Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dargaville and Dunedin

For one person, living is cheaper in Dunedin: $1,987 a month against $2,134 in Dargaville, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

96

Cost of Living Index in Dargaville
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Dargaville Living Index
96

Cost of Living Index in Dunedin
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Dunedin Living Index

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Dargaville

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,134

/mo nomad

Dunedin

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,987

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dargaville and in Dunedin

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Dargaville and in Dunedin actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,134 in Dargaville versus $1,987 in Dunedin.

Dargaville $2,134
Dunedin $1,987

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,019 in Dargaville versus $2,907 in Dunedin.

Dargaville $3,019
Dunedin $2,907

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,904 in Dargaville versus $3,828 in Dunedin.

Dargaville $3,904
Dunedin $3,828

Living in Dargaville is roughly 7% more expensive than in Dunedin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Dargaville 57% above, Dunedin 46% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.54 NZ$25.92

$14.03 NZ$25.00

3.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.9 NZ$123

$62.0 NZ$110

11.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.05 NZ$16.13

$11.40 NZ$20.31

-20.61%

Cappuccino

$3.69 NZ$6.58

$3.27 NZ$5.83

12.84%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 NZ$3.89

$2.07 NZ$3.69

5.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 NZ$3.73

$2.06 NZ$3.66

1.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.31 NZ$11.24

$6.73 NZ$12.00

-6.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.63 NZ$10.04

$6.16 NZ$10.98

-8.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 NZ$3.65

$2.15 NZ$3.83

-4.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 NZ$3.49

$1.99 NZ$3.55

-1.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 NZ$2.71

$1.76 NZ$3.14

-13.64%

Eggs

$6.70 NZ$11.94

$5.90 NZ$10.52

13.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.49 NZ$15.14

$8.52 NZ$15.18

-0.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.47 NZ$18.66

$9.21 NZ$16.42

13.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 NZ$22.62

$16.72 NZ$29.79

-24.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.65 NZ$4.72

$3.02 NZ$5.38

-12.25%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 NZ$3.81

$2.29 NZ$4.08

-6.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.92 NZ$5.20

$3.27 NZ$5.82

-10.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.86 NZ$10.45

$5.13 NZ$9.15

14.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.73 NZ$3.08

$1.84 NZ$3.28

-5.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 NZ$2.46

$1.87 NZ$3.34

-26.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.49 NZ$4.43

$2.41 NZ$4.29

3.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 NZ$2.10

$0.60 NZ$1.07

96.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$26.67 NZ$47.54

$20.90 NZ$37.25

27.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.24 NZ$18.26

$9.01 NZ$16.06

13.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.02 NZ$5.38

$3.17 NZ$5.66

-4.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.13 NZ$5.57

$1.26 NZ$2.24

148.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.89 NZ$3.37

$1.43 NZ$2.55

32.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$115 NZ$205

$102 NZ$181

13.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 NZ$4.31

$5.76 NZ$10.26

-57.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.81 NZ$3.22

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.35 NZ$46.96

$28.63 NZ$51.0

-7.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 NZ$2.66

$1.77 NZ$3.15

-15.82%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$25.5K NZ$45.4K

$28.2K NZ$50.3K

-9.76%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$23.7K NZ$42.2K

$23.5K NZ$41.8K

0.96%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$128 NZ$228

$110 NZ$197

15.98%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$29.15 NZ$52.0

$29.44 NZ$52.5

-0.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.3 NZ$91.4

$52.3 NZ$93.2

-1.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.91 NZ$69.4

$45.90 NZ$81.8

-15.23%

Cinema Ticket

$11.48 NZ$20.45

$11.20 NZ$19.96

2.50%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$659 NZ$1,174

$588 NZ$1,049

11.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K NZ$26.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.3 NZ$120

$58.8 NZ$105

14.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.09 NZ$69.7

$35.28 NZ$62.9

10.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.9 NZ$162

$91.3 NZ$163

-0.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 NZ$205

$135 NZ$241

-14.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 NZ$2,006

$1,013 NZ$1,805

11.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,011 NZ$1,802

$897 NZ$1,599

12.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,404 NZ$2,503

$1,632 NZ$2,908

-13.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,352 NZ$2,409

$1,358 NZ$2,419

-0.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,216 NZ$7,514

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,111 NZ$5,544

$2,273 NZ$4,050

36.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,464 NZ$4,391

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.83

7.07

-17.54%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Dargaville: October 25, 2026

Last update for Dunedin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Dargaville

$1K 47.4%

Dunedin

$897 45.2% 11.3% $114

Groceries & Markets

Dargaville

$330 15.5%

Dunedin

$324 16.3% 1.8% $5.9

Eating Out

Dargaville

$248 11.6%

Dunedin

$248 12.5% 0.2% $0.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dargaville

$209 9.8%

Dunedin

$192 9.7% 7.8% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Dargaville

$141 6.6%

Dunedin

$144 7.3% 2.5% $3.5

Getting Around

Dargaville

$134 6.3%

Dunedin

$113 * 5.7% 15.8% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Dargaville

$62 2.9%

Dunedin

$68 3.4% 10.4% $6.4

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,125 in Dargaville and $1,013 in Dunedin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $69 in Dargaville vs $62 in Dunedin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $330 vs $324 per month, with Dunedin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Dargaville

🇳🇿 Dunedin

🕒 Local time

06:47 6:47 AM

Same time as Dargaville

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,600

105,000

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.561 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

1 NZD = 0.561 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Dargaville Dunedin 1,140 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Dargaville
Dunedin

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Dargaville vs Dunedin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dargaville and Dunedin differ by about 7% in total monthly costs ($2,134 vs $1,987 including rent). Dunedin is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,201 in Dargaville and $2,980 in Dunedin to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,125 in Dargaville versus $1,013 in Dunedin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Dunedin runs roughly 12% less than in Dargaville. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

All in, you’ll spend $2,134 per month in Dargaville versus $1,987 in Dunedin – a 7% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Dunedin gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Dargaville and Dunedin are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.