Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lae and Rolleston

For one person, living is cheaper in Lae: $840 a month against $1,142 in Rolleston, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Rolleston
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Rolleston Living Index

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Lae

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

$840

/mo nomad

Rolleston

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,142

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lae and in Rolleston

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

A single person spends $840 per month in Lae vs $1,142 in Rolleston, rent included.

Lae $840
Rolleston $1,142

A couple spends around $1,503 per month in Lae vs $2,160 in Rolleston, rent included.

Lae $1,503
Rolleston $2,160

A family of three spends $2,166 per month in Lae vs $3,178 in Rolleston, rent included.

Lae $2,166
Rolleston $3,178

Lae is about 26% cheaper than Rolleston, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Lae and Rolleston are more affordable than the global median – Lae 38% lower, Rolleston 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.73 PGK 108

$14.22 NZ$25.14

73.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 PGK 228

$68.1 NZ$120

-23.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.79 NZ$15.54

Cappuccino

$2.71 PGK 11.87

$3.28 NZ$5.81

-17.38%

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

$0.76 PGK 3.34

$2.13 NZ$3.77

-64.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 PGK 2.53

$1.76 NZ$3.12

-67.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.32 PGK 14.51

$6.62 NZ$11.70

-49.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.36 PGK 23.46

$6.18 NZ$10.93

-13.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 PGK 8.55

$1.65 NZ$2.92

18.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.48 PGK 6.48

$1.81 NZ$3.19

-18.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.26 PGK 5.52

$1.50 NZ$2.66

-16.00%

Eggs

$4.05 PGK 17.74

$5.66 NZ$10.02

-28.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.34 PGK 40.89

$7.09 NZ$12.53

31.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.34 PGK 40.88

$9.38 NZ$16.58

-0.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.59 PGK 46.37

$13.71 NZ$24.25

-22.76%

Apples (1kg)

$4.40 PGK 19.24

$2.57 NZ$4.55

71.21%

Banana (1kg)

$2.78 PGK 12.16

$2.32 NZ$4.11

19.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.13 PGK 26.82

$2.73 NZ$4.82

124.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.62 PGK 7.08

$5.10 NZ$9.01

-68.24%

Potato (1kg)

$3.51 PGK 15.39

$1.79 NZ$3.16

96.09%

Onion (1kg)

$2.28 PGK 9.99

$1.45 NZ$2.57

57.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 PGK 2.85

$2.29 NZ$4.05

-71.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.86 PGK 3.76

$0.59 NZ$1.05

45.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.63 PGK 29.01

$23.39 NZ$41.36

-71.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.12 PGK 53.1

$8.16 NZ$14.43

48.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.60 PGK 11.39

$3.33 NZ$5.89

-21.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 PGK 18.94

$3.30 NZ$5.83

31.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 PGK 1.54

$1.14 NZ$2.02

-69.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.44 NZ$4.32

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.71 NZ$3.02

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.51 NZ$48.65

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.04 PGK 4.55

$1.74 NZ$3.07

-40.23%

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

$24.8K NZ$43.8K

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

$24.0K NZ$42.5K

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

$108 NZ$191

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

$22.38 NZ$39.58

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.15 NZ$79.9

Cinema Ticket

$10.08 NZ$17.82

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

$341 NZ$602

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,755 NZ$11.9K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.5 NZ$102

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.21 NZ$62.3

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.5 NZ$158

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 NZ$215

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$447 PGK 1,956

$278 NZ$491

60.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$269 PGK 1,176

$254 NZ$449

5.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,248 PGK 5,465

$1,025 NZ$1,813

21.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 PGK 2,711

$1,082 NZ$1,914

-42.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,022 NZ$3,576

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,805 NZ$3,192

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$154 PGK 674

$4,358 NZ$7,707

-96.47%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.91

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

Last update for Lae: October 10, 2026

Last update for Rolleston: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Lae

–

Rolleston

$300 26.3%

Accommodation & Living

Lae

–

Rolleston

$254 22.2%

Eating Out

Lae

–

Rolleston

$241 21.1%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lae

–

Rolleston

$176 15.4%

Clothing & Footwear

Lae

–

Rolleston

$137 12%

Sport & Entertainment

Lae

–

Rolleston

$20 * 1.8%

Getting Around

Lae

–

Rolleston

$16 * 1.4%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $447 in Lae versus $278 in Rolleston. 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 2732% higher in Rolleston, 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 $52.0 in Lae versus $68.0 in Rolleston. Groceries tell a different story – $307 in Lae vs $300 in Rolleston – so Rolleston wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇵🇬 Lae

🇳🇿 Rolleston

🕒 Local time

16:42 4:42 PM

19:42 7:42 PM

3 h ahead of Lae

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

250,948

28,000

💱 Currency

Papua New Guinean Kina PGK K

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PGK = 0.228 USD

1 PGK = 0.203 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to PGK – Papua New Guinean Kina Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinean Kina (K)

Papua New Guinean Kina exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.38 PGK (1 PGK = 0.228 USD). 1 EUR = 4.92 PGK (1 PGK = 0.203 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

USD to PGK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lae Rolleston 4,790 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Lae
Rolleston

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

Lae vs Rolleston: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rolleston costs about 36% more than Lae, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,260 per month in Lae and $1,713 in Rolleston. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Lae, 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 $840 in Lae and $1,142 in Rolleston. That's a gap of about 36%.

Interestingly, groceries are about 2% cheaper in Rolleston – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Lae, where all-in costs run around $840, than in Rolleston at $1,142. In Lae it covers expenses comfortably, while in Rolleston it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Lae – 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 Lae. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Rolleston makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.