Buenos Aires vs Ushuaia for couples

Buenos Aires and Ushuaia are both in Argentina, about 2,374 km apart. Every figure below comes from the data behind our city pages: an estimated monthly cost for a couple, tax tier, annual climate, safety, healthcare, internet speed, language and residency rules. Ushuaia leads on cost.

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Side by side

FactorBuenos AiresUshuaia
CountryArgentinaArgentina
SizeLarge: 1 to 5 million peopleSmaller: under 250,000 people
SettingCoastalCoastal
Est. cost for a couple€2,354 a month€2,053 a month
Tax tierLow to medium taxLow to medium tax
Average temperature18°C5°C
Rainfall1,187 mm a year478 mm a year
Safety55 / 10055 / 100
Healthcare68 / 10068 / 100
Internet (median fixed)~70 Mbps~70 Mbps
Main languagesSpanishSpanish
EnglishSome EnglishSome English
Long-term residencyComparatively openComparatively open
Self-funded income routeFrom $1,301 a monthFrom $1,301 a month
Visa-free short visits90 of 198 passports90 of 198 passports

Source: the datasets behind our city pages. Cost is our model estimate (a country-level cost index scaled for city size); tax tiers are assigned by hand from each country's top marginal income tax rate and overall tax reputation; temperature from the Open-Meteo archive (2019 to 2023 averages); rainfall from TerraClimate (1991 to 2020 normals); safety and healthcare are our own country-level estimates; internet from the Ookla Speedtest Global Index; English from the EF English Proficiency Index; residency from our hand-reviewed residency dataset (not legal advice); short-stay entry from the passport-index dataset.

Factor by factor

Cost of living

Ushuaia is cheaper: we estimate about €2,053 a month for a couple living centrally, against €2,354 in Buenos Aires. That is €301 a month, or 13%, less.

Taxes

Same country, same tax: Argentina is in our low to medium tax tier.

Climate

Buenos Aires is 13°C warmer on average over the year: 18°C against 5°C in Ushuaia. Ushuaia is drier, with about 478 mm of rain a year against 1,187 mm in Buenos Aires (60% less).

Safety

Our safety score is country-level, so both cities get the same 55 out of 100.

Healthcare

Our healthcare score is country-level, so both cities get the same 68 out of 100.

Internet

Our broadband figure is country-level: about 70 Mbps median fixed download in both.

Language

Main languages in both: Spanish. English proficiency is rated the same in both: some English.

Residency and visas

Same country, same rules: long-term residency in Argentina is rated comparatively open, with a self-funded route from about $1,301 a month in income.

Which one fits a couple

On the factors we measure, Ushuaia leads on cost (€2,053 against €2,354 a month), and Buenos Aires leads on none of them. What our data does not cover can still tip it toward Buenos Aires: jobs, family nearby, or simply which one each of you prefers after a visit.

Climate can pull the two of you apart too: a partner who wants warmth leans toward Buenos Aires (18°C on average), while one who minds the heat leans toward Ushuaia (5°C), and whoever minds rain will prefer Ushuaia (478 mm a year against 1,187 mm).

Size differs too: Buenos Aires is a large city (1 to 5 million people) and Ushuaia a smaller one (under 250,000 people).

OurNextCity has each partner answer 12 questions privately, then ranks Buenos Aires, Ushuaia and 913 other cities for both of you at once.

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