Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Toronto and El Calafate

For one person, living is cheaper in El Calafate: $961 a month against $2,561 in Toronto, rent and utilities included – about $19,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Toronto
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Toronto Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in El Calafate
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El Calafate Living Index

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Toronto

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,561

/mo nomad

El Calafate

🇦🇷 Argentina

$961

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,561 in Toronto versus $961 in El Calafate.

Toronto $2,561
El Calafate $961

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,694 in Toronto versus $1,574 in El Calafate.

Toronto $3,694
El Calafate $1,574

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,826 in Toronto versus $2,187 in El Calafate.

Toronto $4,826
El Calafate $2,187

Living in Toronto is roughly 166% more expensive than in El Calafate, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Toronto is 90% above, El Calafate is 29% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.18 CA$24.29

$10.66 ARS 16.2K

61.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.0 CA$107

$33.87 ARS 51.4K

124.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 CA$14.89

$8.85 ARS 13.4K

19.10%

Cappuccino

$4.02 CA$5.68

$2.77 ARS 4,198

45.13%

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

$2.12 CA$3.00

$1.64 ARS 2,484

29.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 CA$2.48

$1.49 ARS 2,268

17.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.24 CA$8.83

$2.08 ARS 3,157

200.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.09 CA$10.02

$2.93 ARS 4,452

141.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.44 CA$3.45

$1.24 ARS 1,887

96.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.68 CA$3.78

$1.61 ARS 2,446

66.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 CA$3.17

$1.93 ARS 2,930

16.06%

Eggs

$3.56 CA$5.03

$2.20 ARS 3,346

61.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.09 CA$12.85

$10.29 ARS 15.6K

-11.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.33 CA$16.01

$6.07 ARS 9,209

86.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.53 CA$20.55

$9.50 ARS 14.4K

52.95%

Apples (1kg)

$3.62 CA$5.12

$1.95 ARS 2,963

85.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 CA$1.72

$2.11 ARS 3,205

-42.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.60 CA$5.09

$1.33 ARS 2,015

170.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.21 CA$5.96

$2.62 ARS 3,973

60.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 CA$2.53

$1.19 ARS 1,808

50.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 CA$2.25

$1.20 ARS 1,821

32.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.27 CA$3.21

$1.30 ARS 1,973

74.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 CA$1.77

$1.48 ARS 2,245

-15.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.82 CA$19.53

$3.16 ARS 4,800

337.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.27 CA$20.18

$4.97 ARS 7,536

187.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.20 CA$3.10

$2.06 ARS 3,133

6.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 CA$3.44

$3.16 ARS 4,799

-23.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.39 CA$3.38

$0.76 ARS 1,159

214.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$111 CA$157

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 CA$4.12

$1.51 ARS 2,293

92.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 CA$1.69

$0.87 ARS 1,322

37.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.38 CA$30.23

$5.89 ARS 8,934

262.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 CA$1.71

$1.05 ARS 1,600

15.24%

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

$28.2K CA$39.8K

$27.4K ARS 41.6M

2.70%

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

$20.3K CA$28.6K

$30.2K ARS 45.9M

-32.99%

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

$120 CA$170

$66.5 ARS 100.9K

81.00%

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

$32.26 CA$45.60

$16.85 ARS 25.6K

91.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.93 CA$67.8

$22.42 ARS 34.0K

113.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.48 CA$54.4

$26.64 ARS 40.4K

44.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.96 CA$32.46

$13.53 ARS 20.5K

69.70%

Cinema Ticket

$12.38 CA$17.50

$6.34 ARS 9,617

95.27%

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

$830 CA$1,173

$224 ARS 340.0K

270.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K CA$32.6K

$2,679 ARS 4.1M

761.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.7 CA$71.7

$72.7 ARS 110.3K

-30.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.02 CA$56.6

$70.7 ARS 107.3K

-43.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.0 CA$139

$114 ARS 173.7K

-14.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 CA$171

$114 ARS 172.2K

6.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,592 CA$2,251

$342 ARS 518.6K

365.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,410 CA$1,994

$235 ARS 357.2K

499.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,670 CA$3,775

$695 ARS 1.1M

284.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,152 CA$3,042

$533 ARS 809.3K

303.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,945 CA$11.2K

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

327.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,542 CA$9,249

$1,600 ARS 2.4M

308.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,727 CA$5,269

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.47

58.5

-92.36%

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

Last update for Toronto: October 12, 2026

Last update for El Calafate: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Toronto

$1.4K 55.1%

El Calafate

$235 24.5% 83.3% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Toronto

$340 13.3%

El Calafate

$231 24% 32% $109

Eating Out

Toronto

$278 10.9%

El Calafate

$174 18.1% 37.5% $104

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Toronto

$201 7.8%

El Calafate

$106 11% 47.3% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Toronto

$139 5.4%

El Calafate

$167 17.4% 20.1% $28

Getting Around

Toronto

$129 5.1%

El Calafate

$8.9 * 0.9% 93.1% $120

Sport & Entertainment

Toronto

$63 2.5%

El Calafate

$39 4.1% 37.8% $24

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 $1,592 in Toronto and $342 in El Calafate. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $76.0 in Toronto vs $34.00 in El Calafate for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $340 vs $231 per month, with El Calafate cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Toronto

🇦🇷 El Calafate

🕒 Local time

11:08 11:08 AM

12:08 12:08 PM

1 h ahead of Toronto

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,731,571

22,844

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 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 CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Toronto El Calafate 10,470 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Toronto
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

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

Toronto and El Calafate differ by about 166% in total monthly costs ($2,561 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 $3,841 in Toronto 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: $1,592 in Toronto versus $342 in El Calafate. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $830 in Toronto 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 $76.0 in Toronto. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $961 in El Calafate versus $2,561 in Toronto, a $2,000 budget is realistic in El Calafate but tight or insufficient in Toronto. 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.

Expats usually find El Calafate gentler on the wallet – expenses run 166% less than in Toronto. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.