Newcomer My wife (Argentinian) claims you can live "well" on $1500 a month in Argentina. True?

[Vince]

Yes, the nice neighborhoods that are safe, beautiful and typically have high quality of life are Recoleta, Palermo, Barrio Norte, Belgrano, and the one close to the water that you're referring to is called Puerto Madero but that's an expensive area and not too convenient as it's not central.

Yeah, your budget for rental sounds doable. And you're right, BA is a relatively safe city. Like any big city you have to take precautions but mostly small scams (pick pocketing, stealing cellphones, etc) vs. violet crime here. I also own an apartment in Rio and spend time there and it's much more dangerous as you mentioned. The problem there is there are favelas and really poor right next to nice neigborhoods.

As you mentioned, you don't qualify for free healthcare but even if you did the public hospitals aren't nice, especially in the event of an emergency or serious health issue. Private insurance as you mentioned isn't cheap. Are you saying you'd roll the dice and not have any health insurance??

Do this exercise. Add up all of the things you would spend on a monthly basis. Be realistic with yourself. What do you come up with at the end of the month? Also, are you just not going to save anything for retirement? Many people that say, "oh i can live for $X a month" don't factor in having to save for the future. I've always found it's totally unrealistic to not save anything for the future. Especially if you're going to have a child. Kids simply are not cheap. Groceries in Buenos Aires simply are not cheap.

In my experience, people always underestimate what they will spend vs. overestimate.

-Mortgage or Rent (if you don't own outright)
- Property taxes if you own
-Phone (Land line and Cell phone)
- Utilities (gas, water, electricity, cable, internet, etc)
- HOA fees/expensas each month
- Maintenance and repairs (if you own a property)
- Car payments
- Car insurance
- Auto Fuel each month for each car
- Registration fees for your car each year
- Maintenance on your car to include car washes and oil changes
-Parking (various times when you're out and about plus if you don't have a garage in your apartment and have to rent one)
- Home/rental insurance for your property
- Life insurance
- Health insurance premiums
- Dental insurance premiums
- Medical/Dental expenses (what insurance won't cover)
- Prescription medications
- School expenses for kids (tuition, stuff for school, ballet classes, etc)
- Babysitter expenses
- Annual fee for Credit Cards
- Clothes for kids and yourself
- Toys for kids
- Dry Cleaning
- Health club / gym
- Taxi/Uber fares which are inevitable.
- Beauty (hair salon for hair cuts, color, nails, make up, etc)
- Extracurricular activities dues/fees
- Entertainment (movies, theatre, plays, Zoo, concerts, sporting events, etc --)
- Magazine/newspaper/Ipad subscriptions
- Dining out at restaurants
- Grocery budget
- Retirement savings contributions
- Kids college fund savings contributions
- Charity/donations
- Travel / vacation expenses
- Federal/State/local income taxes
- Any revolving debt payments you might have
- Bad habit type stuff (alcohol, smoking, etc)
- Emergency savings fund for any major health issues
- Non reimbursed office/work expenses and supplies

Wow this is probably the most detailed list I have seen. @MarriedWithChildren I answered your other post but you will be fine here on USD salary. With spouse and 2 adult kids I would say a budget of $5,000 USD per month would be living large. You can do it for less but you can also spend more. Dining out can add up especially for 4 people. I always joke you can do BA affordably but going out to eat 2-3 times a day can add up for 4 people. I have an expat friend with his family and just dining out they spend about $3,000 USD per month but they are doing at least 2 meals out every day.

You can also spend quite a bit of money if you are traveling around inside Argentina. My friend also spends a significant amount of money on Ubers/taxis. He and his family rarely walk if If it's more than 10 blocks where locals would just walk. It is not easy for someone to tell you how much you will spend. If you're going out to dine out a lot back in USA you are spending a fortune. Here prices are cheaper but still can add up. Most locals don't dine out every day. Your company will probably rent a large property for you and you can get a live in maid or have one come every day for very little money. She can make meals for you.

 

[Used]

The number wasn't $1,500 a few years ago and it certainly is NOT $1,500 now. BA has gotten more expensive. No one is living well here on $1,500 per month.

