Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Upington and Buenos Aires

For one person, living is cheaper in Upington: $1,133 a month against $1,646 in Buenos Aires, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Upington
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Upington Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index

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Upington

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,133

/mo nomad

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,646

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,133 in Upington versus $1,646 in Buenos Aires.

Upington $1,133
Buenos Aires $1,646

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,760 in Upington versus $2,680 in Buenos Aires.

Upington $1,760
Buenos Aires $2,680

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,388 in Upington versus $3,714 in Buenos Aires.

Upington $2,388
Buenos Aires $3,714

Living in Upington costs roughly 31% less than in Buenos Aires, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Upington is 16% below, Buenos Aires is 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.40 R 204

$17.81 ARS 27.0K

-30.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.12 R 612

$65.2 ARS 98.9K

-43.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.69 R 93.7

$13.12 ARS 19.9K

-56.63%

Cappuccino

$1.74 R 28.68

$3.86 ARS 5,863

-54.92%

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

$1.04 R 17.17

$2.06 ARS 3,133

-49.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 R 12.58

$1.68 ARS 2,542

-54.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.73 R 28.48

$4.10 ARS 6,218

-57.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 R 46.42

$4.73 ARS 7,181

-40.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.89 R 14.65

$1.51 ARS 2,285

-41.06%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 R 20.66

$2.60 ARS 3,950

-51.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 R 27.26

$1.57 ARS 2,380

5.10%

Eggs

$2.64 R 43.52

$2.73 ARS 4,144

-3.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.45 R 139

$10.86 ARS 16.5K

-22.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.12 R 84.3

$10.07 ARS 15.3K

-49.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.27 R 120

$13.22 ARS 20.1K

-45.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.04 R 33.55

$2.80 ARS 4,255

-27.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 R 28.20

$2.09 ARS 3,170

-18.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 R 29.35

$1.45 ARS 2,194

22.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.84 R 30.29

$2.00 ARS 3,040

-8.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 R 24.81

$1.20 ARS 1,826

25.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.95

$1.20 ARS 1,821

31.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 R 20.96

$1.69 ARS 2,569

-24.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 R 16.78

$1.79 ARS 2,711

-43.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.76 R 45.51

$4.00 ARS 6,074

-31.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.73 R 61.4

$5.53 ARS 8,388

-32.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 R 21.09

$2.12 ARS 3,219

-39.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 R 28.88

$2.78 ARS 4,212

-37.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.74 R 28.72

$0.69 ARS 1,049

152.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.90 ARS 42.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.55 R 9.03

$1.63 ARS 2,471

-66.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 R 15.86

$0.97 ARS 1,478

-1.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.66 R 176

$7.89 ARS 12.0K

35.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 R 24.69

$1.42 ARS 2,156

5.63%

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

$31.3K R 514.9K

$23.3K ARS 35.4M

33.93%

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

$34.0K R 560.5K

$31.9K ARS 48.5M

6.51%

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

$146 R 2,404

$199 ARS 302.7K

-26.84%

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

$37.98 R 626

$23.36 ARS 35.4K

62.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.45 R 633

$31.44 ARS 47.7K

22.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.77 R 458

$49.81 ARS 75.6K

-44.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.05 R 198

$16.63 ARS 25.2K

-27.54%

Cinema Ticket

$6.94 R 114

$10.80 ARS 16.4K

-35.74%

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

$103 R 1,691

$462 ARS 701.7K

-77.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,463 R 90.0K

$8,790 ARS 13.3M

-37.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.2 R 1,008

$120 ARS 181.6K

-48.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.44 R 551

$94.6 ARS 143.6K

-64.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,916

$116 ARS 176.4K

0.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.9 R 1,597

$137 ARS 208.6K

-29.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$394 R 6,494

$750 ARS 1.1M

-47.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$369 R 6,084

$514 ARS 780.5K

-28.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$616 R 10.2K

$1,567 ARS 2.4M

-60.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$737 R 12.1K

$1,196 ARS 1.8M

-38.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$763 R 12.6K

$2,632 ARS 4.0M

-71.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$736 R 12.1K

$1,874 ARS 2.8M

-60.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$776 R 12.8K

$924 ARS 1.4M

-16.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.38

57.25

-80.12%

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

Last update for Upington: October 18, 2026

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Upington

$369 32.6%

Buenos Aires

$514 31.3% 39.3% $145

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Upington

$222 19.6%

Buenos Aires

$254 15.5% 14.4% $32

Groceries & Markets

Upington

$190 16.8%

Buenos Aires

$285 17.3% 49.5% $94

Eating Out

Upington

$159 14%

Buenos Aires

$273 16.6% 72.1% $114

Clothing & Footwear

Upington

$139 12.2%

Buenos Aires

$211 12.8% 52% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Upington

$42 3.7%

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3% 71.5% $30

Getting Around

Upington

$12 * 1.1%

Buenos Aires

$37 2.3% 201% $25

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 $394 in Upington and $750 in Buenos Aires. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buenos Aires pays 19% 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: $37.00 in Upington vs $65.0 in Buenos Aires for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $190 vs $285 per month, with Upington cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Upington

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🕒 Local time

01:27 1:27 AM

20:27 8:27 PM

5 h behind Upington

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,834

2,891,082 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 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 ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Upington Buenos Aires 7,380 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Upington
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

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

Upington and Buenos Aires differ by about 45% in total monthly costs ($1,133 vs $1,646 including rent). Upington is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 19% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $394 in Upington versus $750 in Buenos Aires. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $103 in Upington versus $462 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 Upington – a meal for two runs $37.00 versus $65.0 in Buenos Aires. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,133 in Upington versus $1,646 in Buenos Aires, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Upington but tight or insufficient in Buenos Aires. The gap between the two cities makes Upington 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, Upington 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 Upington gentler on the wallet – expenses run 45% less than in Buenos Aires. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.