Last update: Nov 2026

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

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.

64

Cost of Living Index in San Rafael
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San Rafael Living Index
55

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

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San Rafael

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,353

/mo nomad

Mar del Plata

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,161

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Living in San Rafael is roughly 17% more expensive than in Mar del Plata, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.01 ARS 17.0K

$19.87 ARS 30.7K

-44.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.9 ARS 78.7K

$80.5 ARS 124.3K

-36.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.49 ARS 22.4K

$11.63 ARS 18.0K

24.59%

Cappuccino

$4.44 ARS 6,855

$3.28 ARS 5,064

35.37%

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

$2.43 ARS 3,759

$2.47 ARS 3,816

-1.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 ARS 2,931

$2.02 ARS 3,124

-5.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.89 ARS 6,014

$3.58 ARS 5,536

8.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 ARS 6,766

$3.43 ARS 5,297

27.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 ARS 2,147

$1.22 ARS 1,884

13.93%

White Bread (500g)

$2.19 ARS 3,375

$2.27 ARS 3,499

-3.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.78 ARS 4,295

$2.76 ARS 4,269

0.72%

Eggs

$3.19 ARS 4,920

$3.95 ARS 6,097

-19.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.27 ARS 22.0K

$12.52 ARS 19.3K

13.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.11 ARS 9,443

$8.35 ARS 12.9K

-26.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.04 ARS 17.1K

$11.47 ARS 17.7K

-3.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.36 ARS 3,638

$3.03 ARS 4,682

-22.11%

Banana (1kg)

$2.23 ARS 3,446

$2.34 ARS 3,622

-4.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 ARS 2,108

$1.94 ARS 2,991

-29.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.33 ARS 5,148

$2.58 ARS 3,978

29.07%

Potato (1kg)

$2.03 ARS 3,128

$0.73 ARS 1,133

178.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 ARS 2,351

$0.73 ARS 1,131

108.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.00 ARS 3,091

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.57 ARS 3,966

$0.69 ARS 1,064

272.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.68 ARS 4,136

Wine (Bottle)

$5.07 ARS 7,835

$4.25 ARS 6,567

19.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 ARS 2,784

$2.33 ARS 3,603

-22.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.07 ARS 4,738

$5.17 ARS 7,980

-40.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.98 ARS 1,508

$1.35 ARS 2,088

-27.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.01 ARS 3,104

$1.49 ARS 2,302

34.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 ARS 1,583

$0.79 ARS 1,219

30.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.93 ARS 7,607

$6.32 ARS 9,765

-21.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 ARS 1,879

$1.46 ARS 2,253

-16.44%

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

$27.4K ARS 42.2M

$31.9K ARS 49.2M

-14.20%

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

$32.4K ARS 50.0M

$45.2K ARS 69.8M

-28.41%

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

$146 ARS 225.9K

$106 ARS 164.0K

37.71%

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

$17.25 ARS 26.6K

$10.59 ARS 16.4K

62.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.80 ARS 36.8K

$23.56 ARS 36.4K

1.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.51 ARS 48.7K

$31.16 ARS 48.1K

1.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.04 ARS 32.5K

$32.29 ARS 49.9K

-34.84%

Cinema Ticket

$7.25 ARS 11.2K

$9.84 ARS 15.2K

-26.32%

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

$174 ARS 268.7K

$257 ARS 396.5K

-32.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,125 ARS 6.4M

$5,698 ARS 8.8M

-27.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$125 ARS 193.2K

$125 ARS 192.7K

0.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$142 ARS 219.8K

$70.8 ARS 109.4K

100.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$141 ARS 218.5K

$108 ARS 166.9K

30.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$158 ARS 243.7K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$511 ARS 788.5K

$492 ARS 760.1K

3.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$336 ARS 519.7K

$279 ARS 430.5K

20.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,049 ARS 1.6M

$932 ARS 1.4M

12.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$825 ARS 1.3M

$777 ARS 1.2M

6.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,272 ARS 2.0M

$1,006 ARS 1.6M

26.44%

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 San Rafael: November 3, 2026

Last update for Mar del Plata: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Rafael

$336 24.9%

Mar del Plata

$279 24% 17.2% $58

Groceries & Markets

San Rafael

$287 21.2%

Mar del Plata

$268 * 23.1% 6.6% $19

Clothing & Footwear

San Rafael

$255 18.9%

Mar del Plata

$137 * 11.8% 46.4% $118

Eating Out

San Rafael

$230 17%

Mar del Plata

$276 23.8% 19.8% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Rafael

$187 13.9%

Mar del Plata

$140 12.1% 25.1% $47

Sport & Entertainment

San Rafael

$46 3.4%

Mar del Plata

$51 4.4% 10.5% $4.8

Getting Around

San Rafael

$11 * 0.8%

Mar del Plata

$11 * 0.9% 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 $511 in San Rafael and $492 in Mar del Plata. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

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

Good to know

🇦🇷 San Rafael

🇦🇷 Mar del Plata

🕒 Local time

17:34 5:34 PM

Same time as San Rafael

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

118,850

593,337

💱 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

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

From you

San Rafael
Mar del Plata

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

San Rafael vs Mar del Plata: 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 $2,029 in San Rafael and $1,742 in Mar del Plata 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: $511 in San Rafael versus $492 in Mar del Plata. 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 $1,353 per month in San Rafael versus $1,161 in Mar del Plata – 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, San Rafael and Mar del Plata are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.