Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lae and Tonga

Name: Tonga
Address: TO

For one person, living is cheaper in Lae: $825 a month against $1,087 in Tonga, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Tonga
Learn more

Tonga Living Index

Jump to prices

Lae

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

$825

/mo nomad

🇹🇴 Tonga

$1,087

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Lae is 31.4% cheaper than Tonga without rent, and 24.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Lae is 22.6% cheaper than Tonga without rent, and 22.1% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.56 PGK 108

$8.54 TOP 20.47

187.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.0 PGK 219

$63.5 TOP 152

-21.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.42 TOP 24.98

Cappuccino

$2.66 PGK 11.67

$2.95 TOP 7.07

-9.83%

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

$0.79 PGK 3.47

$2.82 TOP 6.75

-71.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 PGK 2.35

$2.42 TOP 5.80

-77.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.27 PGK 14.33

$3.24 TOP 7.76

0.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.20 PGK 22.78

$4.94 TOP 11.84

5.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 PGK 8.85

$1.52 TOP 3.64

32.89%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 PGK 6.42

$1.02 TOP 2.44

44.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.28 PGK 5.61

$2.12 TOP 5.08

-39.62%

Eggs

$3.95 PGK 17.30

$5.01 TOP 12.00

-21.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.51 PGK 41.69

$8.97 TOP 21.49

6.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.83 PGK 38.70

$5.73 TOP 13.73

54.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.71 PGK 46.93

$7.60 TOP 18.22

40.92%

Apples (1kg)

$4.55 PGK 19.94

$2.71 TOP 6.49

67.90%

Banana (1kg)

$2.78 PGK 12.18

$2.76 TOP 6.61

0.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.04 PGK 26.46

$2.85 TOP 6.83

111.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.51 PGK 6.64

$3.81 TOP 9.14

-60.37%

Potato (1kg)

$3.49 PGK 15.31

$3.12 TOP 7.48

11.86%

Onion (1kg)

$2.39 PGK 10.46

$2.65 TOP 6.35

-9.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.68 PGK 3.00

$2.18 TOP 5.24

-68.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.91 PGK 4.00

$1.37 TOP 3.27

-33.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 PGK 28.83

$10.09 TOP 24.19

-34.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.02 PGK 52.7

$17.24 TOP 41.33

-30.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 PGK 10.81

$3.24 TOP 7.77

-23.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.28 PGK 18.76

$3.38 TOP 8.09

26.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 PGK 1.39

$2.05 TOP 4.92

-84.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.49 TOP 99.4

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.10 TOP 5.04

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.07 TOP 4.96

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.58 TOP 99.7

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.96 PGK 4.23

$1.47 TOP 3.51

-34.69%

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

$5,703 TOP 13.7K

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

$8,292 TOP 19.9K

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

$188 TOP 451

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

$21.78 TOP 52.2

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$126 TOP 303

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.90 TOP 74.1

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$41.51 TOP 99.5

Cinema Ticket

$41.13 TOP 98.6

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

$161 TOP 385

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$247 TOP 593

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$14.46 TOP 34.65

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.82 TOP 42.71

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$20.91 TOP 50.1

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$29.00 TOP 69.5

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$445 PGK 1,951

$630 TOP 1,511

-29.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$260 PGK 1,141

$50.8 TOP 122

412.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,193 PGK 5,228

$842 TOP 2,018

41.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$611 PGK 2,677

$568 TOP 1,362

7.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$421 TOP 1,009

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$251 TOP 602

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$157 PGK 689

$678 TOP 1,625

-76.80%

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

Last update for Lae: October 4, 2026

Last update for Tonga: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lae

–

Tonga

$336 31.4%

Groceries & Markets

Lae

–

Tonga

$290 27.1%

Eating Out

Lae

–

Tonga

$182 17%

Sport & Entertainment

Lae

–

Tonga

$113 10.6%

Getting Around

Lae

–

Tonga

$62 5.8%

Accommodation & Living

Lae

–

Tonga

$51 4.7%

Clothing & Footwear

Lae

–

Tonga

$37 3.5%

Good to know

🇵🇬 Lae

🇹🇴 Tonga

🕒 Local time

13:46 1:46 PM

16:46 4:46 PM

3 h ahead of Lae

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

250,948

108,020

💱 Currency

Papua New Guinean Kina PGK K

Tongan Paʻanga TOP T$

📈 Exchange rate

1 PGK = 0.228 USD

1 PGK = 0.203 EUR

1 TOP = 0.417 USD

1 TOP = 0.372 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TOP, 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.38 PGK (1 PGK = 0.228 USD). 1 EUR = 4.92 PGK (1 PGK = 0.203 EUR).

Tongan Paʻanga exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 2.4 TOP (1 TOP = 0.417 USD). 1 EUR = 2.69 TOP (1 TOP = 0.372 EUR).

USD to PGK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lae Tonga 4,370 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Lae
Tonga

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

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