Poverty and living standards in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina: official figures
36.9% of people in the Partidos del Gran Buenos Aires urban area lived below the poverty line in the first half of 2026, about 4,888,000 people; joint 11th highest of the 32 urban areas INDEC reports (all 31 areas: 32.3%). INDEC measures income poverty only in these urban areas, not across whole provinces.
Is poverty rising in Buenos Aires Province?
Poverty in the Partidos del Gran Buenos Aires area was up 4.3 percentage points on the second half of 2025 (32.6%) and up 1.6 percentage points on the first half of 2025 (35.3%). 29.7% of households were poor in the first half of 2026.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many people in Buenos Aires Province cannot afford basic food?
9.9% of people in the Partidos del Gran Buenos Aires area were indigent in the first half of 2026, meaning household income did not cover the basic food basket; 5th highest of the 32 urban areas INDEC reports (all 31 areas: 7.5%).
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many people in Buenos Aires Province have unmet basic needs?
1,572,973 people in Buenos Aires Province, 9.0% of those in private homes, lived in households with at least one unmet basic need (NBI) at the 2022 census, 11th lowest of the 23 provinces and Buenos Aires City (Argentina: 9.4%). In 2010 the share was 11.3%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many households in Buenos Aires Province live in poor housing?
6.3% of households in Buenos Aires Province had unmet basic needs in 2022 (384,245 of 6,051,550): 2.6% were critically overcrowded (more than three people per room), 0.6% had no toilet and 2.8% lived in precarious or unsuitable housing. In 1980 the household rate was 19.9%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyMore figures
- When INDEC's current poverty series began in the second half of 2016, 34.6% of people in the Partidos del Gran Buenos Aires area were poor, against 36.9% in the first half of 2026. Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos (INDEC) · saved copy
- Poverty rates in the other urban areas surveyed in Buenos Aires Province in the first half of 2026: Gran La Plata 37.8%; Bahía Blanca - Cerri 26.6%; Mar del Plata 20.4%; San Nicolás - Villa Constitución 35.5% (it spans the Buenos Aires-Santa Fe border). Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos (INDEC) · saved copy
How Buenos Aires Province compares with other provinces
People below the poverty line in the province's largest EPH urban area (H1 2026)
Buenos Aires Province ranks 8 of 24, highest first. INDEC measures income poverty in 31 urban areas, not whole provinces; each province is shown by its largest surveyed urban area.
| Rank | Region | People below the poverty line in the province's largest EPH urban area |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | La Rioja | 38.4% |
| 6 | Catamarca | 37.3% |
| 7 | Chubut | 37.2% |
| 8 | Buenos Aires Province | 36.9% |
| 9 | Mendoza | 36.9% |
| 10 | San Juan | 36.8% |
| 11 | San Luis | 35.7% |
People below the indigence line in the province's largest EPH urban area (H1 2026)
Buenos Aires Province ranks 2 of 24, highest first. Each province is shown by its largest surveyed urban area.
| Rank | Region | People below the indigence line in the province's largest EPH urban area |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chaco | 17.3% |
| 2 | Buenos Aires Province | 9.9% |
| 3 | Corrientes | 8.6% |
| 4 | Catamarca | 8.3% |
| 5 | Misiones | 8.2% |
| 6 | Mendoza | 7.3% |
| 7 | Cordoba | 7.0% |
People in households with unmet basic needs (Census 2022) (2022)
Buenos Aires Province ranks 14 of 24, highest first.
| Rank | Region | People in households with unmet basic needs (Census 2022) |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | La Rioja | 10.6% |
| 12 | Mendoza | 9.2% |
| 13 | San Luis | 9.1% |
| 14 | Buenos Aires Province | 9.0% |
| 15 | Neuquen | 8.8% |
| 16 | Catamarca | 8.8% |
| 17 | Entre Rios | 8.5% |
More on Buenos Aires Province: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · government budget · Argentina
Sources
- Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos (INDEC): Necesidades Basicas Insatisfechas (NBI): households and people with unmet basic needs by province, censuses 1980-2022 (Cuadros 1-5), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 7b03432b63f7…)
- Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos (INDEC): Incidencia de la pobreza y la indigencia en 31 aglomerados urbanos, primer semestre de 2026: Cuadros 4.1-4.4 (poverty and indigence by urban area, with coefficients of variation, and the series from the second half of 2016), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 d6fe78610628…)
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