Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santo Domingo and Mendoza

For one person, living is cheaper in Santo Domingo: $1,105 a month against $1,387 in Mendoza, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Santo Domingo
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Santo Domingo Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Mendoza
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Mendoza Living Index

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Santo Domingo

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$1,105

/mo nomad

Mendoza

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,387

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santo Domingo and in Mendoza

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

A single person spends $1,105 per month in Santo Domingo vs $1,387 in Mendoza, rent included.

Santo Domingo $1,105
Mendoza $1,387

A couple spends around $1,733 per month in Santo Domingo vs $2,185 in Mendoza, rent included.

Santo Domingo $1,733
Mendoza $2,185

A family of three spends $2,362 per month in Santo Domingo vs $2,984 in Mendoza, rent included.

Santo Domingo $2,362
Mendoza $2,984

Santo Domingo is about 20% cheaper than Mendoza, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Santo Domingo sits 18% below the global median, while Mendoza is 3% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.06 DOP 616

$10.98 ARS 16.7K

-8.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.2 DOP 3,074

$49.80 ARS 75.6K

0.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.65 DOP 469

$14.36 ARS 21.8K

-46.73%

Cappuccino

$2.30 DOP 141

$4.54 ARS 6,896

-49.34%

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

$1.05 DOP 64.5

$2.32 ARS 3,517

-54.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.60 DOP 36.59

$1.94 ARS 2,949

-69.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.49 DOP 152

$4.08 ARS 6,191

-38.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.24 DOP 198

$4.46 ARS 6,775

-27.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 DOP 85.1

$1.38 ARS 2,102

0.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 DOP 94.6

$2.21 ARS 3,358

-30.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.57 DOP 96.1

$2.66 ARS 4,034

-40.98%

Eggs

$2.26 DOP 139

$3.19 ARS 4,836

-29.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.16 DOP 439

$14.72 ARS 22.3K

-51.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.42 DOP 332

$6.23 ARS 9,447

-13.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.56 DOP 402

$11.05 ARS 16.8K

-40.63%

Apples (1kg)

$3.24 DOP 199

$2.29 ARS 3,478

41.48%

Banana (1kg)

$0.81 DOP 49.71

$2.23 ARS 3,386

-63.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.68 DOP 164

$1.34 ARS 2,036

100.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.86 DOP 114

$3.28 ARS 4,974

-43.29%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 DOP 124

$2.02 ARS 3,067

Onion (1kg)

$2.21 DOP 135

$1.49 ARS 2,268

48.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 DOP 62.8

$2.03 ARS 3,074

-49.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 DOP 56.9

$2.47 ARS 3,743

-62.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.39 DOP 330

$2.82 ARS 4,275

91.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.14 DOP 621

$5.08 ARS 7,712

99.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.50 DOP 153

$1.72 ARS 2,608

45.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 DOP 175

$3.02 ARS 4,583

-5.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.56 DOP 34.14

$0.98 ARS 1,486

-42.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.15 DOP 1,112

$19.73 ARS 29.9K

-8.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 DOP 207

$2.02 ARS 3,059

67.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.16 DOP 132

$0.99 ARS 1,495

118.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.87 DOP 359

$4.82 ARS 7,318

21.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 DOP 88.7

$1.25 ARS 1,897

16.00%

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

$23.3K DOP 1.4M

$27.6K ARS 41.9M

-15.60%

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

$33.2K DOP 2.0M

$33.0K ARS 50.1M

0.52%

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

$93.5 DOP 5,730

$144 ARS 218.4K

-35.01%

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

$31.73 DOP 1,944

$17.72 ARS 26.9K

79.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.43 DOP 2,232

$23.92 ARS 36.3K

52.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.02 DOP 1,778

$32.32 ARS 49.0K

-10.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.12 DOP 1,478

$18.07 ARS 27.4K

33.48%

Cinema Ticket

$7.23 DOP 443

$7.10 ARS 10.8K

1.83%

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

$250 DOP 15.3K

$176 ARS 266.3K

42.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,461 DOP 457.1K

$4,178 ARS 6.3M

78.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.03 DOP 2,759

$127 ARS 192.2K

-64.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.51 DOP 2,788

$141 ARS 214.2K

-67.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.9 DOP 5,262

$144 ARS 217.9K

-40.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 DOP 7,640

$157 ARS 238.0K

-20.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$710 DOP 43.5K

$553 ARS 838.5K

28.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$355 DOP 21.7K

$350 ARS 531.6K

1.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,445 DOP 88.5K

$993 ARS 1.5M

45.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 DOP 38.3K

$680 ARS 1.0M

-8.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,235 DOP 136.9K

$1,751 ARS 2.7M

27.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,192 DOP 73.0K

$1,141 ARS 1.7M

4.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$586 DOP 35.9K

$766 ARS 1.2M

-23.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.56

-77.02%

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

Last update for Santo Domingo: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mendoza: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santo Domingo

$355 32.1%

Mendoza

$350 25.3% 1.2% $4.4

Groceries & Markets

Santo Domingo

$218 19.8%

Mendoza

$286 20.6% 31.1% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santo Domingo

$162 14.6%

Mendoza

$186 13.4% 14.8% $24

Eating Out

Santo Domingo

$157 14.2%

Mendoza

$232 16.7% 48.1% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Santo Domingo

$136 12.3%

Mendoza

$256 18.4% 88.7% $120

Sport & Entertainment

Santo Domingo

$43 3.9%

Mendoza

$47 3.4% 7% $3

Getting Around

Santo Domingo

$35 3.1%

Mendoza

$31 2.2% 11.4% $3.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $710 in Santo Domingo versus $553 in Mendoza. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 31% higher in Mendoza, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Santo Domingo versus $50.0 in Mendoza. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $218 vs $286 – making Santo Domingo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇩🇴 Santo Domingo

🇦🇷 Mendoza

🕒 Local time

11:53 11:53 AM

12:53 12:53 PM

1 h ahead of Santo Domingo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

965,040 Capital

937,154

💱 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 61.26 DOP (100 DOP = 1.63 USD). 1 EUR = 68.88 DOP (100 DOP = 1.45 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 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 Mendoza 5,710 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Santo Domingo
Mendoza

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 vs Mendoza: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Mendoza is pricier by about 26%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,657 per month in Santo Domingo and $2,080 in Mendoza. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Santo Domingo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 9% less in Santo Domingo. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $250 per month in Santo Domingo and $176 in Mendoza. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Santo Domingo, where all-in costs run around $1,105, than in Mendoza at $1,387. In Santo Domingo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Mendoza it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Santo Domingo – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Santo Domingo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Mendoza makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.