How to Pay Rent in Buenos Aires as a Foreigner (2026)

Most Buenos Aires landlords want rent as US dollars in cash or as a peso transfer to their CBU or alias, while short furnished stays booked online are paid through the platform. Without a DNI or Argentine bank account, you can still send that peso transfer with CacaoCash using your passport, at the crypto dollar with a 2.5% fee shown before you confirm.

Which of those options is cheapest depends on the exchange rate behind it. In October 2026 a foreign card converts at the non-resident card rate (wires convert at your bank's own rate), ≈6% to 10% fewer pesos per dollar than the crypto dollar even after CacaoCash's fee. On a payment you make every month, that gap is real money. This guide covers how foreigners rent in Buenos Aires, what landlords usually accept, and what each option costs.

How foreigners rent in Buenos Aires

There are two broad paths. The first is the traditional lease (contrato de alquiler), usually signed through a real estate agency (inmobiliaria). These normally ask for a garantía (a guarantee backed by property in Argentina or a guarantee insurance), plus local documents and references. Most foreigners who have just arrived cannot meet these requirements, so this is rarely the starting point.

The second path, the one most expats and nomads use, is temporary furnished rental (alquiler temporario): furnished apartments for a few months at a time, through agencies that work with foreigners, landlords directly, or online listings. They usually skip the garantía, accept a passport, and quote rent in US dollars or pesos. The headline price is higher, but you can sign without local paperwork.

What landlords in Buenos Aires usually accept

Rent in Buenos Aires is quoted in both currencies. A Zonaprop survey from September 2025 put about 42% of rental listings in the city in US dollars and the rest in pesos (Mercado, citing Zonaprop). Since the December 2023 decree DNU 70/2023, landlord and tenant can agree rent in pesos or in a foreign currency, and if the contract says dollars, the landlord can insist on dollars. Parts of DNU 70/2023 are still being challenged in court, so check the current status with a lawyer or your inmobiliaria before signing. In practice, payment takes one of these forms:

If your rent is quoted in dollars but the landlord would also take pesos, agree in writing which exchange rate you will use for the conversion before the first payment. If the alias, CVU and CBU terms are new, see CBU vs CVU vs alias.

The rate behind your rent payment

When you pay with a foreign card, your dollars become pesos at the non-resident card rate (wires convert at your bank's own rate). In October 2026 Fiserv, which runs the Posnet card network, published that rate at ≈1,465 ARS per USD. The crypto dollar was ≈1,598, so after CacaoCash's 2.5% fee you still get ≈1,559 pesos per dollar charged. (The higher "dólar tarjeta" in the news is what Argentine residents pay abroad, not what foreigners pay here.) Why two rates exist: card dollar vs crypto dollar.

Wise can send pesos to an Argentine bank account from some countries (not from the US as of September 2026), at a rate tied to the official dollar plus its fee. Wise and Revolut cards work at card terminals, at the non-resident rate. See Wise vs Revolut in Argentina.

What a peso rent costs you, by payment method

Example: a furnished apartment at 1,000,000 ARS a month, October 2026.

Assumptions: crypto dollar ≈1,598 ARS before CacaoCash's 2.5% fee, non-resident card rate ≈1,465 (Fiserv/Posnet), October 2026; same peso rent all year. Rates move daily, see today's Argentine dollar rate, and the fee detail is on the fees page. The gap is ≈$41 to $62 a month on this rent, ≈$500 to $740 a year.

How to pay rent in pesos with CacaoCash

1. Sign up with your email and verify with your passport. No DNI, Argentine bank account or Argentine phone number.
2. Load dollars by ACH, SEPA, SWIFT or crypto.
3. Ask your landlord or inmobiliaria for their alias, CBU or CVU.
4. Enter the rent in pesos. The app shows what it costs in dollars, including the 2.5% fee, before you confirm.
5. Confirm. Your landlord receives a normal peso transfer and pays nothing to receive it.

The same flow covers expensas, a cleaner or anyone else you pay in pesos. One limit to know: CacaoCash sends pesos but cannot receive them, so agree with your landlord to return any deposit in the same currency you paid. Paying a deposit before you arrive? See how to send money to Argentina from abroad. For every way to pay day to day, read how to pay in Argentina as a foreigner, and if you only have a passport, how to pay in Argentina without a DNI.

Paying the deposit or several months up front? See paying large amounts in pesos as a foreigner for transfer limits and what to keep at hand.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I pay rent in Buenos Aires without a DNI or local bank account?

Yes. If your landlord takes a peso transfer, CacaoCash lets you send it to their alias, CBU or CVU with only a passport, with a 2.5% fee shown before you confirm. USD cash and booking platforms also work without a DNI.

Can my landlord demand rent in US dollars?

If the contract sets rent in dollars, yes. Since DNU 70/2023, rent can be agreed in pesos or foreign currency and is paid in the currency agreed. If you would rather pay in pesos, agree it and the exchange rate in writing. Parts of DNU 70/2023 are still being challenged in court, so check the current status with a lawyer or your inmobiliaria before signing.

Why does a foreign card cost more on rent?

It converts at the non-resident card rate, ≈1,465 ARS per USD in October 2026, and many banks add a 1% to 3% foreign transaction fee. Funding pesos at the crypto dollar gives ≈1,559 per dollar after CacaoCash's 2.5% fee, ≈6% to 10% more pesos.

Can my landlord send me pesos back, for example the deposit?

Not to CacaoCash. Foreigners cannot receive pesos in the app, so agree with your landlord how a deposit will be returned (for example in the same currency you paid).