The 10 Best (and Safest) Beach Cities in South America to Live In
If you type “best beach cities in South America” into Google, you will see the same recycled, dangerous list — Rio de Janeiro, Cartagena. Beautiful? Yes. Livable and safe? That’s a different question entirely.
I spent 24 years across this continent — Atlantic coast to the Pacific. I know where people go wrong, and I know where the real opportunities are. If you’re looking for the best mild-climate cities in South America, this ranking is your most complete starting point.
If you’re tired of the rat race, tired of paying three thousand dollars a month for a decent apartment, or just done with the winters, this article is for you.
The number one city on this list is not in Brazil. Not in Argentina. When you see the full picture — the safety, the infrastructure — it makes complete sense. There’s also a city on this list where you can rent a furnished apartment with pool access for under four hundred dollars a month. Four hundred only — and by the waterside. And it’s actually safe.
The Criteria
This list is different from the others you find online. Most of them are just ranking places someone liked on vacation, which tells you nothing useful if you’re planning to actually live there.
We built a 40-point scoring system across four categories: Safety, Cost of Living, Quality of Life, and Infrastructure. Each one scored from 0 to 10.
Safety isn’t just one of four categories, though. It’s the tiebreaker. Two cities with the same total score? The safer one ranks higher. Because a low cost of living means nothing if you’re afraid to walk to the grocery store.
Infrastructure is where most lists completely fall apart. We’re looking at private hospitals, airport access, and internet reliability. If you get sick somewhere with no real hospital and no flight out, that’s not a city. That’s a gamble. For a broader look at healthcare standards across South America, we’ve covered that in depth separately.
10th Place: Manta, Ecuador
Manta has one financial advantage that no other city on this list can match: it uses the US dollar. No exchange rate risk, no currency that loses half its value overnight, no watching your savings shrink because a government got reckless with the money supply.
A couple can live comfortably there on $1,200 to $1,800 a month. A bus ride costs thirty cents. Beachfront condos with pools and private security cost a fraction of what you’d pay in Florida. The Cost of Living score is 8.5 out of 10, one of the strongest numbers on this entire list. And the Pacific coast has ample recreation: kitesurfing at Santa Marianita, or deep-sea fishing year-round.
But that’s where the good news stops. Safety scores 3.5 out of 10 — the lowest number on this list. Ecuador’s national homicide rate peaked at around 47 per 100,000 people in 2023, the highest in the country’s recorded history. Government crackdowns brought it down to an estimated 17 to 19 per 100,000 by 2025, which is progress, but it’s still an elevated risk compared to Chile or Paraguay.
Manta is Ecuador’s main Pacific port, and drug-trafficking networks have targeted exactly these kinds of port cities. But here is what a local told us:
“I’ve lived my whole life in Manta. There’s more of a risk of getting robbed than kidnapped, but other than that, if you’re not involved in anything shady, you gotta be careful and you are good. I’ve walked around until late at night with my phone in my hand, walking in the city center or public areas, and it’s been fine. I just wouldn’t recommend the Zona Rosa.”
Hundreds of expats do live in Manta and have a comfortable daily life in the better residential areas.
Infrastructure scores 6.5. Eloy Alfaro International Airport connects to Quito and Guayaquil, and Quito has direct flights to Miami and Madrid. For anything beyond routine medical care, though, you will need to travel three and a half hours to Guayaquil.
Considering all that, the total score is 24.5 out of 40 for Manta, our 10th place. From Ecuador’s Pacific coast, we move to Argentina’s Atlantic side, where the numbers tell a very different story.
9th Place: Pinamar, Argentina
Pinamar has pine-lined streets, clean beaches, and an atmosphere that Argentina’s wealthier families have been returning to every summer since the 1940s. An architect named Jorge Bunge designed the whole town from scratch with strict rules about density and green space — and those rules held. The result is one of the most orderly-looking beach towns on the Atlantic coast.
It has relatively chilly winters, but during summer it delivers plenty of beach weather. A two-bedroom apartment near the beach runs $400 to $600 a month on an annual lease. Day-to-day expenses like food, taxis, and utilities are low by any Western standard. Cost of Living scores 7.5 out of 10.
Safety scores 6.5 out of 10, which is better than most Argentine coastal cities because Pinamar is small and contained. At that scale, during low season strangers are visible, neighbors know each other — that helps with safety. Petty theft ticks up in January when the summer crowd arrives, but the rest of the year is genuinely calm.
Infrastructure scores just 4.5 out of 10, one of the lowest numbers on this entire list. There’s no hospital in Pinamar capable of handling a serious emergency, and no commercial airport. Getting anywhere requires a drive, which limits how practical this is as a full-time base if you travel often or have family abroad. If you have a serious health problem, you will need to travel to Mar del Plata, around 130 kilometers south, or all the way to Buenos Aires, 340 kilometers north. For a healthy person that might be acceptable; for someone with ongoing health needs, that distance is a burden.
