.9%

Buenos Aires

$273 16.6% 13.1% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Marion, IL

$308 12.6%

Buenos Aires

$254 15.5% 17.5% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Marion, IL

$99 4.1%

Buenos Aires

$211 12.8% 113% $112

Sport & Entertainment

Marion, IL

$61 2.5%

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3% 16.7% $10

Getting Around

Marion, IL

$16 * 0.7%

Buenos Aires

$37 2.3% 129% $21

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 $1,576 in Marion, IL and $750 in Buenos Aires. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $76.0 in Marion, IL vs $65.0 in Buenos Aires for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $285 per month, with Buenos Aires cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Marion, IL

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

19:23 7:23 PM

21:23 9:23 PM

2 h ahead of Marion, IL

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,193

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

ARS to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Marion, IL Buenos Aires 8,640 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Marion, IL
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

Marion, IL vs Buenos Aires: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Marion, IL and Buenos Aires differ by about 48% in total monthly costs ($2,437 vs $1,646 including rent). Buenos Aires is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,656 in Marion, IL and $2,468 in Buenos Aires 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: $1,576 in Marion, IL versus $750 in Buenos Aires. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,694 in Marion, IL versus $462 in Buenos Aires. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Buenos Aires – a meal for two runs $65.0 versus $76.0 in Marion, IL. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,646 in Buenos Aires versus $2,437 in Marion, IL, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Buenos Aires but tight or insufficient in Marion, IL. The gap between the two cities makes Buenos Aires 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, Marion, IL 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 Buenos Aires gentler on the wallet – expenses run 48% less than in Marion, IL. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.