Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Honiara and Suva

For one person, living is cheaper in Suva: $927 a month against $1,742 in Honiara, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

83

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
Learn more

Honiara Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Suva
Learn more

Suva Living Index

Jump to prices

Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,742

/mo nomad

Suva

🇫🇯 Fiji

$927

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Honiara and in Suva

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

A single person spends $1,742 per month in Honiara vs $927 in Suva, rent included.

Honiara $1,742
Suva $927

A couple spends around $2,873 per month in Honiara vs $1,681 in Suva, rent included.

Honiara $2,873
Suva $1,681

A family of three spends $4,004 per month in Honiara vs $2,435 in Suva, rent included.

Honiara $4,004
Suva $2,435

Honiara costs about 88% more than Suva, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Honiara sits 30% above the global median, while Suva is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.66 SBD 53.8

$5.72 FJD 12.81

16.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.8 SBD 507

$44.13 FJD 98.8

42.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.53 SBD 101

$7.76 FJD 17.37

61.47%

Cappuccino

$3.48 SBD 28.15

$2.91 FJD 6.52

19.59%

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

$1.60 SBD 12.90

$1.50 FJD 3.36

6.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 SBD 8.49

$0.73 FJD 1.64

43.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.42 SBD 19.59

$3.67 FJD 8.21

-34.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.70 SBD 46.05

$4.33 FJD 9.70

31.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.57 SBD 20.76

$1.28 FJD 2.86

100.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 SBD 12.00

$0.56 FJD 1.26

166.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.64 SBD 13.29

$1.13 FJD 2.52

45.13%

Eggs

$5.48 SBD 44.29

$3.39 FJD 7.60

61.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.61 SBD 53.4

$10.04 FJD 22.48

-34.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.34 SBD 67.4

$6.06 FJD 13.57

37.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.18 SBD 123

$7.82 FJD 17.50

94.12%

Apples (1kg)

$6.39 SBD 51.7

$2.47 FJD 5.54

158.70%

Banana (1kg)

$2.70 SBD 21.84

$2.42 FJD 5.43

11.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.70 SBD 70.3

$3.48 FJD 7.79

150.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.67 SBD 29.63

$3.12 FJD 6.99

17.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 SBD 16.10

$1.22 FJD 2.72

63.11%

Onion (1kg)

$3.47 SBD 28.03

$1.07 FJD 2.39

224.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 SBD 11.31

$1.22 FJD 2.73

14.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.03 SBD 8.36

$0.73 FJD 1.64

41.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 SBD 34.40

$9.66 FJD 21.62

-55.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.37 SBD 83.7

$7.33 FJD 16.41

41.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 SBD 13.67

$2.07 FJD 4.64

-18.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.47 SBD 28.02

$3.43 FJD 7.69

1.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 SBD 3.12

$0.94 FJD 2.11

-58.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.14 SBD 203

$22.37 FJD 50.1

12.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 SBD 10.28

$0.87 FJD 1.94

45.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 SBD 9.72

$0.42 FJD 0.94

185.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.60 SBD 102

$8.95 FJD 20.04

40.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 SBD 10.92

$1.46 FJD 3.26

-7.53%

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

$18.7K SBD 151.1K

$24.4K FJD 54.6K

-23.34%

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

$34.1K SBD 275.9K

$25.6K FJD 57.4K

33.31%

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

$429 SBD 3,466

$46.38 FJD 104

825.01%

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

$27.02 SBD 218

$12.79 FJD 28.65

111.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$89.0 SBD 719

$23.98 FJD 53.7

271.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.76 SBD 297

$36.85 FJD 82.5

-0.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.94 SBD 72.2

$11.30 FJD 25.29

-20.88%

Cinema Ticket

$4.41 SBD 35.66

$3.43 FJD 7.68

28.57%

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

$100 SBD 811

$228 FJD 509

-55.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,898 SBD 23.4K

$13.4K FJD 30.0K

-78.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.71 SBD 224

$33.19 FJD 74.3

-16.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$93.5 SBD 755

$40.53 FJD 90.8

130.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.9 SBD 774

$68.9 FJD 154

39.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 SBD 830

$61.4 FJD 138

67.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$870 SBD 7,027

$891 FJD 1,995

-2.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$434 SBD 3,508

$330 FJD 740

31.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,851 SBD 14.9K

$2,641 FJD 5,913

-29.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,398 SBD 11.3K

$1,001 FJD 2,241

39.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$86.4K SBD 698.3K

$1,320 FJD 2,956

6448.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$62.1K SBD 501.4K

$818 FJD 1,832

7487.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$444 SBD 3,585

$961 FJD 2,151

-53.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

15.67

7.7

103.51%

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

Last update for Honiara: October 3, 2026

Last update for Suva: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Honiara

$545 31.8%

Suva

$83 8.8% 84.7% $462

Accommodation & Living

Honiara

$434 25.3%

Suva

$330 34.9% 23.9% $104

Groceries & Markets

Honiara

$345 20.1%

Suva

$228 24.1% 33.8% $116

Eating Out

Honiara

$167 9.7%

Suva

$140 14.8% 16.1% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Honiara

$144 8.4%

Suva

$92 9.7% 36.2% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Honiara

$46 2.7%

Suva

$44 4.6% 4.1% $1.9

Getting Around

Honiara

$34 2%

Suva

$29 3.1% 14.3% $4.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $870 in Honiara versus $891 in Suva. 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 117% higher in Suva, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $63.0 in Honiara versus $44.00 in Suva. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $345 vs $228 – making Suva the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇧 Honiara

🇫🇯 Suva

🕒 Local time

20:04 8:04 PM

21:04 9:04 PM

1 h ahead of Honiara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

54,600 Capital

100,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

Fijian Dollar FJD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.11 EUR

1 FJD = 0.447 USD

1 FJD = 0.398 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

FJD, 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 = 9.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.11 EUR).

Fijian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 2.24 FJD (1 FJD = 0.447 USD). 1 EUR = 2.51 FJD (1 FJD = 0.398 EUR).

USD to SBD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Honiara Suva 2,220 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Honiara
Suva

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 Suva: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,742 in Honiara, $927 in Suva – roughly 88% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,614 per month in Honiara and $1,390 in Suva. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 51% 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 mid-range dinner for two costs $63.0 in Honiara and $44.00 in Suva. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Suva, where all-in costs run around $927, than in Honiara at $1,742. In Suva it covers expenses comfortably, while in Honiara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Suva – 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 Suva. 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.