Quality of Life scores 6.5, and the seasonality issue is the reason it’s not higher. Summers are genuinely alive, with restaurants full, beaches busy, and social energy. Winters are a different story — during low season, it is empty. Still, some people genuinely love that “baja temporada” tranquility.
Total score for Pinamar: 25 out of 40. If you’re thinking about moving to Argentina in 2026, our dedicated guide covers the practical steps in full detail.
8th Place: Mar del Plata, Argentina
Mar del Plata is Argentina’s biggest coastal city, with about 680,000 people living there year-round. It has a coastline that stretches 47 kilometers, and a cultural life that doesn’t shut down when summer ends. Despite being a “touristy city,” the numbers are not that inflated. A one-bedroom apartment rents for $300 to $600 a month, and a couple can live well on $1,400 to $2,200 a month — a fraction of what you’d pay in the US. Cost of Living scores 8.0 out of 10.
Argentina’s peso went through a brutal stretch, with annual inflation hitting 236% in 2024, but reform efforts brought that down to around 31% by the end of 2025. Infrastructure is good and gets a 7.5 out of 10. Astor Piazzolla International Airport connects daily to Buenos Aires’ Ezeiza, and from Ezeiza you can fly nonstop to many places in the US or Europe.
The Safety score is 4.0 out of 10 — Mar del Plata has appeared repeatedly in Argentine security reports as one of the country’s most crime-affected major cities. But it’s important to remember that Argentina is the safest country in South America, so despite the criticisms, Mar del Plata is no Rio de Janeiro. Violent crime is also concentrated in certain neighborhoods, so expats who live there learn quickly which areas work and which ones don’t. Quality of Life gets a 7.0.
The city delivers in terms of entertainment, healthcare, and lifestyle — which grants Mar del Plata 8th place.
7th Place: Encarnación, Paraguay
Yes — a landlocked country on a list of beach cities. The river beaches here are the real thing, and the cost of living numbers will make your jaw drop. This is the city mentioned in the introduction. A furnished apartment with pool access, garden, and grill area costs less than $400 a month.
Encarnación scores 9.0 out of 10 for Cost of Living — the highest on this entire list. A single person can live a genuinely comfortable life there on $800 a month. The city sits on the northern bank of the Paraná River, directly across from the Argentine city of Posadas, and the Costanera promenade stretches along several kilometers of waterfront with sandy beaches, parks, and warm river water that’s clean enough to swim in from October through March.
The Carnival here, held every January and February, draws visitors from across the continent and is widely considered one of the best outside Rio de Janeiro.
Safety scores 8.0 out of 10. Paraguay carries a U.S. State Department Level 1 Travel Advisory — one of only two countries in South America to receive that very positive designation. Encarnación specifically benefits from a community-oriented culture, a relatively stable local economy, and its distance from organized crime networks. The compact scale of the city means people notice what’s going on around them.
Quality of Life scores 6.5. The pace is slow, and if you need a cosmopolitan social scene or international dining options year-round, Encarnación won’t fully satisfy that. English is rarely spoken outside hotels.
Infrastructure scores 4.0 out of 10, and that’s where this city asks for a real compromise. Private clinics handle routine care, but anything serious means a 3.5 to 4 hour drive to Asunción. There’s no international airport in Encarnación — to fly, you must reach Silvio Pettirossi Airport in Asunción, which connects to Buenos Aires, Santiago, São Paulo, Miami, and Madrid.
The trade-off of Encarnación is clear: you give up medical proximity and easy flights, and in return you get a safe place with quality of life and low prices. For someone in good health, that trade makes a lot of sense.
6th Place: La Serena, Chile
La Serena is located about 470 kilometers north of Santiago on the Pacific coast. The first thing you need to know is the climate: more than 300 sunny days a year. The Atacama Desert starts not far from there, and the weather reflects that geography in the most practical way possible — you can plan outdoor activities year-round without constantly checking the forecast.
The Cost of Living score is 7.0 out of 10. A two-bedroom apartment in a good neighborhood costs around $600 a month on a long-term lease, well below what you’d pay in Santiago or Viña del Mar. For Chile, those numbers are genuinely competitive.
La Serena has more than 30 colonial-era buildings concentrated along Avenida Francisco de Aguirre and around the central plaza. That gives the city a character you don’t find in most Chilean coastal cities. Quality of Life is also a 7.0. The Elqui Valley is about 30 minutes inland: pisco distilleries, vineyard tours, and some of the clearest night skies on the planet.
