Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Paeroa and Port Moresby

For one person, living is cheaper in Port Moresby: $1,469 a month against $1,838 in Paeroa, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

90

Cost of Living Index in Paeroa
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Paeroa Living Index
71

Cost of Living Index in Port Moresby
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Port Moresby Living Index

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Paeroa

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,838

/mo nomad

Port Moresby

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

$1,469

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Paeroa and in Port Moresby

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

A single person spends $1,838 per month in Paeroa vs $1,469 in Port Moresby, rent included.

Paeroa $1,838
Port Moresby $1,469

A couple spends around $2,712 per month in Paeroa vs $2,315 in Port Moresby, rent included.

Paeroa $2,712
Port Moresby $2,315

A family of three spends $3,586 per month in Paeroa vs $3,161 in Port Moresby, rent included.

Paeroa $3,586
Port Moresby $3,161

Paeroa costs about 25% more than Port Moresby, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Paeroa and Port Moresby sit above the global median – Paeroa by 36%, Port Moresby by 9%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.36 NZ$21.86

$7.76 PGK 33.97

59.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.9 NZ$125

$44.08 PGK 193

60.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.71 NZ$15.41

$5.61 PGK 24.55

55.26%

Cappuccino

$2.81 NZ$4.97

$2.54 PGK 11.13

10.63%

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

$2.18 NZ$3.85

$0.74 PGK 3.23

194.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 NZ$3.53

$0.69 PGK 3.00

188.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.08 NZ$10.75

$3.03 PGK 13.28

100.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.76 NZ$10.18

$3.68 PGK 16.10

56.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.80 NZ$3.18

$1.83 PGK 8.02

-1.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.01 NZ$3.55

$1.50 PGK 6.55

34.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 NZ$3.07

$1.36 PGK 5.97

27.21%

Eggs

$5.79 NZ$10.24

$3.74 PGK 16.38

54.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.09 NZ$14.31

$8.93 PGK 39.08

-9.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.11 NZ$16.11

$4.94 PGK 21.64

84.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.11 NZ$24.95

$9.55 PGK 41.82

47.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.66 NZ$4.71

$4.41 PGK 19.31

-39.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.21 NZ$3.90

$3.27 PGK 14.29

-32.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.07 NZ$5.42

$7.28 PGK 31.87

-57.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.49 NZ$9.72

$6.46 PGK 28.27

-15.02%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 NZ$3.46

$3.08 PGK 13.49

-36.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.46 NZ$2.59

$2.99 PGK 13.10

-51.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.07 NZ$3.65

$2.35 PGK 10.29

-11.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 NZ$1.96

$1.33 PGK 5.82

-16.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$26.07 NZ$46.11

$6.51 PGK 28.52

300.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.81 NZ$15.58

$10.94 PGK 47.88

-19.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.29 NZ$5.82

$2.70 PGK 11.83

21.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 NZ$5.87

$3.53 PGK 15.43

-5.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 NZ$3.11

$0.47 PGK 2.05

274.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$71.9 NZ$127

$22.74 PGK 99.5

216.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.41 NZ$4.26

$4.91 PGK 21.51

-50.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.83 NZ$3.24

$2.25 PGK 9.87

-18.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.08 NZ$53.2

$14.72 PGK 64.4

104.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 NZ$3.05

$1.00 PGK 4.38

72.00%

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

$22.8K NZ$40.4K

$50.7K PGK 222.2K

-55.03%

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

$24.0K NZ$42.4K

$17.3K PGK 75.9K

38.43%

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

$110 NZ$194

$118 PGK 516

-6.75%

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

$27.93 NZ$49.40

$20.84 PGK 91.2

34.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.5 NZ$89.4

$82.2 PGK 360

-38.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.68 NZ$73.7

$61.7 PGK 270

-32.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.19 PGK 97.1

Cinema Ticket

$10.54 NZ$18.64

$8.80 PGK 38.51

19.77%

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

$665 NZ$1,176

$563 PGK 2,465

18.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K NZ$29.8K

$6,239 PGK 27.3K

170.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.8 NZ$102

$35.46 PGK 155

63.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.74 NZ$70.3

$33.95 PGK 149

17.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.9 NZ$157

$69.7 PGK 305

27.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.0 NZ$172

$96.3 PGK 422

0.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$978 NZ$1,729

$1,532 PGK 6,706

-36.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$834 NZ$1,474

$564 PGK 2,470

47.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$879 NZ$1,554

$2,874 PGK 12.6K

-69.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,253 NZ$2,215

$1,182 PGK 5,172

6.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,878 NZ$8,626

$2,085 PGK 9,129

133.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,829 NZ$5,004

$3,782 PGK 16.6K

-25.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$427 PGK 1,870

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

12.17

-54.23%

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

Last update for Paeroa: October 12, 2026

Last update for Port Moresby: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Paeroa

$834 45.4%

Port Moresby

$564 38.4% 32.3% $269

Groceries & Markets

Paeroa

$318 17.3%

Port Moresby

$320 21.8% 0.7% $2.2

Eating Out

Paeroa

$217 11.8%

Port Moresby

$138 9.4% 36.7% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Paeroa

$188 10.3%

Port Moresby

$221 15% 17.3% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Paeroa

$128 6.9%

Port Moresby

$106 7.2% 17% $22

Getting Around

Paeroa

$91 4.9%

Port Moresby

$41 2.8% 54.9% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Paeroa

$63 3.4%

Port Moresby

$79 5.4% 26.4% $17

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $978 in Paeroa versus $1,532 in Port Moresby. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $71.0 in Paeroa versus $44.00 in Port Moresby. Groceries tell a different story – $318 in Paeroa vs $320 in Port Moresby – so Paeroa wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Paeroa

🇵🇬 Port Moresby

🕒 Local time

10:12 10:12 AM

07:12 7:12 AM

3 h behind Paeroa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,000

364,145 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Papua New Guinean Kina PGK K

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 PGK = 0.228 USD

1 PGK = 0.203 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PGK, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

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).

Papua New Guinean Kina exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.38 PGK (1 PGK = 0.228 USD). 1 EUR = 4.92 PGK (1 PGK = 0.203 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Paeroa Port Moresby 4,220 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Paeroa
Port Moresby

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

Paeroa vs Port Moresby: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,838 in Paeroa, $1,469 in Port Moresby – roughly 25% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,757 per month in Paeroa and $2,203 in Port Moresby. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Port Moresby, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $665 per month in Paeroa and $563 in Port Moresby. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 1% cheaper in Paeroa – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Port Moresby, where all-in costs run around $1,469, than in Paeroa at $1,838. In Port Moresby it covers expenses comfortably, while in Paeroa it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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