Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quilmes and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Quilmes: $957 a month against $1,633 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Quilmes
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Quilmes Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index

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Quilmes

🇦🇷 Argentina

$957

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,633

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $957 in Quilmes versus $1,633 in Buenos Aires.

Quilmes $957
Buenos Aires $1,633

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,615 in Quilmes versus $2,640 in Buenos Aires.

Quilmes $1,615
Buenos Aires $2,640

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,273 in Quilmes versus $3,646 in Buenos Aires.

Quilmes $2,273
Buenos Aires $3,646

Living in Quilmes costs roughly 41% less than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Quilmes is 30% below, Buenos Aires is 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.55 ARS 8,543

$18.24 ARS 28.1K

-69.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.20 ARS 54.1K

$66.3 ARS 101.9K

-46.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.82 ARS 13.6K

$12.96 ARS 19.9K

-31.94%

Cappuccino

$2.93 ARS 4,501

$3.73 ARS 5,742

-21.45%

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

$1.71 ARS 2,634

$2.03 ARS 3,128

-15.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 ARS 2,500

$1.70 ARS 2,612

-4.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.90 ARS 5,993

$4.06 ARS 6,243

-3.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 ARS 3,519

$4.75 ARS 7,301

-51.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.97 ARS 1,495

$1.46 ARS 2,249

-33.56%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 ARS 2,426

$2.54 ARS 3,904

-37.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.58 ARS 2,425

$1.58 ARS 2,434

Eggs

$2.28 ARS 3,508

$2.68 ARS 4,123

-14.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.31 ARS 20.5K

$11.14 ARS 17.1K

19.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.11 ARS 9,398

$10.08 ARS 15.5K

-39.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.80 ARS 15.1K

$13.18 ARS 20.3K

-25.64%

Apples (1kg)

$1.96 ARS 3,016

$2.76 ARS 4,250

-28.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 ARS 2,350

$2.20 ARS 3,384

-30.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.01 ARS 1,557

$1.40 ARS 2,148

-27.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.95 ARS 4,538

$1.99 ARS 3,055

48.24%

Potato (1kg)

$0.92 ARS 1,412

$1.20 ARS 1,845

-23.33%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ARS 990

$1.15 ARS 1,774

-44.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 ARS 1,111

$1.63 ARS 2,500

-55.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 ARS 1,060

$1.80 ARS 2,769

-61.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.99 ARS 7,671

$4.21 ARS 6,478

18.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.29 ARS 6,603

$5.51 ARS 8,480

-22.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ARS 1,896

$2.07 ARS 3,177

-40.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 ARS 2,904

$2.77 ARS 4,254

-31.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.02 ARS 1,574

$0.74 ARS 1,143

37.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.83 ARS 45.9K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.49 ARS 2,285

$1.61 ARS 2,481

-7.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ARS 1,576

$0.97 ARS 1,497

5.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.15 ARS 12.5K

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.14 ARS 1,756

$1.40 ARS 2,160

-18.57%

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

$50.3K ARS 77.4M

$23.2K ARS 35.7M

116.99%

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

$38.0K ARS 58.4M

$32.8K ARS 50.5M

15.54%

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

$60.2 ARS 92.6K

$196 ARS 301.9K

-69.33%

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

$14.48 ARS 22.3K

$23.91 ARS 36.8K

-39.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.58 ARS 33.2K

$31.50 ARS 48.5K

-31.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.79 ARS 41.2K

$48.01 ARS 73.8K

-44.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.31 ARS 28.2K

$16.62 ARS 25.6K

10.17%

Cinema Ticket

$10.13 ARS 15.6K

$10.57 ARS 16.3K

-4.16%

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

$240 ARS 369.2K

$501 ARS 770.1K

-52.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,307 ARS 6.6M

$8,870 ARS 13.6M

-51.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.2 ARS 146.4K

$121 ARS 186.8K

-21.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.45 ARS 53.0K

$95.6 ARS 147.0K

-63.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$62.9 ARS 96.8K

$116 ARS 178.5K

-45.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.1 ARS 107.8K

$139 ARS 213.2K

-49.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$518 ARS 796.8K

$731 ARS 1.1M

-29.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$330 ARS 507.0K

$503 ARS 773.8K

-34.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,058 ARS 1.6M

$1,477 ARS 2.3M

-28.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$817 ARS 1.3M

$1,119 ARS 1.7M

-27.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,378 ARS 3.7M

$2,703 ARS 4.2M

-12.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,264 ARS 1.9M

$1,940 ARS 3.0M

-34.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,102 ARS 1.7M

$921 ARS 1.4M

19.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

100

57.25

74.67%

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

Last update for Quilmes: October 26, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Quilmes

$330 34.4%

Buenos Aires

$503 30.8% 52.6% $173

Groceries & Markets

Quilmes

$212 22.2%

Buenos Aires

$284 17.4% 33.7% $72

Eating Out

Quilmes

$143 15%

Buenos Aires

$274 16.8% 91.2% $131

Clothing & Footwear

Quilmes

$118 12.3%

Buenos Aires

$212 13% 79.6% $94

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quilmes

$96 10.1%

Buenos Aires

$252 15.4% 162% $155

Sport & Entertainment

Quilmes

$47 4.9%

Buenos Aires

$69 4.2% 47% $22

Getting Around

Quilmes

$11 * 1.1%

Buenos Aires

$39 2.4% 267% $29

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 $518 in Quilmes and $731 in Buenos Aires. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Quilmes pays 20% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $35 in Quilmes vs $66 in Buenos Aires for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $212 vs $284 per month, with Quilmes cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Quilmes

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

17:28 5:28 PM

Same time as Quilmes

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

230,810

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.5 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.84 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Quilmes vs Buenos Aires: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $957 in Quilmes and $1,633 in Buenos Aires, so Quilmes is about 41% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 20% higher in Quilmes, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $518 in Quilmes versus $731 in Buenos Aires. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $240 in Quilmes versus $501 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 Quilmes – a meal for two runs $35 versus $66 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Quilmes 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, Quilmes and Buenos Aires are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.