Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Papua New Guinea and Tonga

Name: Tonga
Address: TO

For one person, living is cheaper in Tonga: $1,067 a month against $1,391 in Papua New Guinea, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Papua New Guinea outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

68

Cost of Living Index in Papua New Guinea
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Papua New Guinea Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Tonga
Learn more

Tonga Living Index

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🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

$1,391

/mo nomad

🇹🇴 Tonga

$1,067

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Papua New Guinea and in Tonga

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

A single person spends $1,391 per month in Papua New Guinea vs $1,067 in Tonga, rent included.

Papua New Guinea $1,391
Tonga $1,067

A couple spends around $2,213 per month in Papua New Guinea vs $1,901 in Tonga, rent included.

Papua New Guinea $2,213
Tonga $1,901

A family of three spends $3,035 per month in Papua New Guinea vs $2,735 in Tonga, rent included.

Papua New Guinea $3,035
Tonga $2,735

The cost of living in Papua New Guinea is about 30% higher than in Tonga on average.

Papua New Guinea sits 3% above the global median, while Tonga is 21% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.17 PGK 31.38

$8.43 TOP 20.30

-14.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.04 PGK 193

$62.2 TOP 150

-29.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.47 PGK 23.94

$10.24 TOP 24.66

-46.58%

Cappuccino

$2.45 PGK 10.71

$2.93 TOP 7.05

-16.38%

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

$0.79 PGK 3.46

$2.79 TOP 6.72

-71.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.63 PGK 2.74

$2.52 TOP 6.07

-75.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.64 PGK 11.57

$3.22 TOP 7.76

-18.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.11 PGK 18.01

$5.09 TOP 12.26

-19.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 PGK 8.28

$1.53 TOP 3.67

23.53%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 PGK 6.44

$1.01 TOP 2.44

45.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.38 PGK 6.04

$2.04 TOP 4.90

-32.35%

Eggs

$3.67 PGK 16.05

$5.16 TOP 12.44

-28.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.41 PGK 28.04

$8.91 TOP 21.45

-28.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.14 PGK 26.86

$5.85 TOP 14.10

4.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.03 PGK 39.52

$7.56 TOP 18.21

19.44%

Apples (1kg)

$4.03 PGK 17.65

$2.73 TOP 6.58

47.62%

Banana (1kg)

$3.40 PGK 14.89

$2.71 TOP 6.52

25.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.22 PGK 27.22

$2.83 TOP 6.81

119.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.20 PGK 22.75

$3.83 TOP 9.22

35.77%

Potato (1kg)

$3.35 PGK 14.65

$3.10 TOP 7.48

8.06%

Onion (1kg)

