Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Italy and New Zealand

Name: New Zealand
Address: NZ

For one person, living is cheaper in Italy: $1,832 a month against $2,074 in New Zealand, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in New Zealand outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

88

Cost of Living Index in Italy
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Italy Living Index
100

Cost of Living Index in New Zealand
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New Zealand Living Index

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🇮🇹 Italy

$1,832

/mo nomad

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,074

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Italy and in New Zealand

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,832 in Italy versus $2,074 in New Zealand.

Italy $1,832
New Zealand $2,074

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,809 in Italy versus $3,050 in New Zealand.

Italy $2,809
New Zealand $3,050

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,787 in Italy versus $4,026 in New Zealand.

Italy $3,787
New Zealand $4,026

Italy ($1,163–$2,537) and New Zealand ($835–$2,406) have similar cost spreads. Where you settle within each country has roughly equal impact on the budget.

Living in Italy costs about 12% less than in New Zealand on average.

Both countries sit above the global median: Italy 35% above, New Zealand 53% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.47 €18.18

$13.77 NZ$24.46

48.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.9 €70.1

$67.2 NZ$119

17.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.23 €9.98

$8.79 NZ$15.61

27.76%

Cappuccino

$2.04 €1.81

$3.40 NZ$6.03

-40.00%

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

$3.09 €2.74

$2.09 NZ$3.72

47.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 €1.19

$1.98 NZ$3.52

-32.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.71 €5.07

$6.83 NZ$12.12

-16.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.43 €4.82

$6.67 NZ$11.85

-18.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 €1.39

$1.74 NZ$3.09

-9.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.39 €2.13

$1.81 NZ$3.22

32.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.85 €2.53

$1.73 NZ$3.07

64.74%

Eggs

$4.19 €3.72

$6.03 NZ$10.70

-30.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.06 €15.16

$8.24 NZ$14.64

107.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.49 €11.09

$9.29 NZ$16.50

34.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.30 €18.04

$14.12 NZ$25.08

43.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 €2.32

$2.78 NZ$4.94

-6.12%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$2.16 NZ$3.83

0.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.59 €2.30

$2.79 NZ$4.96

-7.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.31 €2.94

$4.98 NZ$8.85

-33.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.01 €1.79

$1.95 NZ$3.46

3.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 €1.61

$1.57 NZ$2.80

15.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.40

$2.07 NZ$3.68

-24.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 €0.46

$1.07 NZ$1.91

-51.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.74 €5.99

$24.33 NZ$43.21

-72.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.91 €7.02

$8.76 NZ$15.56

-9.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 €1.56

$3.00 NZ$5.33

-41.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 €2.09

$3.18 NZ$5.66

-25.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.95 €1.74

$1.93 NZ$3.42

1.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.83 €38.04

$111 NZ$197

-61.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.53 €4.91

$2.30 NZ$4.08

140.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.71 €1.52

$1.97 NZ$3.50

-13.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.80 €30.02

$32.22 NZ$57.2

4.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.71 NZ$3.03

21.64%

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

$36.0K €32.0K

$28.3K NZ$50.3K

26.94%

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

$37.2K €33.0K

$23.1K NZ$41.1K

60.65%

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

$231 €206

$158 NZ$280

46.88%

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

$11.80 €10.48

$31.06 NZ$55.2

-62.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.94 €26.59

$49.72 NZ$88.3

-39.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.0 €47.11

$33.64 NZ$59.8

57.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.61 €20.97

$14.96 NZ$26.58

57.82%

Cinema Ticket

$10.75 €9.55

$11.26 NZ$20.01

-4.53%

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

$566 €503

$841 NZ$1,495

-32.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.6K

$21.0K NZ$37.4K

-16.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.8 €80.7

$67.6 NZ$120

34.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.57 €34.27

$35.73 NZ$63.5

7.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.7

$94.0 NZ$167

9.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 €115

$115 NZ$205

12.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$829 €737

$1,102 NZ$1,958

-24.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$630 €560

$955 NZ$1,696

-33.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,377 €1,223

$1,743 NZ$3,097

-21.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,050 €933

$1,508 NZ$2,679

-30.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,650 €3,242

$5,719 NZ$10.2K

-36.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,306 €2,049

$3,643 NZ$6,472

-36.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,951 €1,733

$2,766 NZ$4,913

-29.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.55

6.26

-43.29%

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

Last update for Italy: November 2, 2026

Last update for New Zealand: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Italy

$630 34.4%

New Zealand

$955 46.1% 51.5% $324

Groceries & Markets

Italy

$347 18.9%

New Zealand

$312 15.1% 10% $35

Eating Out

Italy

$279 15.2%

New Zealand

$241 11.6% 13.6% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Italy

$273 14.9%

New Zealand

$238 11.5% 12.7% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Italy

$163 8.9%

New Zealand

$141 6.8% 13.7% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Italy

$75 4.1%

New Zealand

$56 2.7% 24.6% $18

Getting Around

Italy

$65 3.5%

New Zealand

$131 6.3% 102% $66

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $728 in Italy, $998 in New Zealand. Capital cities: $1,348 in Rome vs $1,148 in Wellington.

National salary averages: $1,908 in Italy, $2,907 in New Zealand. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 37% higher in New Zealand.

Dining out costs 11% more in Italy.

Public transport is 137% more expensive in New Zealand.

Salaries are 52% higher in New Zealand, and purchasing power comes out stronger in New Zealand.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Italy

🇳🇿 New Zealand

🕒 Local time

00:37 12:37 AM

12:37 12:37 PM

12 h ahead of Italy

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,850,717

5,118,700

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.5 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Italy New Zealand 18,540 km ≈ 24 h nonstop flight

From you

Italy
New Zealand

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

Italy vs New Zealand: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,832 per month in Italy and $2,074 in New Zealand, Italy comes out about 12% cheaper. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Rent for a central one-bedroom averages $998 in New Zealand and $728 in Italy. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

It depends on what you’re after: Italy wins on affordability, while salaries, visas, language, and lifestyle can tip the balance either way.