Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Honiara and Cambridge

For one person, living is cheaper in Honiara: $1,718 a month against $2,044 in Cambridge, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cambridge outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

84

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
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Honiara Living Index
99

Cost of Living Index in Cambridge
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Cambridge Living Index

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Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,718

/mo nomad

Cambridge

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,044

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Honiara and in Cambridge

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,718 in Honiara versus $2,044 in Cambridge.

Honiara $1,718
Cambridge $2,044

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,833 in Honiara versus $2,830 in Cambridge.

Honiara $2,833
Cambridge $2,830

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,948 in Honiara versus $3,617 in Cambridge.

Honiara $3,948
Cambridge $3,617

Living in Honiara costs roughly 16% less than in Cambridge, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Honiara 27% above, Cambridge 51% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.94 SBD 56.0

$13.75 NZ$24.32

-49.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 SBD 502

$68.4 NZ$121

-8.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.56 SBD 101

$8.74 NZ$15.45

43.71%

Cappuccino

$3.49 SBD 28.17

$3.45 NZ$6.10

1.16%

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

$1.58 SBD 12.75

$1.93 NZ$3.41

-18.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 SBD 8.90

$1.99 NZ$3.52

-44.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 SBD 20.59

$6.08 NZ$10.75

-58.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 SBD 45.93

$6.63 NZ$11.73

-14.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.48 SBD 20.01

$1.51 NZ$2.67

64.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 SBD 12.42

$2.23 NZ$3.94

-30.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 SBD 13.29

$1.89 NZ$3.34

-12.70%

Eggs

$5.51 SBD 44.40

$5.95 NZ$10.53

-7.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.43 SBD 51.8

$8.33 NZ$14.73

-22.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.58 SBD 69.2

$9.43 NZ$16.68

-9.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.40 SBD 124

$13.01 NZ$23.01

18.37%

Apples (1kg)

$6.38 SBD 51.4

$2.55 NZ$4.50

150.20%

Banana (1kg)

$2.59 SBD 20.89

$2.28 NZ$4.04

13.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.44 SBD 68.1

$3.02 NZ$5.34

179.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.66 SBD 29.48

$5.65 NZ$9.99

-35.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 SBD 15.60

$2.11 NZ$3.73

-8.06%

Onion (1kg)

$3.41 SBD 27.53

$1.56 NZ$2.76

118.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 SBD 11.72

$2.27 NZ$4.02

-36.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 SBD 8.62

$1.08 NZ$1.92

-0.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 SBD 33.67

$25.11 NZ$44.41

-83.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.70 SBD 86.3

$10.40 NZ$18.39

2.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 SBD 14.36

$3.44 NZ$6.08

-48.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 SBD 26.98

$3.84 NZ$6.79

-12.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.38 SBD 3.09

$2.72 NZ$4.81

-86.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$24.88 SBD 201

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.20 SBD 9.70

$2.18 NZ$3.85

-44.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.21 SBD 9.79

$1.94 NZ$3.43

-37.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.41 SBD 100

$31.37 NZ$55.5

-60.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 SBD 10.50

$1.70 NZ$3.00

-23.53%

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

$18.8K SBD 151.8K

$25.1K NZ$44.4K

-25.08%

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

$34.7K SBD 279.9K

$22.1K NZ$39.1K

56.99%

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

$427 SBD 3,440

$99.4 NZ$176

329.36%

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

$27.52 SBD 222

$26.44 NZ$46.77

4.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$88.8 SBD 716

$50.8 NZ$89.8

74.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.21 SBD 300

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.24 SBD 74.5

Cinema Ticket

$4.25 SBD 34.29

$13.51 NZ$23.90

-68.54%

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

$98.2 SBD 792

$673 NZ$1,190

-85.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,891 SBD 23.3K

$19.3K NZ$34.1K

-85.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.02 SBD 218

$62.0 NZ$110

-56.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$93.7 SBD 756

$37.37 NZ$66.1

150.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.3 SBD 768

$93.1 NZ$165

2.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 SBD 834

$105 NZ$186

-1.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$901 SBD 7,263

$584 NZ$1,033

54.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$436 SBD 3,518

$1,122 NZ$1,985

-61.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,867 SBD 15.1K

$1,158 NZ$2,048

61.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,422 SBD 11.5K

$1,449 NZ$2,563

-1.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$86.7K SBD 699.2K

$4,539 NZ$8,027

1810.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$63.1K SBD 508.8K

$3,931 NZ$6,953

1505.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$443 SBD 3,574

$2,585 NZ$4,571

-82.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

15.67

161.17%

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

Last update for Honiara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cambridge: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Honiara

$543 31.6%

Cambridge

$177 8.6% 67.5% $366

Accommodation & Living

Honiara

$436 25.4%

Cambridge

$1.1K 54.9% 157% $686

Groceries & Markets

Honiara

$345 20.1%

Cambridge

$324 15.9% 6.1% $21

Eating Out

Honiara

$170 9.9%

Cambridge

$237 11.6% 39.3% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Honiara

$144 8.4%

Cambridge

$134 6.6% 6.8% $9.7

Sport & Entertainment

Honiara

$46 2.7%

Cambridge

$27 * 1.3% 40.9% $19

Getting Around

Honiara

$34 2%

Cambridge

$23 * 1.1% 32.4% $11

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 $901 in Honiara and $584 in Cambridge. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cambridge pays 483% 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 Honiara vs $68.0 in Cambridge. Groceries flip the comparison at $345 vs $324, with Cambridge cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇸🇧 Honiara

🇳🇿 Cambridge

🕒 Local time

06:58 6:58 AM

08:58 8:58 AM

2 h ahead of Honiara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

54,600 Capital

21,400

💱 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 17, 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 17, 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

Honiara Cambridge 3,530 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Honiara
Cambridge

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

Honiara vs Cambridge: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Honiara is cheaper overall, especially in eating out. The 19% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 483% lower in Cambridge. 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: $901 in Honiara versus $584 in Cambridge. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $98.2 in Honiara versus $673 in Cambridge. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Honiara – a meal for two runs $62.0 versus $68.0 in Cambridge. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,718 in Honiara versus $2,044 in Cambridge, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Honiara but tight or insufficient in Cambridge. The gap between the two cities makes Honiara 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, Honiara and Cambridge 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 Honiara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Cambridge. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.