Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gisborne and Gizo

For one person, living is cheaper in Gisborne: $1,943 a month against $2,179 in Gizo, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Gizo outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

97

Cost of Living Index in Gisborne
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Gisborne Living Index
105

Cost of Living Index in Gizo
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Gizo Living Index

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Gisborne

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,943

/mo nomad

Gizo

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$2,179

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Gisborne and in Gizo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,943 in Gisborne versus $2,179 in Gizo.

Gisborne $1,943
Gizo $2,179

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,973 in Gisborne versus $3,076 in Gizo.

Gisborne $2,973
Gizo $3,076

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,003 in Gisborne versus $3,972 in Gizo.

Gisborne $4,003
Gizo $3,972

Living in Gisborne costs roughly 11% less than in Gizo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Gisborne 43% above, Gizo 61% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$28.26 NZ$49.97

$3.07 SBD 24.77

820.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.7 NZ$94.9

$54.8 SBD 442

-2.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.03 NZ$15.96

$15.76 SBD 127

-42.70%

Cappuccino

$3.44 NZ$6.09

$2.83 SBD 22.82

21.55%

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

$2.07 NZ$3.66

$1.21 SBD 9.77

71.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 NZ$3.43

$1.28 SBD 10.29

51.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.22 NZ$11.01

$2.42 SBD 19.51

157.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.76 NZ$10.18

$2.52 SBD 20.33

128.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 NZ$3.12

$3.25 SBD 26.19

-45.85%

White Bread (500g)

$2.03 NZ$3.58

$1.38 SBD 11.13

47.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 NZ$3.10

$1.46 SBD 11.75

19.86%

Eggs

$5.93 NZ$10.49

$7.15 SBD 57.7

-17.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.14 NZ$14.40

$8.66 SBD 69.8

-6.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.69 NZ$17.13

$6.03 SBD 48.62

60.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.19 NZ$25.09

$8.63 SBD 69.6

64.43%

Apples (1kg)

$2.65 NZ$4.68

$6.73 SBD 54.3

-60.62%

Banana (1kg)

$2.15 NZ$3.81

$6.08 SBD 49.04

-64.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.97 NZ$5.25

$6.19 SBD 49.90

-52.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.48 NZ$9.69

$3.01 SBD 24.25

82.06%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 NZ$3.53

$3.16 SBD 25.49

-36.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 NZ$2.60

$2.53 SBD 20.37

-41.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.21 NZ$3.91

$2.46 SBD 19.81

-10.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 NZ$1.97

$1.34 SBD 10.81

-17.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$24.86 NZ$43.96

$4.45 SBD 35.86

458.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.53 NZ$16.85

$12.18 SBD 98.2

-21.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.53 NZ$6.24

$1.83 SBD 14.78

92.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 NZ$5.21

$2.18 SBD 17.58

35.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.57 NZ$2.77

$0.38 SBD 3.09

313.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.0 NZ$134

$30.63 SBD 247

148.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.45 NZ$4.32

$1.22 SBD 9.83

100.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.67 NZ$2.96

$2.55 SBD 20.53

-34.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.09 NZ$49.68

$12.36 SBD 99.7

127.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 NZ$3.88

$1.81 SBD 14.62

20.99%

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

$30.9K NZ$54.6K

$20.5K SBD 164.9K

50.89%

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

$25.2K NZ$44.6K

$21.4K SBD 172.7K

17.74%

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

$103 NZ$182

$755 SBD 6,084

-86.39%

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

$24.95 NZ$44.12

$13.43 SBD 108

85.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.54 NZ$85.8

$122 SBD 981

-60.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.81 NZ$61.6

$18.57 SBD 150

87.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.27 SBD 50.6

Cinema Ticket

$11.38 NZ$20.12

$4.38 SBD 35.34

159.82%

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

$664 NZ$1,174

$124 SBD 998

436.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.5K NZ$34.5K

$1,243 SBD 10.0K

1470.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.3 NZ$105

$25.51 SBD 206

132.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.00 NZ$61.9

$92.7 SBD 747

-62.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.7 NZ$155

$100 SBD 807

-12.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.5 NZ$169

$91.0 SBD 733

5.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,048 NZ$1,854

$607 SBD 4,890

72.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$814 NZ$1,440

$593 SBD 4,782

37.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,871 NZ$3,310

$622 SBD 5,014

200.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,470 NZ$2,599

$1,250 SBD 10.1K

17.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,477 NZ$9,685

$88.5K SBD 713.2K

-93.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,709 NZ$6,560

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$386 SBD 3,115

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

16.33

-65.89%

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

Last update for Gisborne: October 18, 2026

Last update for Gizo: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Gisborne

$814 41.9%

Gizo

$593 27.2% 27.2% $221

Eating Out

Gisborne

$353 18.2%

Gizo

$133 6.1% 62.4% $220

Groceries & Markets

Gisborne

$323 16.6%

Gizo

$351 16.1% 8.6% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gisborne

$176 9.1%

Gizo

$890 40.8% 405% $714

Clothing & Footwear

Gisborne

$125 6.4%

Gizo

$139 6.4% 11.4% $14

Getting Around

Gisborne

$93 4.8%

Gizo

$46 2.1% 50.5% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Gisborne

$58 3%

Gizo

$27 1.3% 52.5% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,048 in Gisborne and $607 in Gizo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $54.0 in Gisborne vs $55.0 in Gizo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $323 vs $351 per month, with Gisborne cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Gisborne

🇸🇧 Gizo

🕒 Local time

10:57 10:57 AM

08:57 8:57 AM

2 h behind Gisborne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

37,300

7,177

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 8.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.11 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Gisborne Gizo 4,010 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Gisborne
Gizo

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

Gisborne vs Gizo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Gisborne is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and utilities. The 12% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,914 in Gisborne and $3,269 in Gizo 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: $1,048 in Gisborne versus $607 in Gizo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,943 per month in Gisborne versus $2,179 in Gizo – a 12% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Gisborne runs roughly 148% less than in Gizo. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,943 in Gisborne versus $2,179 in Gizo, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Gisborne but tight or insufficient in Gizo. The gap between the two cities makes Gisborne 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, Gisborne and Gizo 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 Gisborne gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Gizo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.