Cost of living comparison

Argentina

compared to

South Africa

South Africa vs. Argentina Cost of Living Summary

South Africa is 18.6% more expensive than Argentina overall.

Restaurants: pay 19.7% less in South Africa
Groceries: pay 6.0% less in South Africa
Transportation: pay 72.0% more in South Africa
Housing: pay 69.7% more in South Africa
Childcare: pay 21.1% more in South Africa
Entertainment and Sports: pay 25.0% more in South Africa
Clothing: pay 32.1% less in South Africa

The cost of transportation, housing, entertainment and sports, and childcare in South Africa are more expensive than in Argentina. Expenses including clothing, restaurants, and groceries are lower in South Africa.

South Africa vs. Argentina Cost Breakdown

If you lived in South Africa instead of Argentina, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 19.7% less for restaurants

	Argentina	South Africa
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.59 ARS9,220.96	$8.97 ZAR171.66	+4.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$6.73 ARS7,221.82	$4.77 ZAR91.27	-29.1%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.32 ARS1,418.10	$0.95 ZAR18.26	-27.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.00 ARS1,075.95	$0.74 ZAR14.18	-26.1%
Average			-19.7%

Argentina vs. South Africa - Cost of restaurants

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pay 6.0% less for groceries

	Argentina	South Africa
Bread 1 loaf	$1.43 ARS1,532.28	$0.99 ZAR18.95	-30.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.84 ARS4,116.14	$3.67 ZAR70.31	-4.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.28 ARS4,591.53	$4.20 ZAR80.33	-1.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.79 ARS1,922.71	$2.23 ZAR42.61	+24.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.64 ARS2,834.31	$2.03 ZAR38.80	-23.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.91 ARS972.11	$0.68 ZAR12.95	-25.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.85 ARS909.94	$0.62 ZAR11.81	-27.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.64 ARS691.39	$0.64 ZAR12.28	-0.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.01 ARS1,080.25	$0.70 ZAR13.37	-30.6%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.46 ARS497.70	$0.55 ZAR10.59	+19.4%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.46 ARS490.30	$0.61 ZAR11.65	+33.2%
Average			-6.0%

Argentina vs. South Africa - Cost of groceries

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pay 72.0% more for transportation

	Argentina	South Africa
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.66 ARS3,928.78	$4.99 ZAR95.45	+36.3%
Monthly public transit pass	$13.28 ARS14,248.27	$52.31 ZAR1,000.84	+294.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$28,930.00 ARS31,045,944.48	$20,607.77 ZAR394,278.10	-28.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$9.90 ARS10,620.06	$8.55 ZAR163.56	-13.6%
Average			+72.0%

Argentina vs. South Africa - Cost of transportation

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pay 69.7% more for housing

	Argentina	South Africa
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$19.37 ARS20,783.57	$41.37 ZAR791.50	+113.6%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$303.40 ARS325,594.51	$382.55 ZAR7,319.21	+26.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$221.72 ARS237,931.83	$326.35 ZAR6,243.84	+47.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$41.92 ARS44,989.64	$80.40 ZAR1,538.22	+91.8%
Average			+69.7%

Argentina vs. South Africa - Cost of housing

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pay 21.1% more for childcare

	Argentina	South Africa
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$173.69 ARS186,391.03	$174.12 ZAR3,331.28	+0.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$2,841.72 ARS3,049,563.03	$4,033.53 ZAR77,171.46	+41.9%
Average			+21.1%

Argentina vs. South Africa - Cost of childcare

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pay 25.0% more for entertainment and sports

	Argentina	South Africa
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.81 ARS1,941.58	$2.11 ZAR40.33	+16.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.09 ARS2,238.96	$1.88 ZAR36.02	-9.8%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.36 ARS2,529.93	$2.90 ZAR55.57	+23.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$18.92 ARS20,301.48	$29.50 ZAR564.42	+55.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.76 ARS5,112.17	$6.62 ZAR126.68	+39.0%
Average			+25.0%

Argentina vs. South Africa - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 32.1% less for clothing

	Argentina	South Africa
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$79.59 ARS85,415.39	$47.72 ZAR912.91	-40.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$69.14 ARS74,200.68	$32.06 ZAR613.37	-53.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$107.64 ARS115,511.16	$90.39 ZAR1,729.36	-16.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$100.20 ARS107,524.99	$81.37 ZAR1,556.75	-18.8%
Average			-32.1%

Argentina vs. South Africa - Cost of clothing

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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: April 2025

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