Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dunedin and Queenstown

For one person, living is cheaper in Dunedin: $1,794 a month against $2,416 in Queenstown, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in Dunedin
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Dunedin Living Index
119

Cost of Living Index in Queenstown
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Queenstown Living Index

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Dunedin

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,794

/mo nomad

Queenstown

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,416

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dunedin and in Queenstown

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,794 in Dunedin versus $2,416 in Queenstown.

Dunedin $1,794
Queenstown $2,416

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,661 in Dunedin versus $3,853 in Queenstown.

Dunedin $2,661
Queenstown $3,853

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,527 in Dunedin versus $5,289 in Queenstown.

Dunedin $3,527
Queenstown $5,289

Living in Dunedin costs roughly 26% less than in Queenstown, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Dunedin 33% above, Queenstown 79% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.81 NZ$24.43

$16.62 NZ$29.39

-16.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 NZ$109

$83.3 NZ$147

-26.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.05 NZ$19.54

$9.24 NZ$16.35

19.59%

Cappuccino

$3.28 NZ$5.80

$3.31 NZ$5.86

-0.91%

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

$2.03 NZ$3.58

$2.18 NZ$3.86

-6.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 NZ$3.61

$2.06 NZ$3.65

-0.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.74 NZ$11.92

$6.86 NZ$12.13

-1.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.27 NZ$11.09

$5.97 NZ$10.56

5.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.13 NZ$3.77

$2.17 NZ$3.84

-1.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 NZ$3.47

$1.93 NZ$3.41

1.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 NZ$2.98

$1.70 NZ$3.00

-1.18%

Eggs

$5.75 NZ$10.16

$5.78 NZ$10.23

-0.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.54 NZ$15.10

$8.43 NZ$14.92

1.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.45 NZ$16.72

$9.91 NZ$17.53

-4.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.50 NZ$29.19

$15.63 NZ$27.65

5.57%

Apples (1kg)

$3.00 NZ$5.30

$2.85 NZ$5.04

5.26%

Banana (1kg)

$2.39 NZ$4.22

$2.26 NZ$4.00

5.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.14 NZ$5.56

$3.64 NZ$6.44

-13.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.93 NZ$8.72

$5.30 NZ$9.38

-6.98%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 NZ$3.28

$3.37 NZ$5.96

-45.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 NZ$3.22

$1.84 NZ$3.26

-1.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 NZ$4.13

$2.30 NZ$4.06

1.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 NZ$1.04

$1.89 NZ$3.34

-68.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.71 NZ$36.63

$26.87 NZ$47.52

-22.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.90 NZ$15.75

$8.76 NZ$15.50

1.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.09 NZ$5.47

$4.40 NZ$7.79

-29.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.20 NZ$2.12

$6.52 NZ$11.53

-81.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.11 NZ$1.96

$1.43 NZ$2.53

-22.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.0 NZ$117

$120 NZ$212

-44.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.46 NZ$9.66

$2.70 NZ$4.77

102.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.88 NZ$3.33

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.62 NZ$48.84

$29.10 NZ$51.5

-5.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.76 NZ$3.12

$1.73 NZ$3.06

1.73%

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

$25.6K NZ$45.2K

$24.8K NZ$43.9K

3.10%

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

$24.9K NZ$44.0K

$23.4K NZ$41.4K

6.19%

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

$111 NZ$196

$108 NZ$192

2.37%

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

$28.15 NZ$49.78

$27.93 NZ$49.40

0.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.5 NZ$92.9

$52.7 NZ$93.2

-0.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.73 NZ$84.4

$55.4 NZ$97.9

-13.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.34 NZ$46.58

Cinema Ticket

$10.36 NZ$18.33

$10.30 NZ$18.22

0.58%

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

$570 NZ$1,009

$957 NZ$1,693

-40.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,689 NZ$13.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 NZ$104

$58.8 NZ$104

0.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.56 NZ$61.1

$45.77 NZ$80.9

-24.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.5 NZ$164

$89.1 NZ$158

3.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 NZ$234

$135 NZ$238

-1.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$873 NZ$1,545

$1,499 NZ$2,652

-41.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$749 NZ$1,324

$1,242 NZ$2,197

-39.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,480 NZ$2,617

$2,875 NZ$5,084

-48.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 NZ$2,031

$2,514 NZ$4,446

-54.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,431 NZ$13.1K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,200 NZ$3,890

$5,187 NZ$9,173

-57.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,425 NZ$4,288

$3,070 NZ$5,429

-21.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.07

6.12

15.52%

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

Last update for Dunedin: October 11, 2026

Last update for Queenstown: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dunedin

$749 41.7%

Queenstown

$1.2K 51.4% 65.9% $493

Groceries & Markets

Dunedin

$321 17.9%

Queenstown

$360 14.9% 12.2% $39

Eating Out

Dunedin

$246 13.7%

Queenstown

$264 10.9% 7.4% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dunedin

$192 10.7%

Queenstown

$189 7.8% 1.4% $2.6

Clothing & Footwear

Dunedin

$143 8%

Queenstown

$148 6.1% 3.2% $4.5

Getting Around

Dunedin

$76 * 4.2%

Queenstown

$138 5.7% 81.5% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Dunedin

$68 3.8%

Queenstown

$76 3.1% 11% $7.5

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 $873 in Dunedin and $1,499 in Queenstown. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Queenstown pays 27% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $62.0 in Dunedin vs $83.0 in Queenstown for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $321 vs $360 per month, with Dunedin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Dunedin

🇳🇿 Queenstown

🕒 Local time

09:42 9:42 AM

Same time as Dunedin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

105,000

15,450

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Dunedin Queenstown 170 km

From you

Dunedin
Queenstown

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

Dunedin vs Queenstown: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dunedin and Queenstown differ by about 35% in total monthly costs ($1,794 vs $2,416 including rent). Dunedin is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 27% lower in Queenstown. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $873 in Dunedin versus $1,499 in Queenstown. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Dunedin runs roughly 82% less than in Queenstown. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $570 in Dunedin versus $957 in Queenstown. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,794 in Dunedin versus $2,416 in Queenstown, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Dunedin but tight or insufficient in Queenstown. The gap between the two cities makes Dunedin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Dunedin and Queenstown 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 Dunedin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 35% less than in Queenstown. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.