Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Palmerston North and Nadi

For one person, living is cheaper in Nadi: $1,386 a month against $1,562 in Palmerston North, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. The total is higher in Palmerston North despite lower rent and utilities.

76

Cost of Living Index in Palmerston North
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Palmerston North Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Nadi
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Nadi Living Index

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Palmerston North

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,562

/mo nomad

Nadi

🇫🇯 Fiji

$1,386

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Nadi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,562 per month in Palmerston North vs $1,386 in Nadi, rent included.

Palmerston North $1,562
Nadi $1,386

A couple spends around $2,537 per month in Palmerston North vs $2,044 in Nadi, rent included.

Palmerston North $2,537
Nadi $2,044

A family of three spends $3,511 per month in Palmerston North vs $2,702 in Nadi, rent included.

Palmerston North $3,511
Nadi $2,702

Palmerston North costs about 13% more than Nadi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Palmerston North and Nadi sit above the global median – Palmerston North by 16%, Nadi by 3%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.50 NZ$23.87

$8.87 FJD 19.85

52.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.7 NZ$113

$36.73 FJD 82.2

73.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 NZ$15.56

$9.00 FJD 20.16

-2.22%

Cappuccino

$3.13 NZ$5.54

$4.41 FJD 9.88

-29.02%

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

$2.36 NZ$4.18

$1.49 FJD 3.35

58.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 NZ$2.97

$1.28 FJD 2.86

31.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.43 NZ$11.38

$2.74 FJD 6.13

134.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.52 NZ$11.53

$4.55 FJD 10.19

43.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 NZ$3.26

$1.34 FJD 3.00

37.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.14 NZ$3.78

$1.08 FJD 2.43

98.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.37 NZ$2.42

$1.31 FJD 2.93

4.58%

Eggs

$4.85 NZ$8.58

$3.12 FJD 6.99

55.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.41 NZ$11.34

$12.07 FJD 27.01

-46.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.50 NZ$16.80

$13.75 FJD 30.78

-30.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.78 NZ$19.06

$15.66 FJD 35.07

-31.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.54 NZ$4.48

$2.94 FJD 6.57

-13.61%

Banana (1kg)

$2.23 NZ$3.94

$2.77 FJD 6.20

-19.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 NZ$4.07

$3.71 FJD 8.30

-38.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.53 NZ$9.78

Potato (1kg)

$1.41 NZ$2.49

$1.98 FJD 4.44

-28.79%

Onion (1kg)

$0.86 NZ$1.53

$1.98 FJD 4.44

-56.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.72 NZ$3.04

$1.10 FJD 2.45

56.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.75 NZ$1.33

$0.96 FJD 2.15

-21.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.06 NZ$39.00

$9.46 FJD 21.19

133.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.91 NZ$13.99

$10.00 FJD 22.39

-20.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 NZ$4.69

$2.73 FJD 6.11

-2.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 NZ$4.91

$3.41 FJD 7.63

-18.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.93 NZ$6.95

$0.70 FJD 1.57

461.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$82.3 NZ$146

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.87 NZ$3.30

$1.14 FJD 2.55

64.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 NZ$3.14

$0.42 FJD 0.94

323.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.63 NZ$29.40

$4.84 FJD 10.84

243.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.64 NZ$2.90

$1.32 FJD 2.96

24.24%

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

$21.6K NZ$38.1K

$24.9K FJD 55.7K

-13.38%

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

$23.9K NZ$42.3K

$22.3K FJD 50.0K

7.06%

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

$68.2 NZ$121

$65.8 FJD 147

3.63%

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

$32.09 NZ$56.8

$17.97 FJD 40.23

78.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.64 NZ$61.3

$23.26 FJD 52.1

48.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.79 NZ$38.54

$37.21 FJD 83.3

-41.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.08 NZ$24.90

Cinema Ticket

$11.60 NZ$20.52

$5.45 FJD 12.19

112.84%

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

$1,034 NZ$1,829

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,550 NZ$15.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.5 NZ$123

$29.10 FJD 65.2

138.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.70 NZ$48.98

$43.62 FJD 97.7

-36.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.1 NZ$147

$56.8 FJD 127

46.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.5 NZ$146

$67.7 FJD 152

21.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$906 NZ$1,602

$1,127 FJD 2,524

-19.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$639 NZ$1,129

$645 FJD 1,444

-0.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,587 NZ$2,807

$1,673 FJD 3,745

-5.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,311 NZ$2,318

$1,004 FJD 2,248

30.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,023 NZ$3,577

$679 FJD 1,521

197.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,836 NZ$3,247

$518 FJD 1,161

254.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,494 NZ$4,411

$806 FJD 1,805

209.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

7.25

-25.66%

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

Last update for Palmerston North: October 12, 2026

Last update for Nadi: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Palmerston North

$639 40.9%

Nadi

$645 46.5% 1% $6.2

Groceries & Markets

Palmerston North

$283 18.1%

Nadi

$306 * 22.1% 8.2% $23

Eating Out

Palmerston North

$233 14.9%

Nadi

$185 13.3% 20.8% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Palmerston North

$135 8.6%

Nadi

$107 7.7% 20.7% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Palmerston North

$118 7.6%

Nadi

$89 6.4% 25% $30

Getting Around

Palmerston North

$109 7%

Nadi

$6 * 0.4% 94.4% $103

Sport & Entertainment

Palmerston North

$45 2.9%

Nadi

$48 3.5% 6.9% $3.1

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $906 in Palmerston North versus $1,127 in Nadi. 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 209% higher in Palmerston North, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64.0 in Palmerston North versus $37.00 in Nadi. Groceries tell a different story – $283 in Palmerston North vs $306 in Nadi – so Palmerston North wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Palmerston North

🇫🇯 Nadi

🕒 Local time

12:42 12:42 PM

11:42 11:42 AM

1 h behind Palmerston North

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

90,500

50,000

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Fijian Dollar FJD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 FJD = 0.447 USD

1 FJD = 0.397 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

Fijian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 2.24 FJD (1 FJD = 0.447 USD). 1 EUR = 2.52 FJD (1 FJD = 0.397 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Palmerston North Nadi 2,510 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Palmerston North
Nadi

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 Nadi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Palmerston North is pricier by about 13%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,343 per month in Palmerston North and $2,079 in Nadi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Interestingly, groceries are about 8% cheaper in Palmerston North – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64.0 in Palmerston North and $37.00 in Nadi. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Nadi, where all-in costs run around $1,386, than in Palmerston North at $1,562. In Nadi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Palmerston North it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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