Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mendoza and El Calafate

For one person, living is cheaper in El Calafate: $961 a month against $1,387 in Mendoza, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Mendoza
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Mendoza Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in El Calafate
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El Calafate Living Index

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Mendoza

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,387

/mo nomad

El Calafate

🇦🇷 Argentina

$961

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mendoza 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 Mendoza and in El Calafate actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,387 in Mendoza versus $961 in El Calafate.

Mendoza $1,387
El Calafate $961

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,185 in Mendoza versus $1,574 in El Calafate.

Mendoza $2,185
El Calafate $1,574

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,984 in Mendoza versus $2,187 in El Calafate.

Mendoza $2,984
El Calafate $2,187

Living in Mendoza is roughly 44% more expensive than in El Calafate, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mendoza is 3% above, El Calafate is 29% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.98 ARS 16.7K

$10.66 ARS 16.2K

3.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.80 ARS 75.6K

$33.87 ARS 51.4K

47.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.36 ARS 21.8K

$8.85 ARS 13.4K

62.26%

Cappuccino

$4.54 ARS 6,896

$2.77 ARS 4,198

63.90%

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

$2.32 ARS 3,517

$1.64 ARS 2,484

41.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 ARS 2,949

$1.49 ARS 2,268

30.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.08 ARS 6,191

$2.08 ARS 3,157

96.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.46 ARS 6,775

$2.93 ARS 4,452

52.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 ARS 2,102

$1.24 ARS 1,887

11.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.21 ARS 3,358

$1.61 ARS 2,446

37.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 ARS 4,034

$1.93 ARS 2,930

37.82%

Eggs

$3.19 ARS 4,836

$2.20 ARS 3,346

45.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.72 ARS 22.3K

$10.29 ARS 15.6K

43.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.23 ARS 9,447

$6.07 ARS 9,209

2.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.05 ARS 16.8K

$9.50 ARS 14.4K

16.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 ARS 3,478

$1.95 ARS 2,963

17.44%

Banana (1kg)

$2.23 ARS 3,386

$2.11 ARS 3,205

5.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.34 ARS 2,036

$1.33 ARS 2,015

0.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.28 ARS 4,974

$2.62 ARS 3,973

25.19%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 ARS 3,067

$1.19 ARS 1,808

69.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.49 ARS 2,268

$1.20 ARS 1,821

24.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.03 ARS 3,074

$1.30 ARS 1,973

56.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 ARS 3,743

$1.48 ARS 2,245

66.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.82 ARS 4,275

$3.16 ARS 4,800

-10.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.08 ARS 7,712

$4.97 ARS 7,536

2.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ARS 2,608

$2.06 ARS 3,133

-16.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.02 ARS 4,583

$3.16 ARS 4,799

-4.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.98 ARS 1,486

$0.76 ARS 1,159

28.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.73 ARS 29.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.02 ARS 3,059

$1.51 ARS 2,293

33.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 ARS 1,495

$0.87 ARS 1,322

13.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.82 ARS 7,318

$5.89 ARS 8,934

-18.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 ARS 1,897

$1.05 ARS 1,600

19.05%

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

$27.6K ARS 41.9M

$27.4K ARS 41.6M

0.54%

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

$33.0K ARS 50.1M

$30.2K ARS 45.9M

9.31%

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

$144 ARS 218.4K

$66.5 ARS 100.9K

116.47%

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

$17.72 ARS 26.9K

$16.85 ARS 25.6K

5.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.92 ARS 36.3K

$22.42 ARS 34.0K

6.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.32 ARS 49.0K

$26.64 ARS 40.4K

21.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.07 ARS 27.4K

$13.53 ARS 20.5K

33.56%

Cinema Ticket

$7.10 ARS 10.8K

$6.34 ARS 9,617

11.99%

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

$176 ARS 266.3K

$224 ARS 340.0K

-21.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,178 ARS 6.3M

$2,679 ARS 4.1M

55.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$127 ARS 192.2K

$72.7 ARS 110.3K

74.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$141 ARS 214.2K

$70.7 ARS 107.3K

99.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$144 ARS 217.9K

$114 ARS 173.7K

25.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$157 ARS 238.0K

$114 ARS 172.2K

38.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$553 ARS 838.5K

$342 ARS 518.6K

61.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$350 ARS 531.6K

$235 ARS 357.2K

48.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$993 ARS 1.5M

$695 ARS 1.1M

42.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$680 ARS 1.0M

$533 ARS 809.3K

27.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,751 ARS 2.7M

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

-5.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,141 ARS 1.7M

$1,600 ARS 2.4M

-28.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$766 ARS 1.2M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

58.5

0.85%

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

Last update for Mendoza: October 11, 2026

Last update for El Calafate: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mendoza

$350 25.3%

El Calafate

$235 24.5% 32.8% $115

Groceries & Markets

Mendoza

$286 20.6%

El Calafate

$231 24% 19.2% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Mendoza

$256 18.4%

El Calafate

$167 17.4% 34.6% $89

Eating Out

Mendoza

$232 16.7%

El Calafate

$174 18.1% 25% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mendoza

$186 13.4%

El Calafate

$106 11% 43% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Mendoza

$47 3.4%

El Calafate

$39 4.1% 15.5% $7.2

Getting Around

Mendoza

$31 2.2%

El Calafate

$8.9 * 0.9% 70.8% $22

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 $553 in Mendoza and $342 in El Calafate. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $50.0 in Mendoza vs $34.00 in El Calafate for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $286 vs $231 per month, with El Calafate cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Mendoza

🇦🇷 El Calafate

🕒 Local time

10:22 10:22 AM

Same time as Mendoza

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

937,154

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

On the map

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Mendoza El Calafate 1,960 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

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Mendoza
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

Mendoza vs El Calafate: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mendoza and El Calafate differ by about 44% in total monthly costs ($1,387 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 $2,080 in Mendoza 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: $553 in Mendoza versus $342 in El Calafate. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $176 in Mendoza 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 $50.0 in Mendoza. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $961 in El Calafate versus $1,387 in Mendoza, a $2,000 budget is realistic in El Calafate but tight or insufficient in Mendoza. 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, Mendoza 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 44% less than in Mendoza. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.