Chile’s national homicide rate is less than 6 per 100,000 — low for the region — and the tourist and residential zones in La Serena are quite safe for daily life. La Serena might get some bad rap among Chileans, because in fact Chile has even safer cities, but compared to the South American average, it is a very safe place.
Infrastructure scores 7.0. La Florida Airport connects to Santiago in about 90 minutes by air, and a new public hospital has 673 beds, including cardiology and oncology units.
Total score: 28.5 out of 40. From the north of Chile, we move to Brazil, where the next city delivers the highest quality of life score we’ve seen so far.
5th Place: Florianópolis, Brazil
Forty-two beaches. Not ten, not fifteen. Forty-two, on an island that’s roughly 54 kilometers long. Florianópolis — or Floripa as everyone calls it — is the kind of place that sounds made up until you actually look at the map.
Quality of Life scores 8.5 out of 10, the highest number on this entire list. Florianópolis is the capital of Santa Catarina, the state with the 2nd highest HDI in Brazil. Lagoa da Conceição has coworking spaces, surf schools, fresh oyster bars, and a social scene that draws Brazilians and foreign remote workers year-round. Praia da Joaquina gets serious open-ocean surf. Jurerê Internacional is where the upscale crowd goes. You’ve got calm lagoon water on one side of the island and proper Atlantic swells on the other.
While certain areas like Jurerê can be very expensive, in other parts of the island a one-bedroom apartment can be found for $600 to $1,000 a month — beachfront. Cost of Living is a 7.0 out of 10 — for what the city offers, the price is quite a bargain.
Hercílio Luz International Airport connects directly to São Paulo’s Guarulhos hub, and from Guarulhos you can fly nonstop to London, New York, Miami, and Lisbon. Hospital Baía Sul is the main private healthcare reference in the city, with a growing number of English-speaking doctors on staff. Fiber internet covers most urban neighborhoods well. Infrastructure scores 7.5.
One practical note: getting around the island is genuinely easier with a car if you want to explore beaches outside the main corridors. Public transport exists but it’s slow.
Safety scores 6.0 out of 10 — which might look bad, but let’s put it in perspective. Floripa ranks as one of the safest state capitals in Brazil. But measured against Chile, for example, it is not as safe. Organized crime networks have expanded into Brazil’s southern cities, and peripheral neighborhoods away from tourist areas do see incidents.
The total score for Florianópolis is 29 out of 40, placing it 5th. From here, the list tightens up considerably, with two countries splitting all four remaining spots between them.
4th Place: Punta del Este, Uruguay
The first number worth knowing about Punta del Este is 24.69 — that’s the Numbeo crime index for the city. To put it in context, plenty of European cities score higher than that. Uruguay’s broader homicide rate did tick up between 2021 and 2024 at the national level, which is why the score isn’t a 9 or 10. But in the specific case of Punta, you are looking at one of the safest coastal cities in South America.
Uruguay also has some very impressive tax incentives — including a 10-year tax holiday on foreign-source income for new fiscal residents, with no wealth tax on offshore assets during that period. For anyone earning abroad, that alone changes the financial calculation significantly.
Quality of Life scores 8.5 out of 10, the highest on this list alongside Florianópolis. Two beaches on opposite sides of a narrow peninsula: Playa Mansa on the calmer bay side, good for swimming and families, and Playa Brava facing the Atlantic, where the scenery earns its reputation. Beyond the beaches, you’ve got serious restaurants, sailing clubs, golf courses, outdoor farmers’ markets, and an international social scene.
Infrastructure scores 7.5. Private healthcare institutions like Sanatorio Cantegril have English-speaking staff, and private health insurance plans cost $100 to $200 a month per person. The one logistical issue is the airport: Carrasco International Airport near Montevideo is 130 kilometers away. If you travel a lot, that drive becomes part of your life. Carlos Curbelo Airport in Punta del Este operates seasonal flights December through March from Buenos Aires, but closes or goes minimal service in winter.
Cost of Living scores 5.0 out of 10 — the worst result for this factor on this entire list. A well-located one-bedroom apartment will cost you around $1,200 a month, and a two-bedroom with sea views can push past $2,000. For someone coming from New York or London, that still represents real savings, but measured against the other cities on this list, Punta del Este prices like the resort city it is.
Total score: 29 out of 40. If you have a higher budget and want a fancy lifestyle at the highest level South America offers, Punta del Este is an excellent choice. Our full guide on moving to Uruguay covers residency, banking, and daily life in full detail.
3rd Place: Concón, Chile
Many people who research Chile for relocation land on Viña del Mar. But just up the coast, there is a shy neighbor. Almost nobody talks about Concón — 10 kilometers north of Viña del Mar, about 15 minutes by car.
