Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mendoza and Catamarca

For one person, living is cheaper in Catamarca: $1,261 a month against $1,363 in Mendoza, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Mendoza
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Mendoza Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Catamarca
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Catamarca Living Index

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Mendoza

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,363

/mo nomad

Catamarca

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,261

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mendoza and in Catamarca

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,363 in Mendoza versus $1,261 in Catamarca.

Mendoza $1,363
Catamarca $1,261

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,149 in Mendoza versus $2,111 in Catamarca.

Mendoza $2,149
Catamarca $2,111

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,935 in Mendoza versus $2,960 in Catamarca.

Mendoza $2,935
Catamarca $2,960

Living in Mendoza is roughly 8% more expensive than in Catamarca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.30 ARS 16.0K

$16.84 ARS 26.1K

-38.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.67 ARS 77.0K

$56.0 ARS 86.8K

-11.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.28 ARS 22.1K

$13.10 ARS 20.3K

9.01%

Cappuccino

$4.46 ARS 6,913

$3.80 ARS 5,888

17.37%

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

$2.44 ARS 3,780

$2.20 ARS 3,405

10.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 ARS 2,959

$1.94 ARS 3,004

-1.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.12 ARS 6,385

$3.66 ARS 5,672

12.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.54 ARS 7,042

$4.03 ARS 6,256

12.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 ARS 2,046

$1.40 ARS 2,165

-5.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.27 ARS 3,519

$2.19 ARS 3,398

3.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.67 ARS 4,132

$1.78 ARS 2,757

50.00%

Eggs

$3.17 ARS 4,921

$2.67 ARS 4,136

18.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.42 ARS 22.4K

$11.66 ARS 18.1K

23.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.20 ARS 9,610

$7.64 ARS 11.8K

-18.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.11 ARS 17.2K

$11.35 ARS 17.6K

-2.11%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 ARS 3,550

$2.49 ARS 3,863

-8.03%

Banana (1kg)

$2.24 ARS 3,476

$2.24 ARS 3,479

Oranges (1kg)

$1.34 ARS 2,078

$1.49 ARS 2,314

-10.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.30 ARS 5,114

$2.72 ARS 4,211

21.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 ARS 3,131

$1.07 ARS 1,652

88.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.50 ARS 2,331

$1.01 ARS 1,561

48.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.03 ARS 3,148

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.52 ARS 3,907

$1.55 ARS 2,407

62.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.67 ARS 4,139

$3.23 ARS 5,010

-17.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.86 ARS 7,540

$5.06 ARS 7,839

-3.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 ARS 2,652

$2.07 ARS 3,204

-17.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 ARS 4,714

$3.39 ARS 5,250

-10.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.97 ARS 1,507

$1.01 ARS 1,569

-3.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.09 ARS 31.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.99 ARS 3,078

$1.53 ARS 2,377

30.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ARS 1,587

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.99 ARS 7,738

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.23 ARS 1,906

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

$27.6K ARS 42.8M

$25.1K ARS 38.9M

9.99%

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

$32.9K ARS 51.1M

$31.9K ARS 49.5M

3.17%

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

$143 ARS 222.1K

$126 ARS 195.8K

13.41%

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

$17.24 ARS 26.7K

$17.09 ARS 26.5K

0.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.36 ARS 37.8K

$24.50 ARS 38.0K

-0.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.28 ARS 50.1K

$30.76 ARS 47.7K

4.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.05 ARS 28.0K

$20.95 ARS 32.5K

-13.84%

Cinema Ticket

$6.99 ARS 10.8K

$9.27 ARS 14.4K

-24.60%

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

$173 ARS 268.3K

$239 ARS 371.3K

-27.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,157 ARS 6.4M

$4,207 ARS 6.5M

-1.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$126 ARS 195.2K

$113 ARS 175.6K

11.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$140 ARS 217.3K

$83.0 ARS 128.6K

68.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$143 ARS 222.2K

$113 ARS 175.1K

26.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 ARS 245.9K

$117 ARS 182.0K

35.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$584 ARS 906.1K

$516 ARS 799.7K

13.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$334 ARS 518.3K

$326 ARS 506.1K

2.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$982 ARS 1.5M

$1,079 ARS 1.7M

-8.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$647 ARS 1.0M

$809 ARS 1.3M

-19.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,740 ARS 2.7M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,123 ARS 1.7M

$1,258 ARS 2.0M

-10.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$757 ARS 1.2M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

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

Last update for Mendoza: October 31, 2026

Last update for Catamarca: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mendoza

$334 24.5%

Catamarca

$326 25.9% 2.3% $7.8

Groceries & Markets

Mendoza

$285 20.9%

Catamarca

$257 * 20.4% 9.8% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Mendoza

$256 18.8%

Catamarca

$192 15.2% 24.9% $64

Eating Out

Mendoza

$226 16.6%

Catamarca

$263 20.8% 16.3% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mendoza

$185 13.6%

Catamarca

$168 13.3% 9.2% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Mendoza

$46 3.4%

Catamarca

$49 3.9% 6.6% $3.1

Getting Around

Mendoza

$31 2.3%

Catamarca

$5.6 * 0.4% 82% $25

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 $584 in Mendoza and $516 in Catamarca. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $50 in Mendoza vs $56 in Catamarca. Groceries flip the comparison at $285 vs $257, with Catamarca cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Mendoza

🇦🇷 Catamarca

🕒 Local time

10:52 10:52 AM

Same time as Mendoza

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

937,154

160,058

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.45 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.75 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.45 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Mendoza Catamarca 570 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Mendoza
Catamarca

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

Mendoza vs Catamarca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Catamarca wins on cost – living expenses run 7% lower than in Mendoza. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Catamarca the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,045 in Mendoza and $1,892 in Catamarca 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: $584 in Mendoza versus $516 in Catamarca. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 11% higher in Mendoza. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,363 per month in Mendoza versus $1,261 in Catamarca – Catamarca is about 7% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Catamarca 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, Mendoza and Catamarca are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.