Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dargaville and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Dargaville: $2,134 a month against $2,849 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 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
137

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Dargaville

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,134

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,849

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dargaville and in Melbourne

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 Melbourne actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,134 in Dargaville versus $2,849 in Melbourne.

Dargaville $2,134
Melbourne $2,849

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,019 in Dargaville versus $4,274 in Melbourne.

Dargaville $3,019
Melbourne $4,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,904 in Dargaville versus $5,699 in Melbourne.

Dargaville $3,904
Melbourne $5,699

Living in Dargaville costs roughly 25% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Dargaville 57% above, Melbourne 109% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.54 NZ$25.60

$17.50 A$24.88

-16.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.9 NZ$121

$84.3 A$120

-18.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.05 NZ$15.93

$12.17 A$17.30

-25.64%

Cappuccino

$3.69 NZ$6.50

$4.07 A$5.79

-9.34%

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

$2.18 NZ$3.84

$3.18 A$4.52

-31.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 NZ$3.68

$2.50 A$3.55

-16.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.31 NZ$11.10

$9.57 A$13.61

-34.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.63 NZ$9.91

$8.25 A$11.73

-31.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 NZ$3.61

$1.50 A$2.14

36.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 NZ$3.45

$2.97 A$4.22

-34.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 NZ$2.68

$2.68 A$3.82

-43.28%

Eggs

$6.70 NZ$11.79

$5.45 A$7.76

22.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.49 NZ$14.95

$10.71 A$15.23

-20.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.47 NZ$18.43

$10.05 A$14.29

4.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 NZ$22.34

$15.00 A$21.33

-15.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.65 NZ$4.66

$4.07 A$5.79

-34.89%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 NZ$3.76

$3.14 A$4.46

-31.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.92 NZ$5.14

$3.12 A$4.43

-6.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.86 NZ$10.32

$4.73 A$6.73

23.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.73 NZ$3.04

$2.98 A$4.24

-41.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 NZ$2.43

$2.49 A$3.55

-44.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.49 NZ$4.38

$2.48 A$3.53

0.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 NZ$2.07

$1.60 A$2.27

-26.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$26.67 NZ$46.94

$44.65 A$63.5

-40.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.24 NZ$18.03

$12.68 A$18.03

-19.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.02 NZ$5.32

$5.55 A$7.89

-45.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.13 NZ$5.50

$5.18 A$7.37

-39.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.89 NZ$3.33

$3.84 A$5.46

-50.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$115 NZ$203

$139 A$197

-16.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 NZ$4.25

$4.36 A$6.20

-44.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.81 NZ$3.18

$1.37 A$1.94

32.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.35 NZ$46.38

$29.72 A$42.26

-11.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 NZ$2.63

$1.49 A$2.11

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

$25.5K NZ$44.8K

$29.1K A$41.4K

-12.43%

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

$23.7K NZ$41.7K

$25.7K A$36.5K

-7.65%

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

$128 NZ$225

$236 A$335

-45.65%

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

$29.15 NZ$51.3

$28.01 A$39.83

4.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.3 NZ$90.3

$57.2 A$81.4

-10.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.91 NZ$68.5

$48.39 A$68.8

-19.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.46 A$30.52

Cinema Ticket

$11.48 NZ$20.20

$17.67 A$25.12

-35.03%

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

$659 NZ$1,159

$2,461 A$3,499

-73.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K NZ$25.7K

$29.7K A$42.2K

-50.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.3 NZ$119

$81.2 A$115

-17.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.09 NZ$68.8

$49.28 A$70.1

-20.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.9 NZ$160

$120 A$170

-23.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 NZ$203

$131 A$186

-12.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,125 NZ$1,981

$1,703 A$2,421

-33.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,011 NZ$1,780

$1,409 A$2,003

-28.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,404 NZ$2,471

$3,496 A$4,971

-59.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,352 NZ$2,379

$2,527 A$3,593

-46.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,216 NZ$7,421

$7,978 A$11.3K

-47.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,111 NZ$5,475

$6,900 A$9,812

-54.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,257 A$6,053

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.83

5.9

-1.19%

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

Last update for Dargaville: October 25, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dargaville

$1K 47.4%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.4% 39.3% $398

Groceries & Markets

Dargaville

$330 15.5%

Melbourne

$386 13.6% 17.2% $57

Eating Out

Dargaville

$248 11.6%

Melbourne

$312 11% 26.1% $65

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dargaville

$209 9.8%

Melbourne

$321 11.3% 53.9% $112

Clothing & Footwear

Dargaville

$141 6.6%

Melbourne

$171 6% 21.9% $31

Getting Around

Dargaville

$134 6.3%

Melbourne

$165 5.8% 23.1% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Dargaville

$62 2.9%

Melbourne

$84 2.9% 35.3% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,125 in Dargaville and $1,703 in Melbourne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $69 in Dargaville vs $84 in Melbourne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $330 vs $386 per month, with Dargaville cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Dargaville

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

03:40 3:40 AM

01:40 1:40 AM

2 h behind Dargaville

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,600

5,031,195

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.568 USD

1 NZD = 0.511 EUR

1 AUD = 0.703 USD

1 AUD = 0.632 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.76 NZD (1 NZD = 0.568 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 NZD (1 NZD = 0.511 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Dargaville Melbourne 2,570 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Dargaville
Melbourne

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 Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dargaville and Melbourne differ by about 34% in total monthly costs ($2,134 vs $2,849 including rent). Dargaville 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 $4,273 in Melbourne 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 $1,703 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $659 in Dargaville versus $2,461 in Melbourne. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

For families, Dargaville is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Melbourne, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

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

Expats usually find Dargaville gentler on the wallet – expenses run 25% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.