Cost of living comparison

China

compared to

Argentina

Mar Del Plata vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary

Mar Del Plata is 11.8% cheaper than Shanghai.

Restaurants: pay 3.6 times more in Mar Del Plata
Groceries: pay 10.8% more in Mar Del Plata
Transportation: pay 28.0% more in Mar Del Plata
Housing: pay 48.6% less in Mar Del Plata
Childcare: pay 81.9% less in Mar Del Plata
Entertainment and Sports: pay 4.1% more in Mar Del Plata
Clothing: pay 8.4% more in Mar Del Plata

The cost of restaurants, transportation, groceries, clothing, and entertainment and sports in Mar Del Plata are more expensive than in Shanghai. Expenses including childcare and housing are lower in Mar Del Plata. Notably, restaurants is significantly more expensive in Mar Del Plata.

Planning a move to Argentina? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Mar Del Plata vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Mar Del Plata instead of Shanghai, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 3.6 times more for restaurants

	Shanghai	Mar Del Plata
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.47 CN¥29.86	$19.86 ARS30,377.45	+343.9%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.22 CN¥34.84	$11.77 ARS18,004.59	+125.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.60 CN¥4.00	$2.54 ARS3,889.63	+324.3%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.37 CN¥2.47	$2.00 ARS3,058.50	+440.7%
Average			+255.6%

Shanghai vs. Mar Del Plata - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 10.8% more for groceries

	Shanghai	Mar Del Plata
Bread 1 loaf	$1.98 CN¥13.18	$2.20 ARS3,368.73	+11.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$8.60 CN¥57.38	$3.89 ARS5,948.05	-54.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.88 CN¥45.90	$4.57 ARS6,990.71	-33.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.70 CN¥11.33	$3.18 ARS4,860.39	+87.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.48 CN¥9.86	$3.46 ARS5,286.66	+133.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.99 CN¥6.63	$1.36 ARS2,083.49	+37.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.77 CN¥5.14	$1.09 ARS1,665.35	+41.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.90 CN¥6.03	$0.86 ARS1,318.53	-4.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.77 CN¥5.13	$1.20 ARS1,834.06	+55.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.36 CN¥2.39	$0.33 ARS501.78	-8.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.43 CN¥2.89	$0.35 ARS529.29	-20.1%
Average			+10.8%

Shanghai vs. Mar Del Plata - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 28.0% more for transportation

	Shanghai	Mar Del Plata
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.96 CN¥33.13	$5.01 ARS7,665.53	+1.0%
Monthly public transit pass	$29.83 CN¥199.09	??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$19,374.76 CN¥129K	$31,565.70 ARS48M	+62.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.67 CN¥37.83	$8.08 ARS12,359.29	+42.6%
Average			+28.0%

Shanghai vs. Mar Del Plata - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 48.6% less for housing

	Shanghai	Mar Del Plata
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$10.55 CN¥70.41	$23.22 ARS35,509.55	+120.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,036.96 CN¥6,920.65	$331.67 ARS507K	-68.0%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$588.71 CN¥3,929.04	$251.67 ARS385K	-57.3%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$44.06 CN¥294.03	$80.88 ARS124K	+83.6%
Average			-48.6%

Shanghai vs. Mar Del Plata - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 81.9% less for childcare

	Shanghai	Mar Del Plata
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,413.50 CN¥9,433.67	$255.22 ARS390K	-81.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$27,686.22 CN¥185K	??
Average			-81.9%

Shanghai vs. Mar Del Plata - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 4.1% more for entertainment and sports

	Shanghai	Mar Del Plata
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.19 CN¥7.96	$3.50 ARS5,352.38	+193.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.35 CN¥22.36	$3.21 ARS4,909.13	-4.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.73 CN¥24.89	$3.50 ARS5,352.38	-6.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$65.69 CN¥438.41	$31.00 ARS47,406.75	-52.8%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.95 CN¥59.73	$10.00 ARS15,292.50	+11.7%
Average			+4.1%

Shanghai vs. Mar Del Plata - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 8.4% more for clothing

	Shanghai	Mar Del Plata
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$54.37 CN¥362.87	$91.88 ARS141K	+69.0%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.09 CN¥247.57	??
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$75.49 CN¥503.82	$109.32 ARS167K	+44.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$105.70 CN¥705.47	$55.00 ARS84,108.75	-48.0%
Average			+8.4%

Shanghai vs. Mar Del Plata - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Shanghai vs. Mar Del Plata

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Mar Del Plata?

More cost comparisons

Shanghai vs.

Beijing

Shanghai vs.

Vienna

Shanghai vs.

Quito

Shanghai vs.

Reykjavik

Shanghai vs.

Dublin

Shanghai vs.

Warsaw

Shanghai vs.

New York City

Shanghai vs.

London

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in China vs. Argentina. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within China and Argentina.

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

Add prices for Shanghai

Add prices for Mar Del Plata

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Mar Del Plata or Shanghai. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.