Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Honiara and Christchurch

For one person, living is cheaper in Honiara: $1,742 a month against $2,035 in Christchurch, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

83

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
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Honiara Living Index
99

Cost of Living Index in Christchurch
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Christchurch Living Index

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Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,742

/mo nomad

Christchurch

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,035

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Honiara and in Christchurch

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

A single person spends $1,742 per month in Honiara vs $2,035 in Christchurch, rent included.

Honiara $1,742
Christchurch $2,035

A couple spends around $2,873 per month in Honiara vs $3,004 in Christchurch, rent included.

Honiara $2,873
Christchurch $3,004

A family of three spends $4,004 per month in Honiara vs $3,973 in Christchurch, rent included.

Honiara $4,004
Christchurch $3,973

Honiara is about 14% cheaper than Christchurch, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Honiara and Christchurch sit above the global median – Honiara by 30%, Christchurch by 52%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.66 SBD 53.8

$13.89 NZ$24.75

-52.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.8 SBD 507

$68.9 NZ$123

-8.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.53 SBD 101

$9.20 NZ$16.39

36.20%

Cappuccino

$3.48 SBD 28.14

$3.30 NZ$5.87

5.45%

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

$1.60 SBD 12.89

$2.26 NZ$4.03

-29.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 SBD 8.49

$1.78 NZ$3.16

-41.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.42 SBD 19.58

$6.74 NZ$12.01

-64.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 SBD 46.04

$6.85 NZ$12.21

-16.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.57 SBD 20.75

$1.64 NZ$2.93

56.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 SBD 12.00

$1.87 NZ$3.33

-20.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.64 SBD 13.28

$1.49 NZ$2.66

10.07%

Eggs

$5.48 SBD 44.27

$5.95 NZ$10.59

-7.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.61 SBD 53.4

$7.24 NZ$12.91

-8.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.34 SBD 67.4

$8.99 NZ$16.02

-7.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.18 SBD 123

$13.47 NZ$24.00

12.69%

Apples (1kg)

$6.39 SBD 51.6

$2.56 NZ$4.56

149.61%

Banana (1kg)

$2.70 SBD 21.83

$2.33 NZ$4.16

15.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.70 SBD 70.2

$2.69 NZ$4.79

223.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.67 SBD 29.62

$3.77 NZ$6.73

-2.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 SBD 16.09

$1.52 NZ$2.71

30.92%

Onion (1kg)

$3.47 SBD 28.01

$1.46 NZ$2.60

137.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 SBD 11.30

$2.23 NZ$3.97

-37.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.03 SBD 8.36

$1.40 NZ$2.49

-26.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 SBD 34.39

$23.68 NZ$42.20

-82.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.37 SBD 83.7

$8.59 NZ$15.32

20.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 SBD 13.67

$3.36 NZ$5.98

-49.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.47 SBD 28.00

$4.23 NZ$7.54

-17.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 SBD 3.12

$1.65 NZ$2.95

-76.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.14 SBD 203

$99.5 NZ$177

-74.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 SBD 10.28

$2.50 NZ$4.46

-49.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 SBD 9.72

$1.70 NZ$3.03

-29.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.60 SBD 102

$28.29 NZ$50.4

-55.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 SBD 10.92

$1.86 NZ$3.31

-27.42%

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

$18.7K SBD 151.1K

$25.6K NZ$45.7K

-27.01%

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

$34.1K SBD 275.7K

$24.3K NZ$43.3K

40.68%

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

$429 SBD 3,464

$160 NZ$285

168.20%

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

$27.02 SBD 218

$22.55 NZ$40.18

19.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$89.0 SBD 719

$45.39 NZ$80.9

96.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.76 SBD 297

$23.21 NZ$41.36

58.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.94 SBD 72.2

$9.26 NZ$16.51

-3.46%

Cinema Ticket

$4.41 SBD 35.65

$11.09 NZ$19.77

-60.23%

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

$100 SBD 811

$678 NZ$1,208

-85.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,898 SBD 23.4K

$21.8K NZ$38.8K

-86.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.71 SBD 224

$59.4 NZ$106

-53.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$93.5 SBD 755

$39.46 NZ$70.3

136.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.9 SBD 774

$101 NZ$180

-4.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 SBD 829

$122 NZ$217

-15.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$870 SBD 7,024

$1,196 NZ$2,132

-27.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$434 SBD 3,507

$987 NZ$1,759

-55.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,851 SBD 14.9K

$1,578 NZ$2,812

17.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,398 SBD 11.3K

$1,440 NZ$2,565

-2.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$86.4K SBD 698.0K

$4,983 NZ$8,880

1634.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$62.1K SBD 501.2K

$2,682 NZ$4,779

2214.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$444 SBD 3,583

$2,576 NZ$4,591

-82.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

15.67

5.91

165.14%

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

Last update for Honiara: October 3, 2026

Last update for Christchurch: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Honiara

$545 31.8%

Christchurch

$228 11% 58.2% $317

Accommodation & Living

Honiara

$434 25.3%

Christchurch

$987 47.7% 127% $553

Groceries & Markets

Honiara

$345 20.1%

Christchurch

$304 14.7% 11.8% $41

Eating Out

Honiara

$167 9.7%

Christchurch

$242 11.7% 45% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Honiara

$144 8.4%

Christchurch

$145 7% 0.5% $0.8

Sport & Entertainment

Honiara

$46 2.7%

Christchurch

$45 2.2% 0.4% $0.2

Getting Around

Honiara

$34 2%

Christchurch

$117 5.7% 245% $83

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $870 in Honiara versus $1,196 in Christchurch. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 481% higher in Christchurch, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $63.0 in Honiara versus $69.0 in Christchurch. Groceries tell a different story – $345 in Honiara vs $304 in Christchurch – so Christchurch wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇸🇧 Honiara

🇳🇿 Christchurch

🕒 Local time

21:48 9:48 PM

23:48 11:48 PM

2 h ahead of Honiara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

54,600 Capital

380,600

💱 Currency

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.111 EUR

1 NZD = 0.561 USD

1 NZD = 0.501 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 8.08 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.05 SBD (1 SBD = 0.111 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.561 USD). 1 EUR = 2 NZD (1 NZD = 0.501 EUR).

USD to SBD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Honiara Christchurch 3,990 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Honiara
Christchurch

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 Christchurch: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Christchurch costs about 17% more than Honiara, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,614 per month in Honiara and $3,052 in Christchurch. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Honiara, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 296% less in Honiara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $100 per month in Honiara and $678 in Christchurch. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Honiara, where all-in costs run around $1,742, than in Christchurch at $2,035. In Honiara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Christchurch it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Honiara – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Honiara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Christchurch makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.