$2.74 PGK 11.98

$2.66 TOP 6.40

3.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.99 PGK 8.70

$2.26 TOP 5.45

-11.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 PGK 5.25

$1.34 TOP 3.24

-10.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.42 PGK 28.09

$10.31 TOP 24.84

-37.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.81 PGK 47.30

$16.99 TOP 40.94

-36.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.38 PGK 10.44

$3.15 TOP 7.60

-24.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.65 PGK 15.96

$3.37 TOP 8.12

8.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.47 PGK 2.04

$2.04 TOP 4.91

-76.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$26.65 PGK 117

$41.75 TOP 101

-36.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.05 PGK 22.10

$2.05 TOP 4.94

146.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.27 PGK 9.92

$2.11 TOP 5.09

7.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.47 PGK 54.6

$41.87 TOP 101

-70.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 PGK 4.40

$1.48 TOP 3.57

-31.76%

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

$29.2K PGK 127.6K

$5,815 TOP 14.0K

401.34%

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

$23.3K PGK 101.8K

$8,165 TOP 19.7K

184.80%

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

$93.6 PGK 410

$186 TOP 448

-49.67%

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

$25.43 PGK 111

$21.76 TOP 52.4

16.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$106 PGK 466

$124 TOP 299

-14.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.0 PGK 280

$30.75 TOP 74.1

108.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.51 PGK 107

$41.12 TOP 99.1

-40.39%

Cinema Ticket

$8.87 PGK 38.82

$42.25 TOP 102

-79.01%

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

$528 PGK 2,313

$156 TOP 377

237.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,534 PGK 24.2K

$248 TOP 596

2135.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.76 PGK 165

$14.49 TOP 34.92

160.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.00 PGK 144

$17.69 TOP 42.60

86.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.0 PGK 280

$21.07 TOP 50.8

203.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.5 PGK 387

$29.61 TOP 71.3

198.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,366 PGK 5,979

$627 TOP 1,510

117.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$507 PGK 2,219

$50.1 TOP 121

911.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,755 PGK 12.1K

$846 TOP 2,038

225.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,102 PGK 4,822

$584 TOP 1,406

88.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,050 PGK 8,974

$415 TOP 1,000

393.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,771 PGK 16.5K

$244 TOP 589

1442.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$422 PGK 1,846

$672 TOP 1,619

-37.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.67

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

Last update for Papua New Guinea: October 11, 2026

Last update for Tonga: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Papua New Guinea

$507 36.5%

Tonga

$50 4.7% 90.1% $457

Groceries & Markets

Papua New Guinea

$301 21.6%

Tonga

$290 27.1% 3.8% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Papua New Guinea

$225 16.2%

Tonga

$332 31.1% 47.1% $106

Eating Out

Papua New Guinea

$130 9.4%

Tonga

$181 16.9% 38.8% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Papua New Guinea

$100 7.2%

Tonga

$37 3.5% 62.9% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Papua New Guinea

$82 5.9%

Tonga

$115 10.8% 41.1% $34

Getting Around

Papua New Guinea

$45 3.2%

Tonga

$63 5.9% 39.3% $18

Cost Breakdown

Average rent: $753 in Papua New Guinea vs $207 in Tonga. For reference, capital cities sit at $1,532 in Port Moresby and $622 in Nuku'alofa.

Average salary: $314 in Papua New Guinea vs $680 in Tonga. The income gap affects purchasing power and how far your budget stretches in each country.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 264% higher in Papua New Guinea.

Dining out costs 11% more in Tonga.

Public transport is 75% more expensive in Tonga.

Salaries are 117% higher in Tonga, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Tonga.

Good to know

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

🇹🇴 Tonga

🕒 Local time

18:02 6:02 PM

21:02 9:02 PM

3 h ahead of Papua New Guinea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,935,000

108,020

💱 Currency

Papua New Guinean Kina PGK K

Tongan Paʻanga TOP T$

📈 Exchange rate

1 PGK = 0.228 USD

1 PGK = 0.203 EUR

1 TOP = 0.415 USD

1 TOP = 0.369 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TOP, USD, EUR to PGK – Papua New Guinean Kina Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinean Kina (K)

Papua New Guinean Kina exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4.38 PGK (1 PGK = 0.228 USD). 1 EUR = 4.92 PGK (1 PGK = 0.203 EUR).

Tongan Paʻanga exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 2.41 TOP (1 TOP = 0.415 USD). 1 EUR = 2.71 TOP (1 TOP = 0.369 EUR).

USD to PGK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Papua New Guinea Tonga 4,230 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Papua New Guinea
Tonga

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

Papua New Guinea vs Tonga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tonga is the cheaper option – living costs run roughly 30% lower on average.

Housing costs more in Papua New Guinea: a central one-bedroom averages $753 versus $207 in Tonga.

$1,000 buys a comfortable lifestyle in Tonga, but in Papua New Guinea it only works with careful planning outside the capital. Same money, very different lives.

Tonga is the budget-friendly choice for expats – lower housing and daily costs. But cost isn't everything: visa policies, language, healthcare quality, and job markets all weigh in too.