Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Palmerston North and Castle Rock, CO

For one person, living is cheaper in Castle Rock, CO: $1,253 a month against $1,562 in Palmerston North, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Palmerston North outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

76

Cost of Living Index in Palmerston North
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Palmerston North Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Castle Rock, CO
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Castle Rock, CO Living Index

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Palmerston North

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,562

/mo nomad

Castle Rock, CO

🇺🇸 United States

$1,253

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Palmerston North and in Castle Rock, CO

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,562 in Palmerston North versus $1,253 in Castle Rock, CO.

Palmerston North $1,562
Castle Rock, CO $1,253

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,537 in Palmerston North versus $1,980 in Castle Rock, CO.

Palmerston North $2,537
Castle Rock, CO $1,980

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,511 in Palmerston North versus $2,706 in Castle Rock, CO.

Palmerston North $3,511
Castle Rock, CO $2,706

Living in Palmerston North is roughly 25% more expensive than in Castle Rock, CO, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Palmerston North is 16% above, Castle Rock, CO is 7% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.50 NZ$23.87

$22.63 $22.63

-40.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.7 NZ$113

$64.0 $64.0

-0.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 NZ$15.56

$9.25 $9.25

-4.86%

Cappuccino

$3.13 NZ$5.54

$5.46 $5.46

-42.67%

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

$2.36 NZ$4.18

$2.49 $2.49

-5.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 NZ$2.97

$1.88 $1.88

-10.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.43 NZ$11.38

$6.79 $6.79

-5.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.52 NZ$11.53

$6.13 $6.13

6.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 NZ$3.26

$0.99 $0.99

85.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.14 NZ$3.78

$2.92 $2.92

-26.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.37 NZ$2.42

$2.80 $2.80

-51.07%

Eggs

$4.85 NZ$8.58

$4.15 $4.15

16.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.41 NZ$11.34

$11.14 $11.14

-42.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.50 NZ$16.80

$9.44 $9.44

0.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.78 NZ$19.06

$19.20 $19.20

-43.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.54 NZ$4.48

$4.84 $4.84

-47.52%

Banana (1kg)

$2.23 NZ$3.94

$1.46 $1.46

52.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 NZ$4.07

$3.74 $3.74

-38.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.53 NZ$9.78

$5.25 $5.25

5.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.41 NZ$2.49

$2.92 $2.92

-51.71%

Onion (1kg)

$0.86 NZ$1.53

$3.20 $3.20

-73.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.72 NZ$3.04

$1.31 $1.31

31.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.75 NZ$1.33

$1.72 $1.72

-56.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.06 NZ$39.00

$10.17 $10.17

116.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.91 NZ$13.99

$11.81 $11.81

-33.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 NZ$4.69

$2.58 $2.58

2.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 NZ$4.91

$2.74 $2.74

1.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.93 NZ$6.95

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$82.3 NZ$146

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.87 NZ$3.30

$2.47 $2.47

-24.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 NZ$3.14

$1.90 $1.90

-6.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.63 NZ$29.40

$24.81 $24.81

-32.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.64 NZ$2.90

$0.79 $0.79

107.59%

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

$21.6K NZ$38.1K

$35.9K $35.9K

-39.85%

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

$23.9K NZ$42.3K

$25.2K $25.2K

-5.09%

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

$68.2 NZ$121

$210 $210

-67.57%

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

$32.09 NZ$56.8

$39.60 $39.60

-18.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.64 NZ$61.3

$71.3 $71.3

-51.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.79 NZ$38.54

$59.0 $59.0

-63.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.08 NZ$24.90

Cinema Ticket

$11.60 NZ$20.52

$12.17 $12.17

-4.68%

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

$1,034 NZ$1,829

$1,318 $1,318

-21.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,550 NZ$15.1K

$17.6K $17.6K

-51.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.5 NZ$123

$54.4 $54.4

27.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.70 NZ$48.98

$50.7 $50.7

-45.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.1 NZ$147

$81.5 $81.5

1.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.5 NZ$146

$117 $117

-29.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$906 NZ$1,602

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$639 NZ$1,129

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,587 NZ$2,807

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,311 NZ$2,318

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,023 NZ$3,577

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,836 NZ$3,247

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,494 NZ$4,411

$5,904 $5,904

-57.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

6.77

-20.38%

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

Last update for Palmerston North: October 12, 2026

Last update for Castle Rock, CO: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Palmerston North

$639 40.9%

Castle Rock, CO

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Palmerston North

$283 18.1%

Castle Rock, CO

$362 28.9% 27.9% $79

Eating Out

Palmerston North

$233 14.9%

Castle Rock, CO

$338 27% 44.8% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Palmerston North

$135 8.6%

Castle Rock, CO

$321 25.6% 138% $186

Clothing & Footwear

Palmerston North

$118 7.6%

Castle Rock, CO

$137 10.9% 15.6% $18

Getting Around

Palmerston North

$109 7%

Castle Rock, CO

$12 * 1% 89% $97

Sport & Entertainment

Palmerston North

$45 2.9%

Castle Rock, CO

$83 6.7% 85.1% $38

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

Cost Breakdown

Castle Rock, CO pays 137% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $64.0 in Palmerston North vs $64.0 in Castle Rock, CO for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $283 vs $362 per month, with Palmerston North cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Palmerston North

🇺🇸 Castle Rock, CO

🕒 Local time

14:21 2:21 PM

19:21 7:21 PM

19 h behind Palmerston North

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

90,500

73,158

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Palmerston North Castle Rock, CO 11,970 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Palmerston North
Castle Rock, CO

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

Palmerston North vs Castle Rock, CO: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Palmerston North and Castle Rock, CO differ by about 25% in total monthly costs ($1,562 vs $1,253 including rent). Castle Rock, CO is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 137% lower in Castle Rock, CO. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Shoppers in Palmerston North pay roughly 28% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,562 per month in Palmerston North versus $1,253 in Castle Rock, CO – a 25% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,253 in Castle Rock, CO versus $1,562 in Palmerston North, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Castle Rock, CO but tight or insufficient in Palmerston North. The gap between the two cities makes Castle Rock, CO the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Palmerston North and Castle Rock, CO 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 Castle Rock, CO gentler on the wallet – expenses run 25% less than in Palmerston North. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.