Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santo Domingo Este and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Santo Domingo Este: $643 a month against $1,656 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Santo Domingo Este
Learn more

Santo Domingo Este Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
Learn more

Buenos Aires Living Index

Jump to prices

Santo Domingo Este

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$643

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,656

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $643 in Santo Domingo Este versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires.

Santo Domingo Este $643
Buenos Aires $1,656

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,043 in Santo Domingo Este versus $2,697 in Buenos Aires.

Santo Domingo Este $1,043
Buenos Aires $2,697

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,442 in Santo Domingo Este versus $3,737 in Buenos Aires.

Santo Domingo Este $1,442
Buenos Aires $3,737

Living in Santo Domingo Este costs roughly 61% less than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Santo Domingo Este is 52% below, Buenos Aires is 23% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.06 DOP 310

$19.09 ARS 29.0K

-73.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.96 DOP 2,509

$65.8 ARS 99.9K

-37.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.51 DOP 399

$13.20 ARS 20.0K

-50.68%

Cappuccino

$1.00 DOP 61.3

$3.85 ARS 5,841

-74.03%

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

$1.04 DOP 63.8

$1.99 ARS 3,020

-47.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.60 DOP 36.58

$1.60 ARS 2,430

-62.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 DOP 147

$3.93 ARS 5,959

-38.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 DOP 193

$4.61 ARS 7,003

-31.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 DOP 81.9

$1.50 ARS 2,272

-10.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 DOP 90.0

$2.53 ARS 3,837

-41.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.59 DOP 97.5

$1.61 ARS 2,445

-1.24%

Eggs

$2.29 DOP 141

$2.84 ARS 4,316

-19.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.20 DOP 441

$10.30 ARS 15.6K

-30.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.68 DOP 348

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

-43.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.70 DOP 411

$13.30 ARS 20.2K

-49.62%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 DOP 189

$2.88 ARS 4,366

6.94%

Banana (1kg)

$0.84 DOP 51.4

$2.20 ARS 3,334

-61.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.72 DOP 167

$1.40 ARS 2,120

94.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.87 DOP 115

$1.98 ARS 3,004

-5.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 DOP 121

$1.21 ARS 1,835

62.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.23 DOP 137

$1.26 ARS 1,910

76.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 DOP 62.7

$1.71 ARS 2,592

-40.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 DOP 58.3

$1.72 ARS 2,603

-44.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 DOP 328

$4.29 ARS 6,505

24.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.36 DOP 635

$5.70 ARS 8,645

81.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.60 DOP 159

$2.17 ARS 3,288

19.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.96 DOP 182

$2.76 ARS 4,188

7.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,141

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.27 ARS 41.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 DOP 201

$1.57 ARS 2,375

108.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.20 DOP 135

$1.03 ARS 1,558

113.59%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.66 DOP 346

$7.90 ARS 12.0K

-28.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 DOP 79.3

$1.42 ARS 2,160

-9.15%

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

$22.9K DOP 1.4M

$27.9K ARS 42.4M

-18.14%

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

$33.8K DOP 2.1M

$35.0K ARS 53.1M

-3.31%

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

$93.6 DOP 5,735

$195 ARS 296.2K

-52.04%

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

$32.04 DOP 1,963

$25.16 ARS 38.2K

27.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.97 DOP 2,204

$31.54 ARS 47.9K

14.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.9 ARS 77.3K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.73 ARS 25.4K

Cinema Ticket

$7.49 DOP 459

$10.34 ARS 15.7K

-27.56%

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

$251 DOP 15.4K

$463 ARS 703.2K

-45.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,405 DOP 453.6K

$8,793 ARS 13.3M

-15.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.98 DOP 2,817

$120 ARS 181.8K

-61.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.49 DOP 2,787

$95.5 ARS 144.9K

-52.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.4 DOP 5,356

$114 ARS 173.1K

-23.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 DOP 7,425

$139 ARS 211.4K

-12.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 ARS 1.1M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ARS 788.8K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 ARS 2.4M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 ARS 1.8M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,713 ARS 4.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,901 ARS 2.9M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$593 DOP 36.3K

$938 ARS 1.4M

-36.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.56

57.25

-76.31%

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

Last update for Santo Domingo Este: October 12, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Santo Domingo Este

$220 34.2%

Buenos Aires

$283 17.1% 28.8% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santo Domingo Este

$162 25.1%

Buenos Aires

$252 15.2% 55.8% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Santo Domingo Este

$135 21%

Buenos Aires

$211 12.7% 56.2% $76

Eating Out

Santo Domingo Este

$97 15.1%

Buenos Aires

$282 17% 191% $185

Sport & Entertainment

Santo Domingo Este

$15 * 2.3%

Buenos Aires

$72 4.3% 378% $57

Getting Around

Santo Domingo Este

$14 * 2.2%

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2% 159% $23

Accommodation & Living

Santo Domingo Este

- * 0%

Buenos Aires

$520 31.4%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Buenos Aires pays 58% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $41.00 in Santo Domingo Este vs $66.0 in Buenos Aires for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $220 vs $283 per month, with Santo Domingo Este cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇩🇴 Santo Domingo Este

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

04:21 4:21 AM

05:21 5:21 AM

1 h ahead of Santo Domingo Este

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,000,230

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

Dominican Peso DOP $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

100 DOP = 1.63 USD

100 DOP = 1.45 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to DOP – Dominican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇩🇴 Dominican Peso ($)

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 61.26 DOP (100 DOP = 1.63 USD). 1 EUR = 68.87 DOP (100 DOP = 1.45 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

USD to DOP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Santo Domingo Este Buenos Aires 6,030 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Santo Domingo Este
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

Santo Domingo Este vs Buenos Aires: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santo Domingo Este and Buenos Aires differ by about 158% in total monthly costs ($643 vs $1,656 including rent). Santo Domingo Este is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 58% lower in Buenos Aires. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Childcare runs $251 in Santo Domingo Este versus $463 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 Santo Domingo Este – a meal for two runs $41.00 versus $66.0 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $643 in Santo Domingo Este versus $1,656 in Buenos Aires, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Santo Domingo Este but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Santo Domingo Este 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, Santo Domingo Este 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 Santo Domingo Este gentler on the wallet – expenses run 158% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.