Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Porirua and Dunedin

For one person, living costs are similar in Porirua and in Dunedin: $1,916 and $1,825 a month, rent and utilities included.

94

Cost of Living Index in Porirua
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Porirua Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Dunedin
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Dunedin Living Index

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Porirua

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,916

/mo nomad

Dunedin

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,825

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Porirua and in Dunedin

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,916 in Porirua versus $1,825 in Dunedin.

Porirua $1,916
Dunedin $1,825

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,935 in Porirua versus $2,710 in Dunedin.

Porirua $2,935
Dunedin $2,710

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,955 in Porirua versus $3,595 in Dunedin.

Porirua $3,955
Dunedin $3,595

Living in Porirua is roughly 5% more expensive than in Dunedin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Porirua 41% above, Dunedin 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.64 NZ$24.12

$14.03 NZ$24.81

-2.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.5 NZ$116

$63.0 NZ$111

3.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.17 NZ$16.22

$11.40 NZ$20.17

-19.56%

Cappuccino

$2.78 NZ$4.91

$3.38 NZ$5.98

-17.75%

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

$2.39 NZ$4.22

$2.09 NZ$3.69

14.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 NZ$3.05

$2.15 NZ$3.81

-20.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.16 NZ$12.66

$6.87 NZ$12.16

4.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.66 NZ$11.78

$6.05 NZ$10.70

10.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.91 NZ$3.38

$2.18 NZ$3.85

-12.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 NZ$3.75

$2.02 NZ$3.58

4.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 NZ$3.40

$1.78 NZ$3.15

7.87%

Eggs

$6.77 NZ$11.97

$5.96 NZ$10.55

13.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.18 NZ$16.23

$8.24 NZ$14.57

11.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.50 NZ$16.79

$9.45 NZ$16.71

0.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.79 NZ$26.16

$16.23 NZ$28.70

-8.87%

Apples (1kg)

$3.09 NZ$5.46

$3.03 NZ$5.36

1.98%

Banana (1kg)

$2.13 NZ$3.77

$2.37 NZ$4.19

-10.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 NZ$5.45

$3.19 NZ$5.63

-3.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.31 NZ$11.16

$5.11 NZ$9.04

23.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 NZ$3.65

$1.89 NZ$3.35

8.99%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 NZ$2.26

$1.79 NZ$3.17

-28.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.05 NZ$3.62

$2.28 NZ$4.03

-10.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.13 NZ$2.00

$0.60 NZ$1.06

88.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$24.74 NZ$43.75

$21.22 NZ$37.53

16.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.39 NZ$20.14

$9.20 NZ$16.28

23.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.07 NZ$5.43

$3.14 NZ$5.55

-2.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 NZ$4.86

$1.22 NZ$2.15

125.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.72 NZ$3.04

$1.11 NZ$1.97

54.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$83.0 NZ$147

$69.3 NZ$123

19.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.89 NZ$3.33

$5.83 NZ$10.31

-67.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 NZ$3.14

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.76 NZ$59.7

$28.53 NZ$50.5

18.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 NZ$2.71

$1.75 NZ$3.10

-12.57%

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

$25.2K NZ$44.6K

$28.3K NZ$50.1K

-11.07%

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

$24.8K NZ$43.8K

$23.0K NZ$40.8K

7.47%

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

$119 NZ$210

$110 NZ$194

8.11%

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

$32.16 NZ$56.9

$28.37 NZ$50.2

13.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.4 NZ$92.7

$52.6 NZ$93.0

-0.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.99 NZ$67.2

$49.26 NZ$87.1

-22.88%

Cinema Ticket

$11.99 NZ$21.21

$10.48 NZ$18.54

14.41%

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

$1,045 NZ$1,848

$581 NZ$1,028

79.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K NZ$22.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.5 NZ$137

$59.4 NZ$105

30.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.80 NZ$49.17

$34.89 NZ$61.7

-20.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 NZ$179

$91.8 NZ$162

10.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$150 NZ$264

$136 NZ$241

9.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$954 NZ$1,687

$894 NZ$1,581

6.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$814 NZ$1,439

$766 NZ$1,355

6.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,599 NZ$2,828

$1,475 NZ$2,608

8.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,448 NZ$2,561

$1,180 NZ$2,087

22.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,698 NZ$8,308

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,251 NZ$5,749

$2,263 NZ$4,003

43.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,807 NZ$4,965

$2,455 NZ$4,342

14.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

7.07

-23.76%

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

Last update for Porirua: October 20, 2026

Last update for Dunedin: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Porirua

$814 42.5%

Dunedin

$766 42% 5.9% $48

Groceries & Markets

Porirua

$341 17.8%

Dunedin

$323 17.7% 5.1% $17

Eating Out

Porirua

$236 12.3%

Dunedin

$250 13.7% 6.3% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Porirua

$203 10.6%

Dunedin

$191 10.5% 6.2% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Porirua

$160 8.4%

Dunedin

$145 8% 9.4% $15

Getting Around

Porirua

$101 5.3%

Dunedin

$80 * 4.4% 21% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Porirua

$62 3.2%

Dunedin

$70 3.9% 13.3% $8.3

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 $954 in Porirua and $894 in Dunedin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Porirua pays 14% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $65.0 in Porirua vs $63.0 in Dunedin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $341 vs $323 per month, with Dunedin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Porirua

🇳🇿 Dunedin

🕒 Local time

00:41 12:41 AM

Same time as Porirua

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

61,900

105,000

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Porirua Dunedin 630 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Porirua
Dunedin

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

Porirua vs Dunedin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Porirua and Dunedin differ by about 5% in total monthly costs ($1,916 vs $1,825 including rent). Dunedin is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 14% higher in Porirua, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $954 in Porirua versus $894 in Dunedin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Dunedin runs roughly 20% less than in Porirua. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $1,045 in Porirua versus $581 in Dunedin. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,825 in Dunedin versus $1,916 in Porirua, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Dunedin but tight or insufficient in Porirua. The gap between the two cities makes Dunedin 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, Porirua and Dunedin 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 Dunedin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 5% less than in Porirua. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.