Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Invercargill and Wellington

For one person, living is cheaper in Invercargill: $1,412 a month against $2,358 in Wellington, rent and utilities included – about $11,400 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
114

Cost of Living Index in Wellington
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Wellington Living Index

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Invercargill

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,412

/mo nomad

Wellington

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,358

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Invercargill and in Wellington

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

A single person spends $1,412 per month in Invercargill vs $2,358 in Wellington, rent included.

Invercargill $1,412
Wellington $2,358

A couple spends around $2,099 per month in Invercargill vs $3,368 in Wellington, rent included.

Invercargill $2,099
Wellington $3,368

A family of three spends $2,785 per month in Invercargill vs $4,378 in Wellington, rent included.

Invercargill $2,785
Wellington $4,378

Invercargill is about 40% cheaper than Wellington, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Invercargill and Wellington sit above the global median – Invercargill by 5%, Wellington by 75%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.04 NZ$24.83

$13.72 NZ$24.27

2.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 NZ$108

$63.7 NZ$113

-3.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.32 NZ$14.71

$8.95 NZ$15.83

-7.04%

Cappuccino

$3.12 NZ$5.52

$3.42 NZ$6.05

-8.77%

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

$1.65 NZ$2.92

$2.44 NZ$4.31

-32.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 NZ$3.60

$1.69 NZ$2.98

20.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.74 NZ$4.85

$7.22 NZ$12.76

-62.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 NZ$4.85

$6.65 NZ$11.76

-58.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 NZ$2.96

$1.91 NZ$3.38

-12.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 NZ$3.27

$2.20 NZ$3.89

-15.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.76 NZ$3.11

$1.83 NZ$3.24

-3.83%

Eggs

$5.58 NZ$9.87

$6.77 NZ$11.97

-17.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.23 NZ$14.55

$9.05 NZ$16.00

-9.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.83 NZ$15.61

$9.85 NZ$17.43

-10.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.12 NZ$21.44

$15.19 NZ$26.86

-20.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 NZ$4.50

$3.12 NZ$5.52

-18.27%

Banana (1kg)

$2.36 NZ$4.17

$2.21 NZ$3.91

6.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.66 NZ$4.70

$3.07 NZ$5.43

-13.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.52 NZ$6.23

$6.59 NZ$11.65

-46.59%

Potato (1kg)

$3.21 NZ$5.68

$2.06 NZ$3.64

55.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.61 NZ$2.85

$1.23 NZ$2.18

30.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.33 NZ$4.13

$2.07 NZ$3.66

12.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 NZ$1.84

$1.15 NZ$2.03

-9.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.39 NZ$36.06

$24.86 NZ$43.96

-17.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.56 NZ$15.14

$11.28 NZ$19.95

-24.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.86 NZ$5.06

$3.09 NZ$5.47

-7.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 NZ$5.99

$2.87 NZ$5.08

18.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.41 NZ$2.49

$2.83 NZ$5.01

-50.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$102 NZ$180

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.27 NZ$4.01

$1.87 NZ$3.30

21.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.94 NZ$3.42

$1.82 NZ$3.22

6.59%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.73 NZ$49.04

$34.15 NZ$60.4

-18.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.59 NZ$2.81

$1.82 NZ$3.22

-12.64%

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

$23.8K NZ$42.1K

$25.0K NZ$44.2K

-4.76%

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

$18.2K NZ$32.3K

$25.4K NZ$44.9K

-28.23%

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

$109 NZ$192

$197 NZ$348

-44.73%

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

$32.30 NZ$57.1

$32.00 NZ$56.6

0.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.46 NZ$75.1

$52.4 NZ$92.7

-19.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.87 NZ$49.29

$37.73 NZ$66.7

-26.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.77 NZ$24.34

$16.11 NZ$28.50

-14.53%

Cinema Ticket

$8.82 NZ$15.60

$11.93 NZ$21.10

-26.07%

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

$589 NZ$1,042

$1,056 NZ$1,867

-44.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K NZ$22.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 NZ$102

$76.3 NZ$135

-24.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.07 NZ$62.0

$28.23 NZ$49.93

24.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.0 NZ$124

$99.6 NZ$176

-29.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.0 NZ$140

$152 NZ$270

-48.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$594 NZ$1,050

$1,226 NZ$2,169

-51.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$551 NZ$974

$1,141 NZ$2,018

-51.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$831 NZ$1,470

$2,143 NZ$3,790

-61.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$764 NZ$1,350

$1,709 NZ$3,022

-55.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,482 NZ$9,695

$6,578 NZ$11.6K

-16.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,034 NZ$8,902

$3,559 NZ$6,294

41.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,729 NZ$4,826

$2,785 NZ$4,925

-2.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.72

5.39

24.68%

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

Last update for Invercargill: October 12, 2026

Last update for Wellington: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Invercargill

$551 39%

Wellington

$1.1K 48.4% 107% $590

Groceries & Markets

Invercargill

$298 21.1%

Wellington

$346 14.7% 16.2% $48

Eating Out

Invercargill

$209 14.8%

Wellington

$244 10.3% 16.7% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Invercargill

$183 13%

Wellington

$281 11.9% 53.2% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Invercargill

$109 7.7%

Wellington

$160 6.8% 47.7% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Invercargill

$46 3.2%

Wellington

$62 2.6% 35.3% $16

Getting Around

Invercargill

$18 * 1.2%

Wellington

$124 5.3% 604% $106

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 $1,226 in Wellington. 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 2% higher in Wellington, 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 $61.0 in Invercargill versus $64.0 in Wellington. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $298 vs $346 – making Invercargill the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Invercargill

🇳🇿 Wellington

🕒 Local time

08:40 8:40 AM

Same time as Invercargill

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

56,200

215,900 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Invercargill Wellington 770 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Invercargill
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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 Wellington: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Wellington costs about 67% more than Invercargill, 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 $2,119 per month in Invercargill and $3,536 in Wellington. 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,412 in Invercargill and $2,358 in Wellington. That's a gap of about 67%.

Kindergarten costs $589 per month in Invercargill and $1,056 in Wellington. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Invercargill, where all-in costs run around $1,412, than in Wellington at $2,358. In Invercargill it covers expenses comfortably, while in Wellington it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Invercargill costs $1,412 versus $2,358 in Wellington. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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, Wellington makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.