 

[StatusNomadicus]

This looks like an old thread but so good

yeah from 2018, cross-posted from the old censored forum, i believe - would be nice to see a tag like [Archive] or something in the post title so we're not accidentally resurrecting old stuff (although posting 2024 costs is great - and i am for sure spending $1000-1500 USD for me, my girlfriend, and my dog, in 3 provinces in Argentina in 2024. the more you eat-out and take Ubers and drink alcohol, especially beers/drinks at restaurants/bars, the more you spend...like anywhere in the world)

 

[fool in love]

yeah from 2018, cross-posted from the old censored forum, i believe - would be nice to see a tag like [Archive] or something in the post title so we're not accidentally resurrecting old stuff (although posting 2024 costs is great - and i am for sure spending $1000-1500 USD for me, my girlfriend, and my dog, in 3 provinces in Argentina in 2024. the more you eat-out and take Ubers and drink alcohol, especially beers/drinks at restaurants/bars, the more you spend...like anywhere in the world)

This all depends on the lifestyle and activities that you are doing. I am spending far more than this but I go out to eat quite a bit. You also have to factor in inflation. Just from last year to this year prices have more than doubled.

That's awesome you can get your budget down so low. The biggest difference I see from reading your post and all the people that I know there is no matter how bad things get it seems like they are always eating out. Medialunas in the morning, coffees throughout the day, and dinner out quite a bit. I'm always surprised how often most of them eat out no matter how bad they seem to be doing financially.

For my monthly cost of living spreadsheet I include all of these things. Many people forget to include everything and think they are spending less than they are because they don't include everything.


Monthly Cost of Living


-Mortgage or Rent (if you don't own outright)
- Property taxes if you own
-Phone (Land line and Cell phone)
- Utilities (gas, water, electricity, cable, internet, etc)
- HOA fees/expensas each month
- Maintenance and repairs (if you own a property)
- Car payments
- Car insurance
- Auto Fuel each month for each car
- Registration fees for your car each year
- Maintenance on your car to include car washes and oil changes
-Parking (various times when you're out and about plus if you don't have a garage in your apartment and have to rent one)
- Home/rental insurance for your property
- Life insurance
- Health insurance premiums
- Dental insurance premiums
- Medical/Dental expenses (what insurance won't cover)
- Prescription medications
- School expenses for kids (tuition, stuff for school, ballet classes, etc)
- Babysitter expenses
- Annual fee for Credit Cards
- Clothes for kids and yourself
- Toys for kids
- Dry Cleaning
- Health club / gym
- Taxi/Uber fares which are inevitable.
- Beauty (hair salon for hair cuts, color, nails, make up, etc)
- Extracurricular activities dues/fees
- Entertainment (movies, theatre, plays, Zoo, concerts, sporting events, etc --)
- Magazine/newspaper/Ipad subscriptions
- Dining out at restaurants
- Grocery budget
- Retirement savings contributions
- Kids college fund savings contributions
- Charity/donations
- Travel / vacation expenses
- Federal/State/local income taxes
- Any revolving debt payments you might have
- Bad habit type stuff (alcohol, smoking, etc)
- Emergency savings fund for any major health issues
- Non reimbursed office/work expenses and supplies


Many people if they are living alone and own their own place and don't have any kids can get away with not spending a lot. But the wild card for me is having several kids. Kids aren't cheap.

Did not see this thread. This is a great list and it is good to note the things for children like education. From what I'm told here the public schools are very bad and no parent would send their kid to public schools. The private schools here are expensive so you can spend your budget just on private schools. It is important to add up all expenses and just going back and forth to the States I am spending this sometimes on one trip.

 

[Digital Nomad]

This nails it. My father told me when I was young, it's not how much you make. It's how much you spend. The wildcard factor is which school you send your kids to. That can really add up here in BA. This thread is very old but it's helpful sometimes to see if things changed in the span of many years. $1,500 wasn't much in 2018 to raise a family and it still isn't much at all to be raising a child in a city like BA.

It's a big difference just being single and being married and then another league to have a child. I see what my girlfriend's brother spends on his kid and it can be surprising. For his last birthday party I went to get him something and kids clothes here are expensive! Like more than adults clothes in the USA! Toys too. And he spends a lot of money sending his kid to a good school.

