Poverty and living standards in Santa Fé, Argentina: official figures
38.6% of people in Santa Fé lived below the poverty line in the first half of 2026 (INDEC EPH), 5th highest of 30 Argentine cities on this site; across the 31 survey areas the rate was 32.3%. That is about 215,000 people.
Is poverty rising in Santa Fé?
The poverty rate in Santa Fé was 35.8% in the first half of 2025 and 38.6% in the first half of 2026, up 2.8 percentage points; for all 31 survey areas it moved from 31.6% to 32.3%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many households in Santa Fé are poor?
29.0% of households in Santa Fé were below the poverty line in the first half of 2026, 6th highest of 30 Argentine cities on this site (all 31 survey areas: 24.4%). People in poor households were a larger share of residents (38.6%) than poor households were of households, because poor households are larger.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyWhat is the extreme poverty rate in Santa Fé?
9.8% of people in Santa Fé (about 54,000) were below the extreme-poverty line, which only counts food, in the first half of 2026, 5th highest of 30 Argentine cities on this site; the 31-area rate was 7.5%; a year earlier Santa Fé's rate was 6.3%. INDEC flags this estimate as imprecise (coefficient of variation 26.2%).
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many households in Santa Fé are in extreme poverty?
6.9% of households in Santa Fé were below the extreme-poverty line in the first half of 2026 (all 31 survey areas: 5.6%). INDEC flags this estimate as imprecise (coefficient of variation 24.4%).
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many people in Santa Fé live in informal settlements?
0.0% of households in Santa Fé were in a "villa de emergencia" (informal settlement) in the first quarter of 2026, joint lowest of 30 Argentine cities on this site; across the 31 survey areas the share was 1.1%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many homes in Santa Fé are overcrowded?
2.1% of households in Santa Fé had critical overcrowding (more than three people per room) in the first quarter of 2026, 10th highest of 30 Argentine cities on this site (all 31 survey areas: 1.8%).
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many homes in Santa Fé are near rubbish dumps or flood zones?
0.4% of households in Santa Fé were within three blocks of a rubbish dump and 0.0% were in a flood-prone area in the first quarter of 2026 (INDEC EPH); the 31-area shares were 5.1% and 7.8%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow Santa Fé compares with other cities in Argentina
People below the poverty line (H1 2026)
Santa Fé ranks 5 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | People below the poverty line |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Resistencia | 48.6% |
| 3 | Posadas | 42.2% |
| 4 | Corrientes | 41.0% |
| 5 | Santa Fé | 38.6% |
| 6 | Santiago del Estero-La Banda | 38.5% |
| 7 | La Rioja | 38.4% |
| 8 | La Plata | 37.8% |
Change in the poverty rate since H1 2025 (percentage points) (H1 2026 vs H1 2025)
Santa Fé ranks 14 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | Change in the poverty rate since H1 2025 (percentage points) |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | Mendoza | +3.4 pts |
| 12 | Catamarca | +3.3 pts |
| 13 | Bahía Blanca-Cerri | +3.1 pts |
| 14 | Santa Fé | +2.8 pts |
| 15 | La Plata | +2.6 pts |
| 16 | Córdoba | +1.6 pts |
| 17 | Formosa | +1.6 pts |
People below the extreme-poverty line (H1 2026)
Santa Fé ranks 5 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | People below the extreme-poverty line |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Concordia | 12.7% |
| 3 | San Nicolás-Villa Constitución | 10.3% |
| 4 | Rawson-Trelew-Playa Unión | 10.0% |
| 5 | Santa Fé | 9.8% |
| 6 | La Plata | 9.2% |
| 7 | Corrientes | 8.6% |
| 8 | Buenos Aires | 8.4% |
Households in informal settlements (Q1 2026)
Santa Fé ranks 21 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | Households in informal settlements |
|---|---|---|
| 18 | Comodoro Rivadavia-Rada Tilly | 0.1% |
| 19 | Salta | 0.0% |
| 20 | San Juan | 0.0% |
| 21 | Santa Fé | 0.0% |
| 22 | Santiago del Estero-La Banda | 0.0% |
| 23 | Neuquén-Plottier | 0.0% |
| 24 | Formosa | 0.0% |
Households with critical overcrowding (Q1 2026)
Santa Fé ranks 10 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | Households with critical overcrowding |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | La Rioja | 2.5% |
| 8 | San Luis - El Chorrillo | 2.3% |
| 9 | Santiago del Estero-La Banda | 2.3% |
| 10 | Santa Fé | 2.1% |
| 11 | Mendoza | 2.0% |
| 12 | Paraná | 1.9% |
| 13 | Buenos Aires | 1.9% |
More on Santa Fé: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · all cities in Argentina
Sources
- Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC): Encuesta Permanente de Hogares (EPH): bases de microdatos usuarias, individual y hogar, primer trimestre de 2026 (figures computed with the survey weights), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 d9d23945d4b1…)
- Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC): Incidencia de la pobreza y la indigencia en 31 aglomerados urbanos, primer semestre de 2026 (Tables 4.1 and 4.2), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 d944f84c823a…)
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