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

🙂 Solo nomad: Palmerston North is 16.5% cheaper than Wellington without rent, and 28% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Palmerston North is 13.4% cheaper than Wellington without rent, and 23.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.61 NZ$27.91

$17.83 NZ$29.96

-6.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.5 NZ$123

$84.2 NZ$141

-12.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.90 NZ$19.99

$9.46 NZ$15.90

25.79%

Cappuccino

$3.39 NZ$5.69

$3.65 NZ$6.13

-7.12%

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

$2.29 NZ$3.85

$2.57 NZ$4.32

-10.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 NZ$3.58

$2.20 NZ$3.69

-3.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.12 NZ$11.96

$7.20 NZ$12.10

-1.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.34 NZ$10.66

$7.44 NZ$12.50

-14.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.97 NZ$3.31

$1.82 NZ$3.06

8.24%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 NZ$3.46

$2.04 NZ$3.43

0.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 NZ$2.93

$1.97 NZ$3.31

-11.68%

Eggs

$5.28 NZ$8.86

$7.24 NZ$12.17

-27.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.37 NZ$14.05

$8.16 NZ$13.72

2.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.94 NZ$15.01

$10.90 NZ$18.32

-17.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.48 NZ$20.97

$13.19 NZ$22.15

-5.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.48 NZ$4.17

$3.06 NZ$5.15

-18.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.80 NZ$3.03

$2.36 NZ$3.96

-23.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.42 NZ$4.07

$2.98 NZ$5.01

-18.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.34 NZ$5.60

$4.83 NZ$8.12

-30.85%

Potato (1kg)

$2.08 NZ$3.49

$2.02 NZ$3.40

2.97%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 NZ$3.66

$1.58 NZ$2.65

37.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.05 NZ$3.44

$2.30 NZ$3.86

-10.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 NZ$1.55

$1.29 NZ$2.17

-28.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.08 NZ$33.73

$26.71 NZ$44.88

-24.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.02 NZ$15.16

$10.89 NZ$18.30

-17.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.44 NZ$4.10

$3.51 NZ$5.90

-30.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.20 NZ$8.74

$3.26 NZ$5.47

59.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.77 NZ$8.01

$2.67 NZ$4.49

78.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.65 NZ$49.81

$107 NZ$180

-72.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.45 NZ$4.11

$2.77 NZ$4.65

-11.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.79 NZ$3.01

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.01 NZ$28.58

$60.9 NZ$102

-72.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.70 NZ$2.86

$1.67 NZ$2.81

1.80%

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

$18.5K NZ$31.0K

$33.0K NZ$55.5K

-44.15%

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

$21.6K NZ$36.3K

$24.9K NZ$41.8K

-13.12%

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

$88.8 NZ$149

$155 NZ$261

-42.78%

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

$37.31 NZ$62.7

$33.64 NZ$56.5

10.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.09 NZ$80.8

$51.1 NZ$85.8

-5.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.00 NZ$58.8

$36.54 NZ$61.4

-4.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.25 NZ$22.26

$20.82 NZ$34.97

-36.36%

Cinema Ticket

$9.20 NZ$15.45

$12.26 NZ$20.59

-24.96%

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

$1,022 NZ$1,717

$818 NZ$1,374

24.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,103 NZ$10.3K

$12.8K NZ$21.6K

-52.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.1 NZ$97.5

$70.9 NZ$119

-18.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.06 NZ$64.0

$53.2 NZ$89.4

-28.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.8 NZ$153

$120 NZ$201

-24.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.8 NZ$154

$145 NZ$244

-36.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$848 NZ$1,425

$1,297 NZ$2,180

-34.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$701 NZ$1,178

$1,094 NZ$1,838

-35.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,562 NZ$2,624

$2,127 NZ$3,573

-26.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,397 NZ$2,348

$1,916 NZ$3,219

-27.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,171 NZ$3,647

$6,806 NZ$11.4K

-68.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,938 NZ$3,256

$4,067 NZ$6,833

-52.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,623 NZ$4,407

$3,107 NZ$5,219

-15.56%

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: February 28, 2026

Last update for Wellington: March 2, 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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