Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New Plymouth and Wellington

For one person, living is cheaper in New Plymouth: $1,820 a month against $2,313 in Wellington, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in New Plymouth
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New Plymouth Living Index
110

Cost of Living Index in Wellington
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Wellington Living Index

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New Plymouth

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,820

/mo nomad

Wellington

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,313

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in New Plymouth and in Wellington

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,820 in New Plymouth versus $2,313 in Wellington.

New Plymouth $1,820
Wellington $2,313

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in New Plymouth versus $3,422 in Wellington.

New Plymouth $2,828
Wellington $3,422

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,836 in New Plymouth versus $4,530 in Wellington.

New Plymouth $3,836
Wellington $4,530

Living in New Plymouth costs roughly 21% less than in Wellington, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: New Plymouth 34% above, Wellington 70% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.43 NZ$22.06

$14.02 NZ$24.90

-11.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.9 NZ$121

$66.5 NZ$118

2.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.44 NZ$14.98

$9.23 NZ$16.38

-8.56%

Cappuccino

$3.34 NZ$5.93

$3.41 NZ$6.06

-2.05%

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

$2.12 NZ$3.76

$2.43 NZ$4.32

-12.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 NZ$3.28

$1.69 NZ$3.00

9.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.32 NZ$9.45

$7.48 NZ$13.29

-28.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.65 NZ$10.02

$6.74 NZ$11.97

-16.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 NZ$2.55

$1.95 NZ$3.47

-26.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 NZ$2.22

$2.25 NZ$4.00

-44.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 NZ$2.92

$1.85 NZ$3.29

-10.81%

Eggs

$5.53 NZ$9.82

$7.10 NZ$12.61

-22.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.52 NZ$9.79

$9.54 NZ$16.94

-42.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.19 NZ$12.76

$9.62 NZ$17.08

-25.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.42 NZ$20.28

$15.26 NZ$27.09

-25.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.63 NZ$4.67

$3.09 NZ$5.49

-14.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.86 NZ$3.29

$2.15 NZ$3.83

-13.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.93 NZ$5.20

$3.08 NZ$5.47

-4.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.12 NZ$10.86

$6.42 NZ$11.40

-4.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 NZ$3.53

$2.10 NZ$3.72

-5.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.41 NZ$2.51

$1.23 NZ$2.19

14.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.88 NZ$3.33

$2.01 NZ$3.57

-6.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 NZ$2.35

$1.16 NZ$2.06

13.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.12 NZ$41.04

$25.37 NZ$45.04

-8.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.73 NZ$15.51

$11.48 NZ$20.39

-23.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.03 NZ$5.37

$3.12 NZ$5.53

-2.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.78 NZ$6.72

$2.89 NZ$5.12

30.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.68 NZ$2.99

$2.86 NZ$5.08

-41.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.6 NZ$133

$105 NZ$186

-28.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.68 NZ$6.53

$1.88 NZ$3.34

95.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.83 NZ$3.25

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.31 NZ$60.9

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.67 NZ$2.97

$1.84 NZ$3.27

-9.24%

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

$28.7K NZ$50.9K

$28.4K NZ$50.4K

1.00%

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

$22.8K NZ$40.5K

$23.8K NZ$42.3K

-4.24%

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

$130 NZ$231

$201 NZ$357

-35.33%

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

$27.85 NZ$49.44

$33.35 NZ$59.2

-16.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.35 NZ$85.8

$53.7 NZ$95.3

-9.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.29 NZ$76.9

$35.87 NZ$63.7

20.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.18 NZ$28.73

Cinema Ticket

$8.20 NZ$14.55

$11.78 NZ$20.92

-30.39%

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

$680 NZ$1,206

$1,065 NZ$1,890

-36.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K NZ$41.0K

$13.3K NZ$23.6K

73.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.3 NZ$109

$80.4 NZ$143

-23.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.74 NZ$68.8

$28.04 NZ$49.78

38.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.6 NZ$161

$102 NZ$180

-10.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 NZ$188

$154 NZ$274

-31.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$907 NZ$1,611

$1,143 NZ$2,029

-20.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$836 NZ$1,485

$1,078 NZ$1,914

-22.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,740 NZ$3,089

$2,057 NZ$3,651

-15.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 NZ$2,821

$1,814 NZ$3,220

-12.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,209 NZ$5,697

$6,594 NZ$11.7K

-51.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,622 NZ$4,655

$3,655 NZ$6,489

-28.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,787 NZ$4,948

$2,785 NZ$4,945

0.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.93

5.39

10.02%

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

Last update for New Plymouth: October 26, 2026

Last update for Wellington: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New Plymouth

$836 45.9%

Wellington

$1.1K 46.6% 28.9% $242

Groceries & Markets

New Plymouth

$281 15.5%

Wellington

$348 15.1% 23.8% $67

Eating Out

New Plymouth

$219 12%

Wellington

$248 10.7% 13.5% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New Plymouth

$206 11.3%

Wellington

$288 12.4% 39.7% $82

Clothing & Footwear

New Plymouth

$133 7.3%

Wellington

$164 7.1% 22.8% $30

Getting Around

New Plymouth

$85 * 4.7%

Wellington

$127 5.5% 49.7% $42

Sport & Entertainment

New Plymouth

$60 3.3%

Wellington

$59 2.6% 0.4% $0.3

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 $907 in New Plymouth and $1,143 in Wellington. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $68 in New Plymouth vs $66 in Wellington. Groceries flip the comparison at $281 vs $348, with New Plymouth cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇿 New Plymouth

🇳🇿 Wellington

🕒 Local time

20:46 8:46 PM

Same time as New Plymouth

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,400

215,900 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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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

New Plymouth vs Wellington: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,820 in New Plymouth and $2,313 in Wellington, so New Plymouth is about 21% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,731 in New Plymouth and $3,470 in Wellington to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $907 in New Plymouth versus $1,143 in Wellington. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in New Plymouth runs roughly 29% less than in Wellington. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $680 in New Plymouth versus $1,065 in Wellington. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though New Plymouth 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.

Safety-wise, New Plymouth and Wellington are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.