Cost of living comparison
compared to
California vs. Argentina Cost of Living Summary
California is 3.0 times more expensive than Argentina overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 60.2% more in California
- Groceries
-
pay 2.0 times more in California
- Transportation
-
pay 72.0% more in California
- Housing
-
pay 4.7 times more in California
- Childcare
-
pay 7.5 times more in California
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.5 times more in California
- Clothing
-
pay 25.6% less in California
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, groceries, transportation, and restaurants in California are more expensive than in Argentina. Notably, childcare, housing, and entertainment and sports are significantly more expensive in California.
California vs. Argentina Cost Breakdown
If you lived in California instead of Argentina, you would:
pay 60.2% more for restaurants
|
Argentina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$11.34
ARS16,394.76
|
$21.84
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.04
ARS13,077.79
|
$12.33
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.76
ARS2,538.95
|
$2.79
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.42
ARS2,060.45
|
$2.17
|
|
Argentina vs. California - Cost of restaurants
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 2.0 times more for groceries
|
Argentina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.96
ARS2,827.68
|
$4.20
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.26
ARS7,601.25
|
$6.77
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.01
ARS7,237.86
|
$4.73
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.36
ARS3,411.22
|
$5.14
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.01
ARS4,355.89
|
$6.05
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.03
ARS1,489.26
|
$2.30
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.91
ARS1,311.15
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.64
ARS918.72
|
$1.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.22
ARS1,758.71
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.53
ARS766.43
|
$1.50
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.52
ARS747.20
|
$1.41
|
|
Argentina vs. California - Cost of groceries
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 72.0% more for transportation
|
Argentina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.12
ARS5,958.14
|
$4.72
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$23.10
ARS33,403.95
|
$63.04
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$27,600.00
ARS39,911,212.12
|
$30,529.84
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$11.28
ARS16,316.95
|
$21.43
|
|
Argentina vs. California - Cost of transportation
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 4.7 times more for housing
|
Argentina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$24.35
ARS35,215.45
|
$67.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$389.68
ARS563,493.22
|
$2,385.40
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$297.74
ARS430,550.68
|
$2,043.56
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$58.36
ARS84,388.70
|
$171.94
|
|
Argentina vs. California - Cost of housing
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 7.5 times more for childcare
|
Argentina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$268.88
ARS388,819.06
|
$1,633.13
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$3,376.06
ARS4,881,983.57
|
$30,339.97
|
|
Argentina vs. California - Cost of childcare
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 2.5 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Argentina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.55
ARS3,691.99
|
$7.31
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.16
ARS4,570.51
|
$5.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.29
ARS4,755.72
|
$10.92
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$32.30
ARS46,707.57
|
$68.02
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$6.74
ARS9,740.11
|
$14.99
|
|
Argentina vs. California - Cost of entertainment and sports
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 25.6% less for clothing
|
Argentina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$89.61
ARS129,576.19
|
$56.47
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$79.61
ARS115,123.10
|
$40.47
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$115.13
ARS166,477.71
|
$87.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$111.12
ARS160,682.93
|
$119.94
|
|
Argentina vs. California - Cost of clothing
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Argentina vs. United States.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Argentina and United States.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about California or Argentina. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.