Concón is part of the Valparaíso Metropolitan Area, so it shares the exact same infrastructure as Viña del Mar. You get the same hospitals, the same specialist access, the same two-hour road connection to Santiago’s full medical cluster. Infrastructure scores 8.0 out of 10.
Safety scores 7.5 out of 10. Expats who initially research Viña del Mar frequently end up in Concón specifically because day-to-day life is calmer and safer. Fewer petty crime incidents, more predictable streets at night, a residential character that keeps things calm year-round. Chile is one of the safest countries in South America, and Concón’s smaller permanent population of around 60,000 adds a community layer on top of that.
Quality of Life scores 8.0 out of 10. Playa Amarilla and Playa Las Gaviotas are genuinely good beaches — calmer and cleaner than many of the urban beaches further south. Local seafood restaurants along the waterfront draw people in from Santiago on weekends, and Concón’s seafood empanadas have a reputation across Chile. Cycling paths connect directly to Viña del Mar and the entire Valparaíso region.
Cost of Living scores 6.0 out of 10. A well-located apartment typically costs up to $1,050 a month, and a couple can live on a budget from $2,000 to $2,800. Wealthy Chilean families buy second homes there and drive up prices. But the value relative to what you actually get — the safety, the beach quality, the healthcare access — is better than most coastal cities at this price point.
2nd Place: Maldonado, Uruguay
The silver medal goes to Maldonado, Uruguay. The simplest way to describe it: it’s Punta del Este without the resort price tag. These two cities are neighbors in the most literal sense — they function as a single metro area. People move freely between them every day. You can have a Maldonado address, pay Maldonado property taxes, and still walk to Punta del Este’s beaches and restaurants.
Safety scores 8.0 out of 10, the same as Punta del Este. Numbeo’s crime index for the city scores 43.47, which is higher than Punta del Este’s extraordinary 24.69, but still well below the average Latin American city of similar size.
Cost of Living scores 7.0 out of 10 — two full points better than Punta del Este. A one-bedroom apartment costs around $700 a month, and a couple can live well on $2,500 a month, covering housing, private health insurance, food, transport, and fun. Private health insurance in Uruguay runs $100 to $200 a month per person, and specialist visits under a private plan cost $5 to $12 per appointment.
Quality of Life scores 7.0. The city has a permanent population of 75,000 to 90,000 people, which means it stays alive year-round in a way that pure resort cities don’t. Local parrillas serve grass-fed beef, the weekly feria runs fresh produce and seafood from the harbor, and the pace of daily life is slow. You don’t get Punta del Este’s restaurant scene, but the trade-off is a more authentic daily life at a lower cost.
Infrastructure scores 7.5 for reasons very similar to Punta del Este — after all, both cities are side by side. Total score: 29.5 out of 40.
1st Place: Viña del Mar, Chile — The Best Beach City in South America
First place goes to Viña del Mar, Chile, and it’s the only city on this list to score 30 out of 40. No other city breaks that barrier.
Infrastructure scores 8.5 out of 10, the highest number across all ten cities. Three private hospitals cover the area: Clínica Reñaca, Hospital Clínico Viña del Mar, and Clínica Ciudad del Mar, each with full emergency units. If something truly complex comes up, Santiago’s top private hospitals are under two hours away by road. Santiago’s SCL airport connects nonstop to Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Toronto, London, and other major cities.
On Numbeo’s safety index, Viña del Mar scores significantly better than the Chilean capital, Santiago — which is already one of the safest national capitals in South America. Petty crime exists: phone snatching near the bus terminal, occasional car break-ins. But violent crime is low by regional standards, and organized crime activity has had far more impact on parts of Valparaíso and Santiago’s outer districts than on Viña’s residential zones. Safe neighborhoods include Reñaca, Jardín del Mar, and San Martín. Safety scores 7.0 out of 10.
The Mediterranean climate delivers hot, dry summers (28–30°C) and mild winters, with a beach season running November through April. Quality of Life gets an 8.0. Maintained beaches, a coastal promenade, the International Song Festival every February, Valparaíso’s UNESCO hills minutes away, private schools, and an active expat community all contribute.
Housing in Viña del Mar costs 25% less than equivalent accommodation in Santiago, so you’re getting a better daily life at a lower price. Cost of Living scores 6.5. Encarnación and Manta are cheaper, and that’s worth saying. But in our comparison, Viña del Mar scores well in all four factors — most cities are strong in one or two areas and come up short somewhere. Viña del Mar doesn’t have that weak point.
Now you know the best and safest beach cities in South America. And if you’re wondering which countries are safest in case of a global conflict, we’ve covered that in depth in our article on the best countries to escape World War III.
Levi Borba is the founder of expatriateconsultancy.com, creator of the YouTube channel The Expat, and a best-selling author. Some of the links in our articles may be affiliated links, meaning the author earns a small commission if you make a purchase.
