Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Noumea and Palmerston North

For one person, living is cheaper in Palmerston North: $1,562 a month against $2,391 in Noumea, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

116

Cost of Living Index in Noumea
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Noumea Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Palmerston North
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Palmerston North Living Index

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Noumea

🇳🇨 New Caledonia

$2,391

/mo nomad

Palmerston North

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,562

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Noumea and in Palmerston North

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,391 in Noumea versus $1,562 in Palmerston North.

Noumea $2,391
Palmerston North $1,562

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,791 in Noumea versus $2,537 in Palmerston North.

Noumea $3,791
Palmerston North $2,537

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,191 in Noumea versus $3,511 in Palmerston North.

Noumea $5,191
Palmerston North $3,511

Living in Noumea is roughly 53% more expensive than in Palmerston North, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Noumea 77% above, Palmerston North 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.61 CFPF 2,180

$13.50 NZ$23.87

52.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$111 CFPF 11.8K

$63.7 NZ$113

74.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.29 CFPF 1,512

$8.80 NZ$15.56

62.39%

Cappuccino

$4.50 CFPF 477

$3.13 NZ$5.54

43.77%

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

$1.92 CFPF 203

$2.36 NZ$4.18

-18.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 CFPF 135

$1.68 NZ$2.97

-24.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.28 CFPF 982

$6.43 NZ$11.38

44.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.04 CFPF 745

$6.52 NZ$11.53

7.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 CFPF 129

$1.84 NZ$3.26

-33.70%

White Bread (500g)

$3.50 CFPF 370

$2.14 NZ$3.78

63.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 CFPF 233

$1.37 NZ$2.42

60.58%

Eggs

$6.02 CFPF 637

$4.85 NZ$8.58

24.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$29.56 CFPF 3,128

$6.41 NZ$11.34

361.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.42 CFPF 3,007

$9.50 NZ$16.80

199.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$28.43 CFPF 3,007

$10.78 NZ$19.06

163.73%

Apples (1kg)

$4.70 CFPF 497

$2.54 NZ$4.48

85.04%

Banana (1kg)

$7.18 CFPF 759

$2.23 NZ$3.94

221.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.04 CFPF 639

$2.30 NZ$4.07

162.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$8.19 CFPF 866

$5.53 NZ$9.78

48.10%

Potato (1kg)

$5.41 CFPF 572

$1.41 NZ$2.49

283.69%

Onion (1kg)

$3.63 CFPF 384

$0.86 NZ$1.53

322.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$4.07 CFPF 430

$1.72 NZ$3.04

136.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 CFPF 158

$0.75 NZ$1.33

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.12 CFPF 2,023

$22.06 NZ$39.00

-13.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.93 CFPF 1,792

$7.91 NZ$13.99

114.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.80 CFPF 614

$2.65 NZ$4.69

118.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 NZ$4.91

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.59 CFPF 486

$3.93 NZ$6.95

16.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$82.3 NZ$146

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.87 CFPF 726

$1.87 NZ$3.30

267.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.11 CFPF 117

$1.78 NZ$3.14

-37.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.45 CFPF 2,269

$16.63 NZ$29.40

28.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 CFPF 167

$1.64 NZ$2.90

-3.66%

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

$32.2K CFPF 3.4M

$21.6K NZ$38.1K

49.29%

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

$37.1K CFPF 3.9M

$23.9K NZ$42.3K

54.89%

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

$201 CFPF 21.3K

$68.2 NZ$121

194.55%

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

$42.95 CFPF 4,544

$32.09 NZ$56.8

33.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.00 CFPF 5,185

$34.64 NZ$61.3

41.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.91 CFPF 5,280

$21.79 NZ$38.54

129.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.60 CFPF 910

$14.08 NZ$24.90

-38.92%

Cinema Ticket

$13.91 CFPF 1,472

$11.60 NZ$20.52

19.91%

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

$762 CFPF 80.6K

$1,034 NZ$1,829

-26.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,253 CFPF 978.9K

$8,550 NZ$15.1K

8.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$107 CFPF 11.4K

$69.5 NZ$123

54.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$64.7 CFPF 6,844

$27.70 NZ$48.98

133.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.9 CFPF 10.3K

$83.1 NZ$147

16.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$249 CFPF 26.3K

$82.5 NZ$146

201.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$751 CFPF 79.4K

$906 NZ$1,602

-17.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$773 CFPF 81.8K

$639 NZ$1,129

21.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,494 CFPF 158.1K

$1,587 NZ$2,807

-5.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,359 CFPF 143.7K

$1,311 NZ$2,318

3.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,622 CFPF 489.0K

$2,023 NZ$3,577

128.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,488 CFPF 369.1K

$1,836 NZ$3,247

90.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,663 CFPF 281.7K

$2,494 NZ$4,411

6.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.13

5.39

-41.93%

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

Last update for Noumea: October 10, 2026

Last update for Palmerston North: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Noumea

$773 32.3%

Palmerston North

$639 40.9% 17.4% $135

Groceries & Markets

Noumea

$648 * 27.1%

Palmerston North

$283 18.1% 56.3% $365

Eating Out

Noumea

$335 14%

Palmerston North

$233 14.9% 30.4% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Noumea

$293 12.3%

Palmerston North

$135 8.6% 53.9% $158

Clothing & Footwear

Noumea

$233 9.7%

Palmerston North

$118 7.6% 49.2% $115

Sport & Entertainment

Noumea

$78 3.3%

Palmerston North

$45 2.9% 42.1% $33

Getting Around

Noumea

$31 * 1.3%

Palmerston North

$109 7% 254% $78

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 $751 in Noumea and $906 in Palmerston North. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Noumea pays 7% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $111 in Noumea vs $64.0 in Palmerston North for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $648 vs $283 per month, with Palmerston North cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇨 Noumea

🇳🇿 Palmerston North

🕒 Local time

02:02 2:02 AM

04:02 4:02 AM

2 h ahead of Noumea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

91,386 Capital

90,500

💱 Currency

CFP Franc XPF Fr

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 XPF = 9.45 USD

1,000 XPF = 8.41 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to XPF – CFP Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🌐 CFP Franc (Fr)

CFP Franc exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 106 XPF (1,000 XPF = 9.45 USD). 1 EUR = 119 XPF (1,000 XPF = 8.41 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).

USD to XPF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Noumea Palmerston North 2,190 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Noumea
Palmerston North

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

Noumea vs Palmerston North: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Palmerston North is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 53% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 7% higher in Noumea, 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: $751 in Noumea versus $906 in Palmerston North. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $762 in Noumea versus $1,034 in Palmerston North. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Palmerston North – a meal for two runs $64.0 versus $111 in Noumea. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,562 in Palmerston North versus $2,391 in Noumea, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Palmerston North but tight or insufficient in Noumea. The gap between the two cities makes Palmerston North the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Palmerston North is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Noumea, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Noumea and Palmerston North are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Palmerston North gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Noumea. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.