Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Honiara and Paramaribo

For one person, living is cheaper in Paramaribo: $1,002 a month against $1,718 in Honiara, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

84

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
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Honiara Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Paramaribo
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Paramaribo Living Index

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Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,718

/mo nomad

Paramaribo

🇸🇷 Suriname

$1,002

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Honiara and in Paramaribo

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

A single person spends $1,718 per month in Honiara vs $1,002 in Paramaribo, rent included.

Honiara $1,718
Paramaribo $1,002

A couple spends around $2,833 per month in Honiara vs $1,659 in Paramaribo, rent included.

Honiara $2,833
Paramaribo $1,659

A family of three spends $3,948 per month in Honiara vs $2,316 in Paramaribo, rent included.

Honiara $3,948
Paramaribo $2,316

Honiara costs about 71% more than Paramaribo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Honiara sits 27% above the global median, while Paramaribo is 26% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.94 SBD 56.0

$13.42 SRD 506

-48.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 SBD 502

$52.8 SRD 1,989

17.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.56 SBD 101

$10.82 SRD 408

16.08%

Cappuccino

$3.49 SBD 28.17

$2.86 SRD 108

22.03%

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

$1.58 SBD 12.75

$1.41 SRD 53.3

12.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 SBD 8.90

$0.88 SRD 32.98

25.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 SBD 20.59

$2.66 SRD 100

-4.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 SBD 45.93

$3.87 SRD 146

47.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.48 SBD 20.01

$1.75 SRD 65.8

41.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 SBD 12.42

$1.41 SRD 53.1

9.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 SBD 13.29

$1.65 SRD 62.3

Eggs

$5.51 SBD 44.40

$3.12 SRD 118

76.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.43 SBD 51.8

$11.77 SRD 444

-45.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.58 SBD 69.2

$6.13 SRD 231

39.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.40 SBD 124

$10.24 SRD 386

50.39%

Apples (1kg)

$6.38 SBD 51.4

$4.78 SRD 180

33.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.59 SBD 20.89

$3.01 SRD 113

-13.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.44 SBD 68.1

$3.67 SRD 138

129.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.66 SBD 29.48

$6.01 SRD 226

-39.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 SBD 15.60

$1.32 SRD 49.65

46.97%

Onion (1kg)

$3.41 SBD 27.53

$1.99 SRD 74.9

71.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 SBD 11.72

$1.53 SRD 57.7

-5.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 SBD 8.62

$1.44 SRD 54.1

-25.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 SBD 33.67

$5.66 SRD 213

-26.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.70 SBD 86.3

$8.07 SRD 304

32.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 SBD 14.36

$2.09 SRD 78.8

-14.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 SBD 26.98

$3.78 SRD 142

-11.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.38 SBD 3.09

$0.78 SRD 29.23

-51.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$24.88 SBD 201

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.20 SBD 9.70

$2.15 SRD 81.0

-44.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.21 SBD 9.79

$1.54 SRD 58.0

-21.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.41 SBD 100

$7.19 SRD 271

72.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 SBD 10.50

$1.19 SRD 44.76

9.24%

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

$18.8K SBD 151.8K

$25.5K SRD 959.6K

-26.10%

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

$34.7K SBD 279.9K

$25.3K SRD 952.9K

37.24%

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

$427 SBD 3,440

$37.49 SRD 1,412

1038.28%

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

$27.52 SBD 222

$25.86 SRD 974

6.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$88.8 SBD 716

$30.23 SRD 1,139

193.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.21 SBD 300

$13.51 SRD 509

175.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.24 SBD 74.5

$20.20 SRD 761

-54.26%

Cinema Ticket

$4.25 SBD 34.29

$5.15 SRD 194

-17.48%

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

$98.2 SBD 792

$63.1 SRD 2,378

55.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,891 SBD 23.3K

$1,777 SRD 66.9K

62.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.02 SBD 218

$33.60 SRD 1,266

-19.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$93.7 SBD 756

$20.88 SRD 787

348.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.3 SBD 768

$68.3 SRD 2,571

39.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 SBD 834

$103 SRD 3,873

0.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$901 SBD 7,263

$480 SRD 18.1K

87.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$436 SBD 3,518

$266 SRD 10.0K

64.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,867 SBD 15.1K

$939 SRD 35.4K

98.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,422 SBD 11.5K

$499 SRD 18.8K

185.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$86.7K SBD 699.2K

$461 SRD 17.3K

18731.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$63.1K SBD 508.8K

$396 SRD 14.9K

15848.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$443 SBD 3,574

$282 SRD 10.6K

57.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

15.67

-2.06%

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

Last update for Honiara: October 11, 2026

Last update for Paramaribo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Honiara

$543 31.6%

Paramaribo

$94 9.3% 82.8% $449

Accommodation & Living

Honiara

$436 25.4%

Paramaribo

$266 26.6% 39% $170

Groceries & Markets

Honiara

$345 20.1%

Paramaribo

$300 29.9% 13.2% $45

Eating Out

Honiara

$170 9.9%

Paramaribo

$204 20.4% 20.2% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Honiara

$144 8.4%

Paramaribo

$102 10.1% 29.4% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Honiara

$46 2.7%

Paramaribo

$24 2.4% 47.9% $22

Getting Around

Honiara

$34 2%

Paramaribo

$13 * 1.3% 61.5% $21

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $901 in Honiara versus $480 in Paramaribo. 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 57% higher in Honiara, 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 $62.0 in Honiara versus $53.0 in Paramaribo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $345 vs $300 – making Paramaribo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇧 Honiara

🇸🇷 Paramaribo

🕒 Local time

09:43 9:43 AM

19:43 7:43 PM

14 h behind Honiara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

54,600 Capital

242,946 Capital

💱 Currency

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

Surinamese Dollar SRD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.11 EUR

100 SRD = 2.65 USD

100 SRD = 2.36 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands Dollar ($)

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 8.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.11 EUR).

Surinamese Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 37.67 SRD (100 SRD = 2.65 USD). 1 EUR = 42.35 SRD (100 SRD = 2.36 EUR).

USD to SBD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Honiara Paramaribo 16,120 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Honiara
Paramaribo

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 Paramaribo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,718 in Honiara, $1,002 in Paramaribo – roughly 71% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,577 per month in Honiara and $1,503 in Paramaribo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $62.0 in Honiara and $53.0 in Paramaribo. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 15% more in Honiara, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Paramaribo, where all-in costs run around $1,002, than in Honiara at $1,718. In Paramaribo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Honiara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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