Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lautoka and Honiara

For one person, living is cheaper in Lautoka: $333 a month against $1,718 in Honiara, rent and utilities included – about $16,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Lautoka
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Lautoka Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
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Honiara Living Index

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Lautoka

🇫🇯 Fiji

$333

/mo nomad

Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,718

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lautoka 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 Lautoka and in Honiara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $333 per month in Lautoka vs $1,718 in Honiara, rent included.

Lautoka $333
Honiara $1,718

A couple spends around $722 per month in Lautoka vs $2,833 in Honiara, rent included.

Lautoka $722
Honiara $2,833

A family of three spends $1,112 per month in Lautoka vs $3,948 in Honiara, rent included.

Lautoka $1,112
Honiara $3,948

Lautoka is about 81% cheaper than Honiara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Lautoka sits 75% below the global median, while Honiara is 27% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.19 FJD 11.61

$6.94 SBD 56.0

-25.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.2 FJD 177

$62.3 SBD 502

27.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.80 FJD 17.47

$12.56 SBD 101

-37.90%

Cappuccino

$2.56 FJD 5.72

$3.49 SBD 28.17

-26.65%

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

$2.12 FJD 4.74

$1.58 SBD 12.75

34.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 FJD 3.38

$1.10 SBD 8.90

37.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.43 FJD 5.44

$2.55 SBD 20.59

-4.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 FJD 6.84

$5.70 SBD 45.93

-46.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 FJD 3.72

$2.48 SBD 20.01

-33.06%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 FJD 1.64

$1.54 SBD 12.42

-52.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.87 FJD 1.95

$1.65 SBD 13.29

-47.27%

Eggs

$3.44 FJD 7.70

$5.51 SBD 44.40

-37.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.80 FJD 12.98

$6.43 SBD 51.8

-9.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.62 FJD 17.06

$8.58 SBD 69.2

-11.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.58 FJD 16.98

$15.40 SBD 124

-50.78%

Apples (1kg)

$4.42 FJD 9.90

$6.38 SBD 51.4

-30.72%

Banana (1kg)

$2.59 SBD 20.89

Oranges (1kg)

$1.30 FJD 2.91

$8.44 SBD 68.1

-84.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.66 SBD 29.48

Potato (1kg)

$0.93 FJD 2.09

$1.94 SBD 15.60

-52.06%

Onion (1kg)

$0.86 FJD 1.93

$3.41 SBD 27.53

-74.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 FJD 1.96

$1.45 SBD 11.72

-40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.46 FJD 1.03

$1.07 SBD 8.62

-57.01%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.93 FJD 24.46

$4.18 SBD 33.67

161.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.46 FJD 12.22

$10.70 SBD 86.3

-48.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.57 FJD 5.74

$1.78 SBD 14.36

44.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.49 FJD 7.82

$3.35 SBD 26.98

4.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.38 SBD 3.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$24.88 SBD 201

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.20 SBD 9.70

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.21 SBD 9.79

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.41 SBD 100

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 FJD 2.99

$1.30 SBD 10.50

2.31%

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

$18.8K SBD 151.8K

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

$34.7K SBD 279.9K

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

$427 SBD 3,440

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

$13.14 FJD 29.43

$27.52 SBD 222

-52.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$88.8 SBD 716

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.21 SBD 300

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.24 SBD 74.5

Cinema Ticket

$4.25 SBD 34.29

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

$98.2 SBD 792

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,891 SBD 23.3K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.02 SBD 218

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$93.7 SBD 756

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.3 SBD 768

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 SBD 834

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$450 FJD 1,007

$901 SBD 7,263

-50.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$436 SBD 3,518

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$872 FJD 1,952

$1,867 SBD 15.1K

-53.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,422 SBD 11.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$86.7K SBD 699.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$63.1K SBD 508.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$688 FJD 1,541

$443 SBD 3,574

55.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

15.67

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

Last update for Lautoka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Honiara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Lautoka

$191 * 57.5%

Honiara

$345 20.1% 80.6% $154

Eating Out

Lautoka

$128 38.6%

Honiara

$170 9.9% 32.5% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lautoka

$13 * 4%

Honiara

$543 31.6% 4033% $530

Getting Around

Lautoka

- * 0%

Honiara

$34 2%

Sport & Entertainment

Lautoka

- * 0%

Honiara

$46 2.7%

Clothing & Footwear

Lautoka

- * 0%

Honiara

$144 8.4%

Accommodation & Living

Lautoka

- * 0%

Honiara

$436 25.4%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $450 in Lautoka 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 55% higher in Lautoka, 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 $79.0 in Lautoka versus $62.0 in Honiara. Groceries tell a different story – $191 in Lautoka vs $345 in Honiara – so Lautoka wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇫🇯 Lautoka

🇸🇧 Honiara

🕒 Local time

09:29 9:29 AM

08:29 8:29 AM

1 h behind Lautoka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

50,000

54,600 Capital

💱 Currency

Fijian Dollar FJD $

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 FJD = 0.447 USD

1 FJD = 0.398 EUR

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.111 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SBD, USD, EUR to FJD – Fijian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇫🇯 Fijian Dollar ($)

Fijian Dollar exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 2.24 FJD (1 FJD = 0.447 USD). 1 EUR = 2.51 FJD (1 FJD = 0.398 EUR).

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 8.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.04 SBD (1 SBD = 0.111 EUR).

USD to FJD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lautoka Honiara 2,100 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Lautoka
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

Lautoka vs Honiara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $333 in Lautoka, $1,718 in Honiara – roughly 417% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $499 per month in Lautoka 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 Lautoka, 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 $79.0 in Lautoka and $62.0 in Honiara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $333 in Lautoka and $1,718 in Honiara. That's a gap of about 417%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Lautoka, where all-in costs run around $333, than in Honiara at $1,718. In Lautoka it covers expenses comfortably, while in Honiara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Lautoka – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Lautoka. 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.