Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lautoka and Puerto la Cruz

For one person, living is cheaper in Lautoka: $333 a month against $745 in Puerto la Cruz, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Lautoka
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Lautoka Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Puerto la Cruz
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Puerto la Cruz Living Index

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Lautoka

🇫🇯 Fiji

$333

/mo nomad

Puerto la Cruz

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$745

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lautoka and in Puerto la Cruz

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 Puerto la Cruz actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $333 in Lautoka versus $745 in Puerto la Cruz.

Lautoka $333
Puerto la Cruz $745

Estimated couple costs with rent: $722 in Lautoka versus $1,321 in Puerto la Cruz.

Lautoka $722
Puerto la Cruz $1,321

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,112 in Lautoka versus $1,897 in Puerto la Cruz.

Lautoka $1,112
Puerto la Cruz $1,897

Living in Lautoka costs roughly 55% less than in Puerto la Cruz, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lautoka 75% lower, Puerto la Cruz 45% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.19 FJD 11.61

$10.13 VES 8,891

-48.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.2 FJD 177

$60.7 VES 53.3K

30.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.80 FJD 17.47

$7.57 VES 6,646

3.04%

Cappuccino

$2.56 FJD 5.72

$3.44 VES 3,017

-25.58%

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

$2.12 FJD 4.74

$0.71 VES 621

198.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 FJD 3.38

$0.45 VES 394

235.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.43 FJD 5.44

$1.28 VES 1,124

89.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 FJD 6.84

$1.52 VES 1,334

100.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 FJD 3.72

$2.05 VES 1,797

-19.02%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 FJD 1.64

$1.23 VES 1,083

-40.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.87 FJD 1.95

$1.21 VES 1,064

-28.10%

Eggs

$3.44 FJD 7.70

$2.34 VES 2,054

47.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.80 FJD 12.98

$7.04 VES 6,178

-17.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.62 FJD 17.06

$9.15 VES 8,032

-16.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.58 FJD 16.98

$10.97 VES 9,629

-30.90%

Apples (1kg)

$4.42 FJD 9.90

$7.07 VES 6,207

-37.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.33 VES 1,165

Oranges (1kg)

$1.30 FJD 2.91

$0.49 VES 428

165.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.36 VES 2,069

Potato (1kg)

$0.93 FJD 2.09

$2.22 VES 1,946

-58.11%

Onion (1kg)

$0.86 FJD 1.93

$2.20 VES 1,928

-60.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 FJD 1.96

$1.64 VES 1,437

-46.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.46 FJD 1.03

$1.68 VES 1,479

-72.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.93 FJD 24.46

$3.95 VES 3,469

176.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.46 FJD 12.22

$8.15 VES 7,155

-33.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.57 FJD 5.74

$0.98 VES 860

162.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.49 FJD 7.82

$1.47 VES 1,291

137.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 VES 320

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.01 VES 26.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.07 VES 2,697

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.73 VES 2,396

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.12 VES 8,883

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 FJD 2.99

$0.48 VES 421

177.08%

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

$24.7K VES 21.7M

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

$38.5K VES 33.8M

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

$21.34 VES 18.7K

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

$13.14 FJD 29.43

$10.10 VES 8,870

30.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.09 VES 23.8K

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.74 VES 26.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.35 VES 22.3K

Cinema Ticket

$4.98 VES 4,373

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

$60.1 VES 52.8K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,028 VES 2.7M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.20 VES 41.4K

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.44 VES 30.2K

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.90 VES 40.3K

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$47.49 VES 41.7K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$450 FJD 1,007

$148 VES 129.7K

204.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$95.2 VES 83.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$872 FJD 1,952

$311 VES 272.7K

180.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$198 VES 173.7K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$752 VES 660.5K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$373 VES 327.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$688 FJD 1,541

$223 VES 195.6K

208.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

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

Last update for Lautoka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Puerto la Cruz: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Lautoka

$191 * 57.5%

Puerto la Cruz

$266 35.7% 39.1% $75

Eating Out

Lautoka

$128 38.6%

Puerto la Cruz

$159 21.3% 23.9% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lautoka

$13 * 4%

Puerto la Cruz

$59 7.9% 346% $45

Getting Around

Lautoka

- * 0%

Puerto la Cruz

$48 6.5%

Sport & Entertainment

Lautoka

- * 0%

Puerto la Cruz

$40 5.3%

Clothing & Footwear

Lautoka

- * 0%

Puerto la Cruz

$79 10.6%

Accommodation & Living

Lautoka

- * 0%

Puerto la Cruz

$95 12.8%

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $450 in Lautoka and $148 in Puerto la Cruz. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lautoka pays 209% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $79.0 in Lautoka vs $61.0 in Puerto la Cruz. Groceries flip the comparison at $191 vs $266, with Lautoka cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇫🇯 Lautoka

🇻🇪 Puerto la Cruz

🕒 Local time

16:32 4:32 PM

00:32 12:32 AM

16 h behind Lautoka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

50,000

272,231

💱 Currency

Fijian Dollar FJD $

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

📈 Exchange rate

1 FJD = 0.447 USD

1 FJD = 0.397 EUR

1,000 VES = 1.14 USD

1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VES, USD, EUR to FJD – Fijian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇫🇯 Fijian Dollar ($)

Fijian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 2.24 FJD (1 FJD = 0.447 USD). 1 EUR = 2.52 FJD (1 FJD = 0.397 EUR).

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 878 VES (1,000 VES = 1.14 USD). 1 EUR = 987 VES (1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR).

USD to FJD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lautoka Puerto la Cruz 13,290 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Lautoka
Puerto la Cruz

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 Puerto la Cruz: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lautoka and Puerto la Cruz differ by about 124% in total monthly costs ($333 vs $745 including rent). Lautoka is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 209% higher in Lautoka, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $450 in Lautoka versus $148 in Puerto la Cruz. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Lautoka – a meal for two runs $79.0 versus $61.0 in Puerto la Cruz. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $333 per month in Lautoka versus $745 in Puerto la Cruz – a 124% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Lautoka gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Lautoka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 124% less than in Puerto la Cruz. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.