Interested to move to Buenos Aires from the US. Is $5k enough to live on?

[Piranha]

Hello all. I am an American and my company just gave me the option to work remote for the next 12 months. I live in Florida now but met a few people that told me it would be fun to move to Buenos Aires. I net around $5,000 bucks a month. Here in Fort Lauderdale that doesn't go too far after rent and expenses. My lease is coming up on my place and I'm thinking of getting rid of my car as the lease is up on my car too.

A few Argentines told me that I could live like a king in Buenos Aires on $5k a month. Is that true? Some of the nice Airbnbs are not too cheap. I see a lot of smallish places but I want a bigger place for when friends visit.

Can I really live like a king on $5k a month?

 

[Betsy Ross]

Hello all. I am an American and my company just gave me the option to work remote for the next 12 months. I live in Florida now but met a few people that told me it would be fun to move to Buenos Aires. I net around $5,000 bucks a month. Here in Fort Lauderdale that doesn't go too far after rent and expenses. My lease is coming up on my place and I'm thinking of getting rid of my car as the lease is up on my car too.

A few Argentines told me that I could live like a king in Buenos Aires on $5k a month. Is that true? Some of the nice Airbnbs are not too cheap. I see a lot of smallish places but I want a bigger place for when friends visit.

Can I really live like a king on $5k a month?

$5,000 USD per month is more than enough to live an upscale lifestyle in Buenos Aires. You can venture out to smaller cities where it's even cheaper to live. Even getting a bigger place you should be able to get a very nice place for under $2,000. Some much cheaper but it just depends how high end and which neighborhood you want to be in. There are many cheaper properties as well. You can look on Airbnb to get an idea of what prices are going for.

Groceries prices are not as cheap as you might think. Many items are the same or even more than they cost in the USA but generally, you will spend less here on groceries. Dining out night be your biggest expense after your rent. Prices here at most restaurants are at least 1/2 or some even 1/3 of what you might spend in Florida.

You don't need a car here. You can use public transport or even using Uber or rideshare you must likely won't spend more than $400 USD per month. Not sure if you will get an insurance policy for healthcare but they are also much cheaper than the States.

$5,000 is a fortune all things considered for Argentina. You will live well here on that if it's just you.

 

[Digital Nomad]

@Betsy Ross is correct. You will have a great life with that kind of $$$ here. I also work remote and I make a little more than that after taxes and I don't spend that much. Biggest expense is my Airbnb and also food. My first two months here I was spending a ton on going out to restaurants but after a while you probably will dial it down. But some friends I know that is their biggest expense. They go out to eat 2-3 times a day. I don't know too many expats that cook too much here. So easy to just dine out. They have restaurants at all price points here.

I didn't get any healthcare insurance here as I'm paying in the States but I may look into getting a policy here. For a single person that is still under 40 I'm told policies are less than $300 dollars per month. That is what my girlfriend is paying here for a private healthcare policy.

Airbnb prices are all over the place. Bigger places are harder to find so there is a big jump up in price on them. The most popular neighborhoods here for expats is Palermo, Recoleta and I met a few people living in Puerto Madero but they are paying an absolute fortune! US type prices over there on rentals.

$5k is a big salary here.

 

[Uncle Wong]

That's a decent salary for Argentina. Just keep in mind long term rentals are cheaper if you can find an owner direct. Booking a year on Airbnb can be expensive. You'd be surprised how easy it is to spend money there. It's not as cheap as some think. The exchange rate now is great but a few months ago it was only 1,000 pesos to $1 USD and prices felt expensive.

It's easy to spend a lot of money going out to eat there. I also used Uber and taxis several times per day there and it's not too much. Most rides are $3 to $4 USD but if you're taking them 5-6 times a day you can drop a lot of money over a month. I think in one month I might have spent $800-$1000 on Uber but compared to back home it was crazy cheap. Some rides in some cities to not go too far is $40+ so Ubers felt almost free to me but when I look at my credit card statement I see that I spent a lot on rideshare.

Some nice restaurants there were expensive. I went to a few where I spend over $100 bucks per meal (Don Julio, Osaka, etc).

That kind of salary is much more than locals make. But I met a few that were making $2,500 - $3,000 a month with remote jobs in Europe or US. And they already had a place they owned and didn't have rent.

 

[Avocado]

YES! That is more than enough to live well here.

 

[Blockchain]

$5k seems like a decent amount here but just keep in mind that it's not a first-world country. Parts of it seem like it is but other things are frustrating. My internet went out in my Airbnb and the company took a week to fix it! That would just never happen in the US. I heard that in the summer the power can go out all the time too.

 

[Piranha]

Thank you everyone for the great info. Great to hear that is more than enough to live well. I will check it out. I like that the time difference is very close to East Coast time which makes it easy. A few friends are living in Spain and a hassle for work but being just an hour difference is very convenient.

$5k seems like a decent amount here but just keep in mind that it's not a first-world country. Parts of it seem like it is but other things are frustrating. My internet went out in my Airbnb and the company took a week to fix it! That would just never happen in the US. I heard that in the summer the power can go out all the time too.

That is horrible about the Internet going out for a week! Is that common there? I can't afford to have my internet go down. Is that common there? @Blockchain what did you do? Did you have to work at all? That would be a nightmare for me. Also, how often does power go down? That would also be a nightmare for me. I heard the summers are brutally hot there.

