A coffee for $3.50: Argentina is the most expensive country in Latin America

[FrankPintor]

That’s what I say always. In Argentina you pay a lot and you don’t get what you pay for. There’s no good customer service. The western style “standards of service” doesn’t exist here. There are upscale places who think selling a bread from yesterday is normal.

Oh, come on... your disassociation from the Argentina the rest of us live in is more obvious every day. Yes, there is good customer service, standards of service can be excellent, and not simpering for a 20% tip. Find places (why upscale?) that bake and sell bread and sell out before midday. Jeez, how difficult is it, if you actually live here?

 

[Lanick]

Oh, come on... your disassociation from the Argentina the rest of us live in is more obvious every day. Yes, there is good customer service, standards of service can be excellent, and not simpering for a 20% tip. Find places (why upscale?) that bake and sell bread and sell out before midday. Jeez, how difficult is it, if you actually live here?

I’ve been back and forth for almost half a century and I never saw a good customer service! You may bump into a nice person who serves you (that happens quite a lot) but there isn’t a customer service culture in Argentina. And why not upscale? BTW; by upscale I was referring to not getting back what you pay for quoting the poster’s experience at Don Julio. You may think it’s good customer service but since I don’t know your methodology assessing good customer service hence no comment.

 

[Silvie]

Left Argentina a week ago. Landed in London and first thing I’ve realised was how cheap London is compared to BsAs and how convenient it is as in easy to commute from the airport, access to decent and inexpensive variety of foods.

I was there 2 / 3 months ago and it looks like I was in the wrong neighborhoods. Please do tell us how cheap London is right now and where to buy cheap and exquisite food.

 

[Lanick]

I was there 2 / 3 months ago and it looks like I was in the wrong neighborhoods. Please do tell us how cheap London is right now and where to buy cheap and exquisite food.

I don’t know what you mean by exquisite food but there’s none of that in Buenos Aires. Or very rare! I think you’re in the wrong neighbourhood in Argentina as well! . London is full of restaurants cheaper than BsAs and of better quality. Are you sure you were in London, UK? Food is cheap, croissants are cheap, coffee is cheap, baby diapers are cheap, cheese is cheap, any clothing you can imagine is cheaper, medicine, strepsils for example, it’s available in Argentina, check the price on Boots website and see. Furniture. Anything you see in sainsburys is cheaper than jumbo or coto. Any electronics. Were you really in London? Btw; I’m an Argentine born and bred abroad. I feel great about being an AR but can’t stand the current situation. BTW; grapes and cherries are cheaper as well.

 

[Jimbob]

We used to call Chile “nice but expensive”! Now Argentina is expensive but what you get for your buck in return is lower quality.

Catchy

 

[Jimbob]

Buenos Aires is the most expensive city of the planet right now except for rentals . Food , medicines , clothing . electronics are vastly more expensive here than Europe and of course quality far inferior . I cannot understand how anyone could believe that things are getting better when clearly they are not . Only in a few neighbourhoods can you see good economic activity most of the city of Buenos Aires is suffering very badly as businesses struggle to make ends meet . The costs to maintain a business today are sky high and with low turnover many are closing down .

Everything here is outrageously expensive but especially medicines that are produced in Argentina . This has a huge effect on the population who cannot access basic medical needs

Los remedios hasta cinco veces más caros que en España

Así lo demuestra un informe del Observatorio de costos de la Salud.

www.perfil.com

Brighton is more expensive, but please...carry on

 

[mikic007]

There is really no point in comparing different places this way. While you get cheaper diappers in London, I guess you lose multiple times on child care. But there is no denying Argentina went from dirt cheap to very expensive in very short period. At that point is all about if you can weather it out or not, or maybe if you are willing to do it.

Since few people have better insight on what might happen, I think that might be worth to hear, not what is cheaper or more expensive elsewhere. In my opinion it can't go on like this for much longer, but I don't have idea what will happen...

 

[Ries]

I cant see much changing until the next presidential election.
We have Milei doing as much as the deputados will let him do, but they wont let him have compete free trade, because they think (and I agree) that it would cause massive business closures, unemployment, and poverty, leading to gigantic demonstrations.
If Milei lets the foreign exchange do what it will, then the peso will dive against the dollar.
Which means everything imported will go way up in price, more inflation, more job losses.
Cheap chinese goods wont be a solution to jobless homeless people.

 

[Quilombo]

I think the major problem is that things are expensive AND prices continue to rise, just slower.

If we had US/EU prices and annual inflation of around 3%-7% that'd be one thing, but as of January we're still looking at 26.4% annualized inflation projected forward; the $3.50 coffee is going to cost $4.42 and the $80 bra at Victoria's Secret $103.65 in January 2026, while Argentines will continue to collect a pitiful wage.

I think the $Libra scandal in many ways is the perfect metaphor for our country's economy: it's a giant ponzi scheme with Milei as the carnival barker for it, but the difference is that the rug pull was in hours with Libra, with the peso it's going to be 3 years more of this.

 

[QuilmesSlo]

I cant see much changing until the next presidential election.
We have Milei doing as much as the deputados will let him do, but they wont let him have compete free trade, because they think (and I agree) that it would cause massive business closures, unemployment, and poverty, leading to gigantic demonstrations.
If Milei lets the foreign exchange do what it will, then the peso will dive against the dollar.
Which means everything imported will go way up in price, more inflation, more job losses.
Cheap chinese goods wont be a solution to jobless homeless people.

Things are bad; the only problem is the prior situation was so bad.