Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Majuro and Oamaru

For one person, living is cheaper in Oamaru: $1,769 a month against $2,116 in Majuro, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

104

Cost of Living Index in Majuro
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Majuro Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Oamaru
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Oamaru Living Index

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Majuro

🇲🇭 Marshall Islands

$2,116

/mo nomad

Oamaru

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,769

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Majuro and in Oamaru

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

A single person spends $2,116 per month in Majuro vs $1,769 in Oamaru, rent included.

Majuro $2,116
Oamaru $1,769

A couple spends around $2,980 per month in Majuro vs $2,802 in Oamaru, rent included.

Majuro $2,980
Oamaru $2,802

A family of three spends $3,845 per month in Majuro vs $3,834 in Oamaru, rent included.

Majuro $3,845
Oamaru $3,834

Majuro costs about 20% more than Oamaru, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Majuro and Oamaru sit above the global median – Majuro by 57%, Oamaru by 31%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.14 $10.14

$13.87 NZ$24.53

-26.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.73 $29.73

$67.7 NZ$120

-56.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 $10.35

$9.18 NZ$16.23

12.75%

Cappuccino

$4.21 $4.21

$3.30 NZ$5.84

27.58%

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

$1.85 $1.85

$2.33 NZ$4.12

-20.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.01 $2.01

$1.78 NZ$3.14

12.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.43 $4.43

$6.58 NZ$11.63

-32.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.88 $4.88

$6.91 NZ$12.22

-29.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.20 $2.20

$1.67 NZ$2.94

31.74%

White Bread (500g)

$3.44 $3.44

$1.28 NZ$2.27

168.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.50 NZ$2.65

18.00%

Eggs

$5.13 $5.13

$5.48 NZ$9.70

-6.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$30.62 $30.62

$7.26 NZ$12.83

321.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.10 $11.10

$8.87 NZ$15.69

25.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.52 $18.52

$13.60 NZ$24.04

36.18%

Apples (1kg)

$4.47 $4.47

$2.39 NZ$4.22

87.03%

Banana (1kg)

$7.44 $7.44

$2.02 NZ$3.58

268.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.73 $8.73

$2.69 NZ$4.76

224.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$12.59 $12.59

$2.97 NZ$5.25

323.91%

Potato (1kg)

$5.23 $5.23

$1.50 NZ$2.65

248.67%

Onion (1kg)

$5.51 $5.51

$1.33 NZ$2.35

314.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.69 $3.69

$2.06 NZ$3.64

79.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 $1.81

$0.70 NZ$1.24

158.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.83 $5.83

$24.24 NZ$42.87

-75.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.16 $10.16

$5.44 NZ$9.63

86.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.37 NZ$5.96

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 $2.52

$4.29 NZ$7.60

-41.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.92 $2.92

$1.49 NZ$2.64

95.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$89.0 NZ$157

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.78 $2.78

$2.55 NZ$4.52

9.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.70 NZ$3.00

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.86 $4.86

$27.87 NZ$49.29

-82.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.58 NZ$2.79

11.39%

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

$25.0K $25.0K

$25.2K NZ$44.6K

-1.02%

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

$34.8K $34.8K

$23.9K NZ$42.2K

45.86%

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

$250 $250

$158 NZ$279

58.42%

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

$37.28 $37.28

$19.36 NZ$34.24

92.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.5 $79.5

$45.43 NZ$80.3

75.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.84 $37.84

$39.08 NZ$69.1

-3.17%

Cinema Ticket

$9.98 NZ$17.65

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

$148 $148

$668 NZ$1,181

-77.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,607 $2,607

$21.7K NZ$38.4K

-87.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.6 $70.6

$56.4 NZ$99.7

25.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.42 $39.42

$16.83 NZ$29.77

134.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$29.98 $29.98

$44.83 NZ$79.3

-33.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$50.3 $50.3

$50.3 NZ$88.9

-0.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$778 $778

$973 NZ$1,720

-20.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$861 $861

$790 NZ$1,398

8.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,331 $1,331

$1,725 NZ$3,051

-22.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,281 $1,281

$1,631 NZ$2,884

-21.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,751 NZ$8,403

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,236 NZ$5,724

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$995 $995

$1,926 NZ$3,405

-48.31%

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 Majuro: October 11, 2026

Last update for Oamaru: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Majuro

$861 40.7%

Oamaru

$790 44.7% 8.1% $70

Groceries & Markets

Majuro

$540 * 25.5%

Oamaru

$274 15.5% 49.3% $266

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Majuro

$367 17.3%

Oamaru

$223 12.6% 39.3% $144

Eating Out

Majuro

$210 9.9%

Oamaru

$241 13.6% 14.9% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Majuro

$86 4.1%

Oamaru

$76 4.3% 11.6% $9.9

Sport & Entertainment

Majuro

$38 * 1.8%

Oamaru

$59 3.3% 56.1% $21

Getting Around

Majuro

$14 * 0.7%

Oamaru

$106 6% 632% $91

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $778 in Majuro versus $973 in Oamaru. 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 93% higher in Oamaru, 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 $30.00 in Majuro versus $68.0 in Oamaru. Groceries tell a different story – $540 in Majuro vs $274 in Oamaru – so Oamaru wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇭 Majuro

🇳🇿 Oamaru

🕒 Local time

15:22 3:22 PM

16:22 4:22 PM

1 h ahead of Majuro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

26,000 Capital

13,850

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 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).

NZD to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Majuro Oamaru 5,800 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Majuro
Oamaru

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

Majuro vs Oamaru: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Majuro is pricier by about 20%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,174 per month in Majuro and $2,654 in Oamaru. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Oamaru, 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 $2,116 in Majuro and $1,769 in Oamaru. That's a gap of about 20%.

Kindergarten costs $148 per month in Majuro and $668 in Oamaru. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Oamaru, where all-in costs run around $1,769, than in Majuro at $2,116. In Oamaru it covers expenses comfortably, while in Majuro it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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