@Argentina Expat did a survey on one of these threads and I think people with kids spend about $2,500 to $4,000 USD per month.

Also, besides what you are actually spending I agree it's a good idea to budget for trips back home. You have to budget in to be able to pay for these. Something I notice with my friends that are digital nomads is that back home they would save more money but here they seem to blow more money going out. Many back home in the States don't do as much but here or other countries they are always going out a lot more.

 

[StatusNomadicus]

You also have to factor in inflation. Just from last year to this year prices have more than doubled.

sure, in Pesos, but prices in Dollars have been stable or lower since Nov2023. Tuna was $4 USD a can when i got here, now it's under $2 USD, for one small example. Peso prices have always risen since the Ks started printing

just going back and forth to the States I am spending this sometimes on one trip

sure, which is why 'churning' with credit cards to get airline miles is important. https://millionmilesecrets.com/

. I see what my girlfriend's brother spends on his kid and it can be surprising

i can imagine. one friend just spent 7000 USD on a weekend trip to DisneyWorld

they seem to blow more money going out.

poor people always seem to spend the most on stupid stuff, yep! "it's expensive being poor" as the quote goes; they'll shop at the closest business, buy lottery tickets, splurge on mini vacations all the time, etc.

 

[Uncle Wong]

sure, in Pesos, but prices in Dollars have been stable or lower since Nov2023. Tuna was $4 USD a can when i got here, now it's under $2 USD, for one small example. Peso prices have always risen since the Ks started printing

The dollar prices have also risen on many things. Take a look at some of the restaurants. Some people have posted prices dating back from last year. I am sure you can find a few things that are less but many things have gone up in both dollars and also pesos.

 

[GraceH]

The dollar prices have also risen on many things. Take a look at some of the restaurants. Some people have posted prices dating back from last year. I am sure you can find a few things that are less but many things have gone up in both dollars and also pesos.

Besides some grocery items what has stayed stable in dollars since last year?

Transportation, restaurants, utility bills, cafes especially. Coffee is much more expensive compared to last year.

All my friends complaining about their apartment expenses in dollars going up. Also healthcare and medicine costs. @StatusNomadicus what are the things you are mentioned that are the same in dollars?

You are the only person that I have heard saying prices are staying the same in dollars.

 

[GraceH]

yeah from 2018, cross-posted from the old censored forum, i believe - would be nice to see a tag like [Archive] or something in the post title so we're not accidentally resurrecting old stuff (although posting 2024 costs is great - and i am for sure spending $1000-1500 USD for me, my girlfriend, and my dog, in 3 provinces in Argentina in 2024. the more you eat-out and take Ubers and drink alcohol, especially beers/drinks at restaurants/bars, the more you spend...like anywhere in the world)

@StatusNomadicus wow that is not much at all. You must budget well. Can you break out your spending on that $1000 to $1500 per month? How often are you going to restaurants?

 

[IrishLad]

@StatusNomadicus wow that is not much at all. You must budget well. Can you break out your spending on that $1000 to $1500 per month? How often are you going to restaurants?

I would also love to see that budget. Sounds like he is outside of CABA which is much cheaper. Also could be a situation where just doing an Airbnb rental where utilities might be included but our expenses have drastically gone up in dollars over the past year.

 

[legend]

I don't think it's possible to live on a salary of $1,000–$1,200 USD right now. Every month I need to exchange more dollars because the value keeps dropping a bit more each day. The dollar is becoming a weaker currency here, though I can't say for sure what's going to happen, Argentina is always unpredictable. I also understand that many people here earn a lot less, especially those working in unskilled jobs, like factory workers. But my local friends in basic administrative junior positions are currently earning between $1,000 and $1,400 USD, and most of them live with their parents or partners because rent has become so difficult to manage.
Personally, I'm not someone who splurges money. I don’t go out to eat as much anymore, and I’ve been watching my expenses more closely because of the instability in the country.

I'm not complaining, but I am paying attention to the changes, and I have faith that, in time, everything will fall into place.