@Uncle Wong wow $4 per Uber sounds great! Right now a big chunk of my monthly income is my lease for my car, car insurance and gas. Even if I spent $700 a month on Ubers that would be much less than I'm spending now which I admit is embarrassing how much I spend on those things.

 

[GraceH]

That is a fantastic salary to live a great life in Argentina. Most people there even in white collar jobs make less than that.

 

[Blockchain]

Thank you everyone for the great info. Great to hear that is more than enough to live well. I will check it out. I like that the time difference is very close to East Coast time which makes it easy. A few friends are living in Spain and a hassle for work but being just an hour difference is very convenient.


That is horrible about the Internet going out for a week! Is that common there? I can't afford to have my internet go down. Is that common there? @Blockchain what did you do? Did you have to work at all? That would be a nightmare for me. Also, how often does power go down? That would also be a nightmare for me. I heard the summers are brutally hot there.

@Uncle Wong wow $4 per Uber sounds great! Right now a big chunk of my monthly income is my lease for my car, car insurance and gas. Even if I spent $700 a month on Ubers that would be much less than I'm spending now which I admit is embarrassing how much I spend on those things.

Yeah that time zone thingy is great for remote work office hours. I'm not sure how common Internet going out is but it happened off and on in 2 of my Airbnbs. The worst thing is the Airbnb owner called in and the internet company just said they were working in the area and were upgrading lines and it would be spotty but I felt helpless as nothing I could do. I had to go to some co-working places. Buenos Aires has several co-working places so that is an option if internet goes out. My power never went out but I hear that is more a thing when it is hot and everyone is using AC.

You won't have any problems with taxis and ride share. They are everywhere here.

 

[Vero]

$5,000/month is plenty of money to be comfortable here. I am not sure how often you will go back to the States but be aware airline tickets are very expensive.

 

[Piranha]

Yeah that time zone thingy is great for remote work office hours. I'm not sure how common Internet going out is but it happened off and on in 2 of my Airbnbs. The worst thing is the Airbnb owner called in and the internet company just said they were working in the area and were upgrading lines and it would be spotty but I felt helpless as nothing I could do. I had to go to some co-working places. Buenos Aires has several co-working places so that is an option if internet goes out. My power never went out but I hear that is more a thing when it is hot and everyone is using AC.

You won't have any problems with taxis and ride share. They are everywhere here.

That would really be horrible if Internet went out in my property. How easy was it to get a private room at a co-working place? How expensive was it?

Also, what gives with so many different types of exchange rates. I read about the blue dollar and I think MEP is the rate to use your American credit card. But what are all these other rates? I see so many. Thanks.

 

[Betsy Ross]

That would really be horrible if Internet went out in my property. How easy was it to get a private room at a co-working place? How expensive was it?

Also, what gives with so many different types of exchange rates. I read about the blue dollar and I think MEP is the rate to use your American credit card. But what are all these other rates? I see so many. Thanks.

All the different exchange rates can be confusing. Here is an explanation of the most common.

All of Argentina’s dollar exchange rates, explained - Buenos Aires Herald

Do you know your Qatar dollar from your Coldplay dollar? Your blue dollar from your blue chip swap? Here’s a guide from the Herald

buenosairesherald.com

 

[Larry]

$5,000 Dollars is plenty to have a good life in Argentina. As others mentioned, BA is the most expensive city. If you like the outdoors, Bariloche is also very nice. The prices were getting very dear but the jump up in exchange rate is pleasant now at 1,440 pesos to $1 USD.

Rent will be your biggest expense. You can spend a lot of money eating out in nice restaurants so be careful. You can save money by taking public transportation or walking.

No problem here with that budget.

 

[FuturoBA]

$5k is plenty in many parts of the US, in BA even more so.

 

[Piranha]

All the different exchange rates can be confusing. Here is an explanation of the most common.

All of Argentina’s dollar exchange rates, explained - Buenos Aires Herald

Do you know your Qatar dollar from your Coldplay dollar? Your blue dollar from your blue chip swap? Here’s a guide from the Herald

buenosairesherald.com

Thanks! It was so confusing but it sounds like the only two rates I need to be aware of is really MEP for credit cards and blue dollar for exchanging cash or sending in Western Union. That is good to know and simplifies things. I saw Coldplay rate and was laughing. I won't worry about all the others then.

$5k is plenty in many parts of the US, in BA even more so.

You'd be surprised how little that is in many cities here in the USA. I'm not sure where you live but in many desirable cities that won't get you too far after you factor in all the bills. Maybe in less desirable cities/areas. Here in Ft. Lauderdale by the time I add up all expenses I eat up the entire $5k. Heck, many months I have to use my credit cards as it won't cover everything. The move to BA I am hoping to save up a good chunk of my salary.

I see a big difference on Airbnb for property prices. Some are really cheap and some are somewhat expensive but some of them are tiny and not furnished well. I don't want to live in a dump or tiny apartment.

I blow a lot of money eating out in Florida. I probably would do the same in BA but it sounds like prices there are at least 1/2 the cost or some say 1/3 the cost of Florida. I hope that is true.

Thanks everyone for your help.

 

[Billy Goat]

$5k is plenty in many parts of the US, in BA even more so.

True. In Buenos Aires you can live with a family of 4 comfortably on that salary.