Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pohnpei and Palmerston North

For one person, living is cheaper in Palmerston North: $1,562 a month against $1,667 in Pohnpei, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Pohnpei
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Pohnpei Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Palmerston North
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Palmerston North Living Index

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Pohnpei

🇫🇲 Micronesia

$1,667

/mo nomad

Palmerston North

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,562

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,667 in Pohnpei versus $1,562 in Palmerston North.

Pohnpei $1,667
Palmerston North $1,562

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,527 in Pohnpei versus $2,537 in Palmerston North.

Pohnpei $2,527
Palmerston North $2,537

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,388 in Pohnpei versus $3,511 in Palmerston North.

Pohnpei $3,388
Palmerston North $3,511

Living in Pohnpei is roughly 7% more expensive than in Palmerston North, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Pohnpei 23% above, Palmerston North 16% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.38 $11.38

$13.50 NZ$23.87

-15.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.31 $44.31

$63.7 NZ$113

-30.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.36 $7.36

$8.80 NZ$15.56

-16.36%

Cappuccino

$2.94 $2.94

$3.13 NZ$5.54

-6.07%

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

$1.26 $1.26

$2.36 NZ$4.18

-46.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.08 $4.08

$1.68 NZ$2.97

142.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.43 NZ$11.38

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.02 $3.02

$6.52 NZ$11.53

-53.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.25 $0.25

$1.84 NZ$3.26

-86.41%

White Bread (500g)

$3.40 $3.40

$2.14 NZ$3.78

58.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.10 $3.10

$1.37 NZ$2.42

126.28%

Eggs

$7.27 $7.27

$4.85 NZ$8.58

49.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.94 $6.94

$6.41 NZ$11.34

8.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.87 $4.87

$9.50 NZ$16.80

-48.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.31 $11.31

$10.78 NZ$19.06

4.92%

Apples (1kg)

$5.82 $5.82

$2.54 NZ$4.48

129.13%

Banana (1kg)

$3.60 $3.60

$2.23 NZ$3.94

61.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.47 $5.47

$2.30 NZ$4.07

137.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.53 NZ$9.78

Potato (1kg)

$5.10 $5.10

$1.41 NZ$2.49

261.70%

Onion (1kg)

$4.95 $4.95

$0.86 NZ$1.53

475.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.77 $3.77

$1.72 NZ$3.04

119.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 $0.98

$0.75 NZ$1.33

30.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.98 $8.98

$22.06 NZ$39.00

-59.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$2.92 $2.92

$7.91 NZ$13.99

-63.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 NZ$4.69

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 $2.41

$2.78 NZ$4.91

-13.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.02 $1.02

$3.93 NZ$6.95

-74.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$82.3 NZ$146

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.05 $5.05

$1.87 NZ$3.30

170.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.22 $1.22

$1.78 NZ$3.14

-31.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.05 $4.05

$16.63 NZ$29.40

-75.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$3.81 $3.81

$1.64 NZ$2.90

132.32%

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

$21.6K NZ$38.1K

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

$23.9K NZ$42.3K

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

$134 $134

$68.2 NZ$121

96.23%

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

$39.58 $39.58

$32.09 NZ$56.8

23.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$200 $200

$34.64 NZ$61.3

477.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$20.18 $20.18

$21.79 NZ$38.54

-7.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$49.10 $49.10

$14.08 NZ$24.90

248.72%

Cinema Ticket

$11.60 NZ$20.52

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

$168 $168

$1,034 NZ$1,829

-83.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,550 NZ$15.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 $78.4

$69.5 NZ$123

12.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$69.2 $69.2

$27.70 NZ$48.98

149.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 $110

$83.1 NZ$147

32.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 $97.9

$82.5 NZ$146

18.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$907 $907

$906 NZ$1,602

0.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$630 $630

$639 NZ$1,129

-1.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,580 $1,580

$1,587 NZ$2,807

-0.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 $1,208

$1,311 NZ$2,318

-7.88%

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)

$349 $349

$2,494 NZ$4,411

-85.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

360000

5.39

6678935.25%

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

Last update for Pohnpei: October 12, 2026

Last update for Palmerston North: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Pohnpei

$630 37.8%

Palmerston North

$639 40.9% 1.5% $9.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pohnpei

$373 22.4%

Palmerston North

$135 8.6% 63.9% $238

Groceries & Markets

Pohnpei

$292 * 17.5%

Palmerston North

$283 18.1% 3.1% $9.2

Eating Out

Pohnpei

$176 * 10.6%

Palmerston North

$233 14.9% 32.7% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Pohnpei

$160 9.6%

Palmerston North

$118 7.6% 26.2% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Pohnpei

$20 * 1.2%

Palmerston North

$45 2.9% 123% $25

Getting Around

Pohnpei

$15 * 0.9%

Palmerston North

$109 7% 616% $94

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $907 in Pohnpei and $906 in Palmerston North. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Palmerston North pays 614% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $44.00 in Pohnpei vs $64.0 in Palmerston North. Groceries flip the comparison at $292 vs $283, with Palmerston North cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇫🇲 Pohnpei

🇳🇿 Palmerston North

🕒 Local time

10:46 10:46 AM

12:46 12:46 PM

2 h ahead of Pohnpei

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

34,486

90,500

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

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).

NZD to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Pohnpei Palmerston North 5,550 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Pohnpei
Palmerston North

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

Pohnpei vs Palmerston North: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Pohnpei and Palmerston North differ by about 7% in total monthly costs ($1,667 vs $1,562 including rent). Palmerston North is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 614% lower in Palmerston North. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $907 in Pohnpei versus $906 in Palmerston North. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 3% higher in Pohnpei. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,667 per month in Pohnpei versus $1,562 in Palmerston North – a 7% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,562 in Palmerston North versus $1,667 in Pohnpei, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Palmerston North but tight or insufficient in Pohnpei. The gap between the two cities makes Palmerston North 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, Pohnpei and Palmerston North 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 Palmerston North gentler on the wallet – expenses run 7% less than in Pohnpei. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.