Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Samoa and Tonga

Name: Tonga
Address: TO

For one person, living is cheaper in Samoa: $847 a month against $1,070 in Tonga, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Samoa
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Samoa Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Tonga
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Tonga Living Index

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🇼🇸 Samoa

$847

/mo nomad

🇹🇴 Tonga

$1,070

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Samoa 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 Samoa and in Tonga actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $847 in Samoa versus $1,070 in Tonga.

Samoa $847
Tonga $1,070

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,303 in Samoa versus $1,905 in Tonga.

Samoa $2,303
Tonga $1,905

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,758 in Samoa versus $2,739 in Tonga.

Samoa $3,758
Tonga $2,739

Living in Samoa costs about 21% less than in Tonga on average.

Both countries sit below the global median: Samoa 37% lower, Tonga 21% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$46.41 WST 129

$8.40 TOP 20.23

452.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.03 WST 103

$61.3 TOP 148

-39.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.81 WST 41.26

$10.58 TOP 25.48

39.98%

Cappuccino

$2.83 WST 7.89

$2.86 TOP 6.89

-1.05%

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

$1.84 WST 5.11

$2.90 TOP 6.99

-36.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.39 WST 3.89

$2.52 TOP 6.07

-44.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.54 WST 9.85

$3.39 TOP 8.17

4.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.62 WST 10.08

$4.88 TOP 11.76

-25.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 WST 4.92

$1.60 TOP 3.86

10.62%

White Bread (500g)

$0.84 WST 2.33

$1.05 TOP 2.53

-20.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.79 WST 4.99

$2.12 TOP 5.10

-15.57%

Eggs

$4.35 WST 12.10

$4.94 TOP 11.91

-11.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$0.87 WST 2.43

$8.76 TOP 21.11

-90.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.69 WST 10.26

$5.95 TOP 14.34

-37.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.54 WST 23.79

$7.61 TOP 18.32

12.22%

Apples (1kg)

$5.18 WST 14.42

$2.73 TOP 6.57

89.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.80 WST 5.01

$2.75 TOP 6.62

-34.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.84 WST 5.14

$2.95 TOP 7.11

-37.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.40 WST 12.24

$3.75 TOP 9.04

17.33%

Potato (1kg)

$3.61 WST 10.06

$3.20 TOP 7.70

12.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.10 WST 3.08

$2.61 TOP 6.29

-57.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.23 TOP 5.37

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 WST 3.30

$1.40 TOP 3.36

-15.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.21 WST 17.28

$10.16 TOP 24.48

-38.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.43 WST 45.77

$17.20 TOP 41.44

-4.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.85 WST 5.15

$3.09 TOP 7.45

-40.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 WST 10.22

$3.40 TOP 8.19

7.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.58 WST 9.96

$2.06 TOP 4.96

73.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.49 TOP 100.0

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.53 WST 15.40

$2.12 TOP 5.11

160.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$5.44 WST 15.14

$2.06 TOP 4.96

164.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.96 WST 61.2

$41.51 TOP 100

-47.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 WST 3.11

$1.47 TOP 3.54

-23.81%

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

$5,897 TOP 14.2K

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

$8,405 TOP 20.2K

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

$17.83 WST 49.65

$188 TOP 453

-90.52%

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

$18.05 WST 50.3

$22.53 TOP 54.3

-19.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.72 WST 102

$122 TOP 295

-70.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.75 TOP 76.5

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$41.46 TOP 99.9

Cinema Ticket

$41.90 TOP 101

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

$158 TOP 381

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$253 TOP 610

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$14.63 TOP 35.23

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.80 TOP 42.88

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$20.73 TOP 49.93

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$28.54 TOP 68.8

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$628 TOP 1,512

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$49.33 TOP 119

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$827 TOP 1,992

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,794 WST 4,997

$587 TOP 1,413

205.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$408 TOP 982

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$244 TOP 588

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$682 TOP 1,642

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

Last update for Samoa: October 19, 2026

Last update for Tonga: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Eating Out

Samoa

$488 57.6%

Tonga

$182 17% 62.7% $306

Groceries & Markets

Samoa

$240 * 28.3%

Tonga

$291 27.2% 21.4% $51

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Samoa

$73 8.6%

Tonga

$333 31.1% 359% $260

Getting Around

Samoa

$47 * 5.6%

Tonga

$62 5.8% 32.2% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Samoa

- * 0%

Tonga

$116 10.8%

Clothing & Footwear

Samoa

- * 0%

Tonga

$37 3.4%

Accommodation & Living

Samoa

- * 0%

Tonga

$49 4.6%

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

Cost Highlights

Dining out costs 71% more in Samoa.

Good to know

🇼🇸 Samoa

🇹🇴 Tonga

🕒 Local time

17:29 5:29 PM

Same time as Samoa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

200,010

108,020

💱 Currency

Samoan Tala WST T

Tongan Paʻanga TOP T$

📈 Exchange rate

1 WST = 0.359 USD

1 WST = 0.319 EUR

1 TOP = 0.415 USD

1 TOP = 0.369 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TOP, USD, EUR to WST – Samoan Tala Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇼🇸 Samoan Tala (T)

Samoan Tala exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 2.79 WST (1 WST = 0.359 USD). 1 EUR = 3.13 WST (1 WST = 0.319 EUR).

Tongan Paʻanga exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 2.41 TOP (1 TOP = 0.415 USD). 1 EUR = 2.71 TOP (1 TOP = 0.369 EUR).

USD to WST in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Samoa Tonga 890 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Samoa
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

Samoa vs Tonga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $847 per month in Samoa and $1,070 in Tonga, there's a 26% gap. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

In Samoa, $1,000 covers most cities easily; in Tonga it stretches only to regional areas and falls short in the capital – you'll need to make trade-offs on housing or lifestyle.

It depends on what you're after: Samoa wins on affordability; Tonga may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.