Cost of Living Comparison Between Palmerston North and Wellington Cost of Living Comparison Between Palmerston North and Wellington

🙂 Solo nomad: Palmerston North is 20.1% cheaper than Wellington without rent, and 25.4% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Palmerston North is 9% cheaper than Wellington without rent, and 19.9% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 NZ$29.04

$17.57 NZ$30.57

-5.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.7 NZ$128

$82.9 NZ$144

-11.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.13 NZ$21.11

$9.59 NZ$16.69

26.49%

Cappuccino

$3.50 NZ$6.09

$3.61 NZ$6.28

-3.05%

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

$2.40 NZ$4.17

$2.62 NZ$4.55

-8.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 NZ$3.60

$2.14 NZ$3.72

-3.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.03 NZ$12.24

$7.10 NZ$12.36

-0.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.45 NZ$11.23

$7.13 NZ$12.41

-9.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.91 NZ$3.32

$1.83 NZ$3.19

4.37%

White Bread (500g)

$2.13 NZ$3.71

$2.05 NZ$3.56

3.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 NZ$3.09

$1.88 NZ$3.26

-5.32%

Eggs

$5.41 NZ$9.41

$6.96 NZ$12.10

-22.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.32 NZ$14.48

$8.05 NZ$14.01

3.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.24 NZ$16.08

$11.06 NZ$19.24

-16.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.37 NZ$21.53

$13.02 NZ$22.65

-4.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.49 NZ$4.32

$3.03 NZ$5.27

-17.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 NZ$3.30

$2.33 NZ$4.06

-18.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.43 NZ$4.23

$2.97 NZ$5.17

-18.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.42 NZ$5.95

$4.81 NZ$8.37

-28.90%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 NZ$3.59

$2.09 NZ$3.64

-1.44%

Onion (1kg)

$2.26 NZ$3.94

$1.59 NZ$2.77

42.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.03 NZ$3.54

$2.20 NZ$3.83

-7.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 NZ$1.65

$1.30 NZ$2.26

-26.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.42 NZ$35.53

$26.98 NZ$46.94

-24.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.86 NZ$15.42

$10.58 NZ$18.41

-16.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.45 NZ$4.26

$3.51 NZ$6.10

-30.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.40 NZ$9.40

$3.23 NZ$5.62

67.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.64 NZ$8.07

$2.63 NZ$4.58

76.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.43 NZ$52.9

$107 NZ$186

-71.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.40 NZ$4.17

$2.77 NZ$4.81

-13.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.77 NZ$3.08

$1.77 NZ$3.09

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 NZ$29.43

$61.1 NZ$106

-72.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.73 NZ$3.01

$1.67 NZ$2.90

3.59%

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

$18.5K NZ$32.2K

$33.2K NZ$57.8K

-44.31%

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

$21.2K NZ$36.9K

$24.7K NZ$43.0K

-14.19%

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

$89.5 NZ$156

$157 NZ$273

-43.02%

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

$37.86 NZ$65.9

$32.98 NZ$57.4

14.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.07 NZ$83.7

$52.5 NZ$91.4

-8.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.85 NZ$60.7

$36.82 NZ$64.1

-5.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.22 NZ$23.00

$20.35 NZ$35.42

-35.04%

Cinema Ticket

$9.08 NZ$15.80

$11.85 NZ$20.62

-23.38%

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

$1,006 NZ$1,750

$814 NZ$1,416

23.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,145 NZ$10.7K

$12.8K NZ$22.2K

-51.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.8 NZ$98.9

$72.7 NZ$126

-21.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.29 NZ$66.6

$53.0 NZ$92.1

-27.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.3 NZ$159

$121 NZ$210

-24.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.7 NZ$163

$141 NZ$245

-33.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$834 NZ$1,452

$1,297 NZ$2,257

-35.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$702 NZ$1,222

$1,106 NZ$1,924

-36.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,527 NZ$2,657

$2,115 NZ$3,680

-27.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,379 NZ$2,400

$1,906 NZ$3,317

-27.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,137 NZ$3,719

$6,842 NZ$11.9K

-68.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,887 NZ$3,283

$3,920 NZ$6,821

-51.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,504 NZ$4,357

$2,973 NZ$5,173

-15.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.69

6.94

-3.60%

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

Last update for Palmerston North: January 12, 2026

Last update for Wellington: January 10, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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