Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Port Moresby and Lautoka

For one person, living is cheaper in Lautoka: $333 a month against $1,469 in Port Moresby, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

71

Cost of Living Index in Port Moresby
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Port Moresby Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Lautoka
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Lautoka Living Index

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Port Moresby

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

$1,469

/mo nomad

Lautoka

🇫🇯 Fiji

$333

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Port Moresby and in Lautoka

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,469 in Port Moresby versus $333 in Lautoka.

Port Moresby $1,469
Lautoka $333

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,315 in Port Moresby versus $722 in Lautoka.

Port Moresby $2,315
Lautoka $722

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,161 in Port Moresby versus $1,112 in Lautoka.

Port Moresby $3,161
Lautoka $1,112

Living in Port Moresby is roughly 342% more expensive than in Lautoka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Port Moresby is 9% above, Lautoka is 75% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.76 PGK 34.25

$5.19 FJD 11.61

49.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.08 PGK 195

$79.2 FJD 177

-44.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.61 PGK 24.76

$7.80 FJD 17.47

-28.08%

Cappuccino

$2.54 PGK 11.22

$2.56 FJD 5.72

-0.78%

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

$0.74 PGK 3.26

$2.12 FJD 4.74

-65.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.69 PGK 3.03

$1.51 FJD 3.38

-54.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.03 PGK 13.39

$2.43 FJD 5.44

24.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 PGK 16.23

$3.05 FJD 6.84

20.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.83 PGK 8.09

$1.66 FJD 3.72

10.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 PGK 6.60

$0.73 FJD 1.64

105.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 PGK 6.02

$0.87 FJD 1.95

56.32%

Eggs

$3.74 PGK 16.51

$3.44 FJD 7.70

8.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.93 PGK 39.40

$5.80 FJD 12.98

53.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.94 PGK 21.82

$7.62 FJD 17.06

-35.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.55 PGK 42.18

$7.58 FJD 16.98

25.99%

Apples (1kg)

$4.41 PGK 19.47

$4.42 FJD 9.90

-0.23%

Banana (1kg)

$3.27 PGK 14.41

Oranges (1kg)

$7.28 PGK 32.14

$1.30 FJD 2.91

460.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.46 PGK 28.50

Potato (1kg)

$3.08 PGK 13.60

$0.93 FJD 2.09

231.18%

Onion (1kg)

$2.99 PGK 13.21

$0.86 FJD 1.93

247.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.35 PGK 10.38

$0.87 FJD 1.96

170.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 PGK 5.87

$0.46 FJD 1.03

189.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.51 PGK 28.76

$10.93 FJD 24.46

-40.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.94 PGK 48.28

$5.46 FJD 12.22

100.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.70 PGK 11.93

$2.57 FJD 5.74

5.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.53 PGK 15.56

$3.49 FJD 7.82

1.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.47 PGK 2.07

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.74 PGK 100

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 PGK 21.69

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.25 PGK 9.95

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.72 PGK 65.0

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.00 PGK 4.42

$1.33 FJD 2.99

-24.81%

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

$50.7K PGK 224.0K

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

$17.3K PGK 76.5K

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

$118 PGK 520

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

$20.84 PGK 92.0

$13.14 FJD 29.43

58.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$82.2 PGK 363

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.7 PGK 273

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.19 PGK 98.0

Cinema Ticket

$8.80 PGK 38.84

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

$563 PGK 2,486

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,239 PGK 27.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.46 PGK 157

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.95 PGK 150

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.7 PGK 308

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.3 PGK 425

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,532 PGK 6,762

$450 FJD 1,007

240.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$564 PGK 2,491

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,874 PGK 12.7K

$872 FJD 1,952

229.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,182 PGK 5,216

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,085 PGK 9,206

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,782 PGK 16.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$427 PGK 1,885

$688 FJD 1,541

-37.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.17

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

Last update for Port Moresby: October 13, 2026

Last update for Lautoka: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Port Moresby

$564 38.4%

Lautoka

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Port Moresby

$320 21.8%

Lautoka

$191 * 57.5% 40.3% $129

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Port Moresby

$221 15%

Lautoka

$13 * 4% 94% $208

Eating Out

Port Moresby

$138 9.4%

Lautoka

$128 38.6% 6.7% $9.3

Clothing & Footwear

Port Moresby

$106 7.2%

Lautoka

- * 0% 100%

Sport & Entertainment

Port Moresby

$79 5.4%

Lautoka

- * 0% 100%

Getting Around

Port Moresby

$41 2.8%

Lautoka

- * 0% 100%

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 $1,532 in Port Moresby and $450 in Lautoka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lautoka pays 61% 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 Port Moresby vs $79.0 in Lautoka. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $191, with Lautoka cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇬 Port Moresby

🇫🇯 Lautoka

🕒 Local time

08:15 8:15 AM

10:15 10:15 AM

2 h ahead of Port Moresby

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

364,145 Capital

50,000

💱 Currency

Papua New Guinean Kina PGK K

Fijian Dollar FJD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 PGK = 0.227 USD

1 PGK = 0.202 EUR

1 FJD = 0.447 USD

1 FJD = 0.398 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

FJD, 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 15, 2026: 1 USD = 4.41 PGK (1 PGK = 0.227 USD). 1 EUR = 4.95 PGK (1 PGK = 0.202 EUR).

Fijian Dollar exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 2.24 FJD (1 FJD = 0.447 USD). 1 EUR = 2.51 FJD (1 FJD = 0.398 EUR).

USD to PGK in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Port Moresby Lautoka 3,390 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Port Moresby
Lautoka

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

Port Moresby vs Lautoka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Port Moresby and Lautoka differ by about 342% in total monthly costs ($1,469 vs $333 including rent). Lautoka is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 61% lower in Lautoka. 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: $1,532 in Port Moresby versus $450 in Lautoka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Lautoka – a meal for two runs $79.0 versus $44.00 in Port Moresby. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,469 per month in Port Moresby versus $333 in Lautoka – a 342% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $333 in Lautoka versus $1,469 in Port Moresby, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lautoka but tight or insufficient in Port Moresby. The gap between the two cities makes Lautoka 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.

Expats usually find Lautoka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 342% less than in Port Moresby. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.