Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gizo and Waihi

For one person, living is cheaper in Waihi: $1,911 a month against $2,164 in Gizo, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Gizo outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

105

Cost of Living Index in Gizo
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Gizo Living Index
90

Cost of Living Index in Waihi
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Waihi Living Index

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Gizo

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$2,164

/mo nomad

Waihi

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,911

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Gizo and in Waihi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,164 in Gizo versus $1,911 in Waihi.

Gizo $2,164
Waihi $1,911

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,051 in Gizo versus $2,937 in Waihi.

Gizo $3,051
Waihi $2,937

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,938 in Gizo versus $3,963 in Waihi.

Gizo $3,938
Waihi $3,963

Living in Gizo is roughly 13% more expensive than in Waihi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Gizo 60% above, Waihi 42% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.01 SBD 24.25

$12.00 NZ$21.22

-74.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 SBD 441

$59.7 NZ$105

-8.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.57 SBD 126

$8.35 NZ$14.77

86.47%

Cappuccino

$2.85 SBD 22.95

$3.69 NZ$6.53

-22.76%

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

$1.26 SBD 10.13

$2.22 NZ$3.92

-43.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 SBD 9.79

$2.04 NZ$3.61

-40.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.47 SBD 19.88

$5.72 NZ$10.12

-56.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 SBD 19.41

$6.49 NZ$11.47

-62.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.27 SBD 26.35

$1.93 NZ$3.41

69.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.39 SBD 11.19

$1.78 NZ$3.16

-21.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.40 SBD 11.30

$1.62 NZ$2.86

-13.58%

Eggs

$7.24 SBD 58.4

$5.12 NZ$9.06

41.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.47 SBD 68.3

$9.35 NZ$16.53

-9.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.20 SBD 50.0

$8.53 NZ$15.09

-27.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.41 SBD 67.8

$12.78 NZ$22.60

-34.19%

Apples (1kg)

$6.88 SBD 55.5

$2.80 NZ$4.95

145.71%

Banana (1kg)

$6.34 SBD 51.1

$2.25 NZ$3.98

181.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.06 SBD 48.84

$3.16 NZ$5.59

91.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.02 SBD 24.32

$5.86 NZ$10.36

-48.46%

Potato (1kg)

$3.07 SBD 24.74

$1.97 NZ$3.49

55.84%

Onion (1kg)

$2.41 SBD 19.45

$1.58 NZ$2.79

52.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.53 SBD 20.39

$2.32 NZ$4.10

9.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 SBD 10.79

$1.12 NZ$1.97

19.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.25 SBD 34.29

$22.08 NZ$39.04

-80.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.36 SBD 99.6

$9.83 NZ$17.38

25.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 SBD 14.77

$3.03 NZ$5.35

-39.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 SBD 17.66

$3.14 NZ$5.55

-30.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 SBD 3.11

$1.93 NZ$3.41

-79.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.36 SBD 253

$85.1 NZ$151

-63.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.25 SBD 10.09

$1.96 NZ$3.47

-36.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.43 SBD 19.56

$1.99 NZ$3.53

22.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.52 SBD 101

$27.15 NZ$48.02

-53.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.75 SBD 14.10

$1.72 NZ$3.04

1.74%

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

$20.7K SBD 166.9K

$21.9K NZ$38.7K

-5.45%

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

$21.9K SBD 176.9K

$19.8K NZ$35.0K

10.88%

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

$750 SBD 6,048

$117 NZ$206

543.27%

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

$13.42 SBD 108

$31.18 NZ$55.1

-56.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$123 SBD 989

$56.0 NZ$99.1

119.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$18.49 SBD 149

$35.97 NZ$63.6

-48.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.14 SBD 49.54

Cinema Ticket

$4.20 SBD 33.87

$11.32 NZ$20.02

-62.90%

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

$126 SBD 1,014

$647 NZ$1,144

-80.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,242 SBD 10.0K

$16.8K NZ$29.6K

-92.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.29 SBD 204

$56.9 NZ$101

-55.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$94.4 SBD 761

$38.94 NZ$68.9

142.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.8 SBD 804

$106 NZ$187

-5.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.6 SBD 730

$108 NZ$190

-15.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$599 SBD 4,833

$1,031 NZ$1,823

-41.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$580 SBD 4,678

$865 NZ$1,530

-32.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$630 SBD 5,081

$1,621 NZ$2,867

-61.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,217 SBD 9,809

$1,616 NZ$2,858

-24.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$85.9K SBD 692.3K

$4,404 NZ$7,789

1849.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,353 NZ$5,929

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$389 SBD 3,140

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.33

5.57

193.18%

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

Last update for Gizo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Waihi: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gizo

$886 41%

Waihi

$204 10.7% 77% $683

Accommodation & Living

Gizo

$580 26.8%

Waihi

$865 45.3% 49.1% $285

Groceries & Markets

Gizo

$353 16.3%

Waihi

$315 16.5% 10.7% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Gizo

$139 6.5%

Waihi

$139 7.3% 0.3% $0.4

Eating Out

Gizo

$132 6.1%

Waihi

$224 11.7% 69.8% $92

Getting Around

Gizo

$46 2.1%

Waihi

$105 5.5% 126% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Gizo

$27 1.2%

Waihi

$59 3.1% 118% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $599 in Gizo and $1,031 in Waihi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $55.0 in Gizo vs $60.0 in Waihi. Groceries flip the comparison at $353 vs $315, with Waihi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇸🇧 Gizo

🇳🇿 Waihi

🕒 Local time

11:08 11:08 AM

13:08 1:08 PM

2 h ahead of Gizo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,177

4,700

💱 Currency

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.11 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to SBD – Solomon Islands Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands Dollar ($)

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 8.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.11 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

USD to SBD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Gizo Waihi 3,780 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Gizo
Waihi

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

Gizo vs Waihi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Waihi wins on cost – living expenses run 13% lower than in Gizo. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Waihi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $3,246 in Gizo and $2,866 in Waihi 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: $599 in Gizo versus $1,031 in Waihi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 12% higher in Gizo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Waihi – a meal for two runs $60.0 versus $55.0 in Gizo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,911 in Waihi versus $2,164 in Gizo, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Waihi but tight or insufficient in Gizo. The gap between the two cities makes Waihi 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, Gizo and Waihi 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 Waihi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 13% less than in Gizo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.