Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Invercargill and Honiara

For one person, living is cheaper in Invercargill: $1,412 a month against $1,718 in Honiara, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

68

Cost of Living Index in Invercargill
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Invercargill Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
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Honiara Living Index

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Invercargill

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,412

/mo nomad

Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,718

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Invercargill and in Honiara

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

A single person spends $1,412 per month in Invercargill vs $1,718 in Honiara, rent included.

Invercargill $1,412
Honiara $1,718

A couple spends around $2,099 per month in Invercargill vs $2,833 in Honiara, rent included.

Invercargill $2,099
Honiara $2,833

A family of three spends $2,785 per month in Invercargill vs $3,948 in Honiara, rent included.

Invercargill $2,785
Honiara $3,948

Invercargill is about 18% cheaper than Honiara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Invercargill and Honiara sit above the global median – Invercargill by 5%, Honiara by 27%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.04 NZ$24.83

$6.94 SBD 56.0

102.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 NZ$108

$62.3 SBD 502

-1.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.32 NZ$14.71

$12.56 SBD 101

-33.76%

Cappuccino

$3.12 NZ$5.52

$3.49 SBD 28.17

-10.60%

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

$1.65 NZ$2.92

$1.58 SBD 12.75

4.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 NZ$3.60

$1.10 SBD 8.90

84.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.74 NZ$4.85

$2.55 SBD 20.59

7.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 NZ$4.85

$5.70 SBD 45.93

-51.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 NZ$2.96

$2.48 SBD 20.01

-32.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 NZ$3.27

$1.54 SBD 12.42

20.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.76 NZ$3.11

$1.65 SBD 13.29

6.67%

Eggs

$5.58 NZ$9.87

$5.51 SBD 44.40

1.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.23 NZ$14.55

$6.43 SBD 51.8

27.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.83 NZ$15.61

$8.58 SBD 69.2

2.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.12 NZ$21.44

$15.40 SBD 124

-21.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 NZ$4.50

$6.38 SBD 51.4

-60.03%

Banana (1kg)

$2.36 NZ$4.17

$2.59 SBD 20.89

-8.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.66 NZ$4.70

$8.44 SBD 68.1

-68.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.52 NZ$6.23

$3.66 SBD 29.48

-3.83%

Potato (1kg)

$3.21 NZ$5.68

$1.94 SBD 15.60

65.46%

Onion (1kg)

$1.61 NZ$2.85

$3.41 SBD 27.53

-52.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.33 NZ$4.13

$1.45 SBD 11.72

60.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 NZ$1.84

$1.07 SBD 8.62

-2.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.39 NZ$36.06

$4.18 SBD 33.67

387.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.56 NZ$15.14

$10.70 SBD 86.3

-20.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.86 NZ$5.06

$1.78 SBD 14.36

60.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 NZ$5.99

$3.35 SBD 26.98

1.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.41 NZ$2.49

$0.38 SBD 3.09

271.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$24.88 SBD 201

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.27 NZ$4.01

$1.20 SBD 9.70

89.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.94 NZ$3.42

$1.21 SBD 9.79

60.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.73 NZ$49.04

$12.41 SBD 100

123.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.59 NZ$2.81

$1.30 SBD 10.50

22.31%

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

$23.8K NZ$42.1K

$18.8K SBD 151.8K

26.42%

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

$18.2K NZ$32.3K

$34.7K SBD 279.9K

-47.46%

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

$109 NZ$192

$427 SBD 3,440

-74.52%

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

$32.30 NZ$57.1

$27.52 SBD 222

17.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.46 NZ$75.1

$88.8 SBD 716

-52.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.87 NZ$49.29

$37.21 SBD 300

-25.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.77 NZ$24.34

$9.24 SBD 74.5

49.03%

Cinema Ticket

$8.82 NZ$15.60

$4.25 SBD 34.29

107.53%

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

$589 NZ$1,042

$98.2 SBD 792

499.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,891 SBD 23.3K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 NZ$102

$27.02 SBD 218

112.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.07 NZ$62.0

$93.7 SBD 756

-62.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.0 NZ$124

$95.3 SBD 768

-26.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.0 NZ$140

$104 SBD 834

-23.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$594 NZ$1,050

$901 SBD 7,263

-34.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$551 NZ$974

$436 SBD 3,518

26.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$831 NZ$1,470

$1,867 SBD 15.1K

-55.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$764 NZ$1,350

$1,422 SBD 11.5K

-46.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,482 NZ$9,695

$86.7K SBD 699.2K

-93.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,034 NZ$8,902

$63.1K SBD 508.8K

-92.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,729 NZ$4,826

$443 SBD 3,574

515.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.72

15.67

-57.12%

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

Last update for Invercargill: October 12, 2026

Last update for Honiara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Invercargill

$551 39%

Honiara

$436 25.4% 20.8% $114

Groceries & Markets

Invercargill

$298 21.1%

Honiara

$345 20.1% 15.8% $47

Eating Out

Invercargill

$209 14.8%

Honiara

$170 9.9% 18.5% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Invercargill

$183 13%

Honiara

$543 31.6% 196% $360

Clothing & Footwear

Invercargill

$109 7.7%

Honiara

$144 8.4% 32.3% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Invercargill

$46 3.2%

Honiara

$46 2.7% 0.5% $0.2

Getting Around

Invercargill

$18 * 1.2%

Honiara

$34 2% 91.6% $16

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $594 in Invercargill versus $901 in Honiara. 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 515% higher in Invercargill, 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 $61.0 in Invercargill versus $62.0 in Honiara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $298 vs $345 – making Invercargill the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Invercargill

🇸🇧 Honiara

🕒 Local time

08:07 8:07 AM

06:07 6:07 AM

2 h behind Invercargill

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

56,200

54,600 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SBD, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

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).

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).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Invercargill Honiara 4,190 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Invercargill
Honiara

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

Invercargill vs Honiara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,412 in Invercargill, $1,718 in Honiara – roughly 22% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,119 per month in Invercargill and $2,577 in Honiara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Invercargill, 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 $61.0 in Invercargill and $62.0 in Honiara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 16% 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 Invercargill, where all-in costs run around $1,412, than in Honiara at $1,718. In Invercargill it covers expenses comfortably, while in Honiara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Invercargill – 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 Invercargill. 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.