Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Suva and Invercargill

For one person, living is cheaper in Suva: $946 a month against $1,412 in Invercargill, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

46

Cost of Living Index in Suva
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Suva Living Index
68

Cost of Living Index in Invercargill
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Invercargill Living Index

Jump to prices

Suva

🇫🇯 Fiji

$946

/mo nomad

Invercargill

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,412

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Suva and in Invercargill

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

A single person spends $946 per month in Suva vs $1,412 in Invercargill, rent included.

Suva $946
Invercargill $1,412

A couple spends around $1,717 per month in Suva vs $2,099 in Invercargill, rent included.

Suva $1,717
Invercargill $2,099

A family of three spends $2,489 per month in Suva vs $2,785 in Invercargill, rent included.

Suva $2,489
Invercargill $2,785

Suva is about 33% cheaper than Invercargill, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Suva sits 30% below the global median, while Invercargill is 5% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.93 FJD 13.28

$14.04 NZ$24.83

-57.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.78 FJD 100

$61.2 NZ$108

-26.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.51 FJD 16.81

$8.32 NZ$14.71

-9.74%

Cappuccino

$2.85 FJD 6.37

$3.12 NZ$5.52

-8.65%

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

$1.50 FJD 3.36

$1.65 NZ$2.92

-9.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 FJD 1.67

$2.03 NZ$3.60

-63.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.56 FJD 7.98

$2.74 NZ$4.85

29.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.57 FJD 10.24

$2.74 NZ$4.85

66.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.33 FJD 2.97

$1.68 NZ$2.96

-20.83%

White Bread (500g)

$0.57 FJD 1.28

$1.85 NZ$3.27

-69.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.13 FJD 2.53

$1.76 NZ$3.11

-35.80%

Eggs

$3.38 FJD 7.57

$5.58 NZ$9.87

-39.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.18 FJD 22.78

$8.23 NZ$14.55

23.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.34 FJD 14.19

$8.83 NZ$15.61

-28.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.96 FJD 17.82

$12.12 NZ$21.44

-34.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.49 FJD 5.58

$2.55 NZ$4.50

-2.35%

Banana (1kg)

$2.43 FJD 5.43

$2.36 NZ$4.17

2.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.55 FJD 7.94

$2.66 NZ$4.70

33.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.17 FJD 7.11

$3.52 NZ$6.23

-9.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 FJD 2.83

$3.21 NZ$5.68

-60.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.06 FJD 2.37

$1.61 NZ$2.85

-34.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 FJD 2.61

$2.33 NZ$4.13

-50.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 FJD 1.54

$1.04 NZ$1.84

-33.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.89 FJD 22.15

$20.39 NZ$36.06

-51.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.19 FJD 16.10

$8.56 NZ$15.14

-16.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.11 FJD 4.74

$2.86 NZ$5.06

-26.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 FJD 7.60

$3.39 NZ$5.99

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 FJD 1.97

$1.41 NZ$2.49

-37.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.34 FJD 50.0

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 FJD 2.05

$2.27 NZ$4.01

-59.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.45 FJD 1.01

$1.94 NZ$3.42

-76.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.80 FJD 19.70

$27.73 NZ$49.04

-68.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 FJD 3.21

$1.59 NZ$2.81

-10.06%

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

$24.3K FJD 54.5K

$23.8K NZ$42.1K

2.19%

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

$24.7K FJD 55.3K

$18.2K NZ$32.3K

35.36%

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

$46.26 FJD 104

$109 NZ$192

-57.45%

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

$12.75 FJD 28.54

$32.30 NZ$57.1

-60.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.21 FJD 54.2

$42.46 NZ$75.1

-42.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.81 FJD 82.4

$27.87 NZ$49.29

32.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.31 FJD 25.32

$13.77 NZ$24.34

-17.86%

Cinema Ticket

$3.42 FJD 7.65

$8.82 NZ$15.60

-61.22%

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

$225 FJD 503

$589 NZ$1,042

-61.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K FJD 30.0K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.29 FJD 74.5

$57.4 NZ$102

-42.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.64 FJD 88.8

$35.07 NZ$62.0

13.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.6 FJD 154

$70.0 NZ$124

-1.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.9 FJD 134

$79.0 NZ$140

-24.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$889 FJD 1,992

$594 NZ$1,050

49.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$329 FJD 736

$551 NZ$974

-40.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,589 FJD 5,797

$831 NZ$1,470

211.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$999 FJD 2,236

$764 NZ$1,350

30.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,310 FJD 2,933

$5,482 NZ$9,695

-76.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$820 FJD 1,836

$5,034 NZ$8,902

-83.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$965 FJD 2,160

$2,729 NZ$4,826

-64.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.7

6.72

14.58%

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

Last update for Suva: October 10, 2026

Last update for Invercargill: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Suva

$329 34.7%

Invercargill

$551 39% 67.5% $222

Groceries & Markets

Suva

$231 24.4%

Invercargill

$298 21.1% 29.1% $67

Eating Out

Suva

$140 14.8%

Invercargill

$209 14.8% 48.9% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Suva

$91 9.6%

Invercargill

$109 7.7% 19.8% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Suva

$83 8.8%

Invercargill

$183 13% 121% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Suva

$44 4.6%

Invercargill

$46 3.2% 4.3% $1.9

Getting Around

Suva

$29 3.1%

Invercargill

$18 * 1.2% 39.4% $11

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $889 in Suva versus $594 in Invercargill. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 183% higher in Invercargill, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Suva versus $61.0 in Invercargill. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $231 vs $298 – making Suva the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇫🇯 Suva

🇳🇿 Invercargill

🕒 Local time

02:55 2:55 AM

03:55 3:55 AM

1 h ahead of Suva

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

100,000 Capital

56,200

💱 Currency

Fijian Dollar FJD $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 FJD = 0.447 USD

1 FJD = 0.397 EUR

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to FJD – Fijian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇫🇯 Fijian Dollar ($)

Fijian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 2.24 FJD (1 FJD = 0.447 USD). 1 EUR = 2.52 FJD (1 FJD = 0.397 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).

USD to FJD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Suva Invercargill 3,280 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Suva
Invercargill

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

Suva vs Invercargill: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Invercargill costs about 49% more than Suva, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,419 per month in Suva and $2,119 in Invercargill. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Suva, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $946 in Suva and $1,412 in Invercargill. That's a gap of about 49%.

Kindergarten costs $225 per month in Suva and $589 in Invercargill. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Suva, where all-in costs run around $946, than in Invercargill at $1,412. In Suva it covers expenses comfortably, while in Invercargill it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Suva – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Suva. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Invercargill makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.