Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Suva and Queenstown

For one person, living is cheaper in Suva: $927 a month against $2,380 in Queenstown, rent and utilities included – about $17,400 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
117

Cost of Living Index in Queenstown
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Queenstown Living Index

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Suva

🇫🇯 Fiji

$927

/mo nomad

Queenstown

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,380

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Suva and in Queenstown

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 Queenstown actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $927 in Suva versus $2,380 in Queenstown.

Suva $927
Queenstown $2,380

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,681 in Suva versus $3,738 in Queenstown.

Suva $1,681
Queenstown $3,738

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,435 in Suva versus $5,096 in Queenstown.

Suva $2,435
Queenstown $5,096

Living in Suva costs roughly 61% less than in Queenstown, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Suva is 31% below, Queenstown is 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.72 FJD 12.82

$14.19 NZ$25.28

-59.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.13 FJD 98.9

$61.4 NZ$109

-28.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.76 FJD 17.37

$9.19 NZ$16.38

-15.56%

Cappuccino

$2.91 FJD 6.52

$3.13 NZ$5.57

-7.03%

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

$1.50 FJD 3.36

$2.02 NZ$3.61

-25.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.73 FJD 1.65

$2.00 NZ$3.57

-63.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.67 FJD 8.21

$6.80 NZ$12.11

-46.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 FJD 9.70

$6.26 NZ$11.16

-30.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 FJD 2.86

$2.15 NZ$3.82

-40.47%

White Bread (500g)

$0.56 FJD 1.26

$1.94 NZ$3.46

-71.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.13 FJD 2.52

$1.71 NZ$3.04

-33.92%

Eggs

$3.39 FJD 7.60

$5.67 NZ$10.10

-40.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.04 FJD 22.49

$8.10 NZ$14.43

23.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.06 FJD 13.58

$9.89 NZ$17.62

-38.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.82 FJD 17.51

$15.72 NZ$28.02

-50.25%

Apples (1kg)

$2.47 FJD 5.54

$2.87 NZ$5.11

-13.94%

Banana (1kg)

$2.42 FJD 5.43

$2.25 NZ$4.01

7.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.48 FJD 7.79

$3.68 NZ$6.55

-5.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.12 FJD 7.00

$5.27 NZ$9.38

-40.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.22 FJD 2.73

$3.41 NZ$6.08

-64.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.07 FJD 2.39

$1.84 NZ$3.28

-41.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 FJD 2.73

$2.35 NZ$4.18

-48.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 FJD 1.64

$1.89 NZ$3.37

-61.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.66 FJD 21.63

$27.36 NZ$48.75

-64.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.33 FJD 16.42

$8.90 NZ$15.85

-17.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.07 FJD 4.64

$4.44 NZ$7.91

-53.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 FJD 7.69

$6.40 NZ$11.40

-46.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.94 FJD 2.11

$1.44 NZ$2.56

-34.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.37 FJD 50.1

$119 NZ$212

-81.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.87 FJD 1.94

$2.59 NZ$4.61

-66.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.42 FJD 0.94

$1.87 NZ$3.32

-77.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.95 FJD 20.05

$29.12 NZ$51.9

-69.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 FJD 3.26

$1.72 NZ$3.06

-15.12%

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

$24.4K FJD 54.7K

$24.9K NZ$44.4K

-2.04%

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

$25.6K FJD 57.4K

$23.2K NZ$41.4K

10.22%

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

$46.38 FJD 104

$112 NZ$199

-58.53%

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

$12.79 FJD 28.66

$28.02 NZ$49.93

-54.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.98 FJD 53.7

$51.5 NZ$91.8

-53.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.85 FJD 82.5

$54.3 NZ$96.8

-32.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.30 FJD 25.30

$26.80 NZ$47.75

-57.84%

Cinema Ticket

$3.43 FJD 7.68

$10.41 NZ$18.54

-67.05%

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

$228 FJD 510

$973 NZ$1,734

-76.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K FJD 30.0K

$7,592 NZ$13.5K

76.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.19 FJD 74.3

$58.2 NZ$104

-42.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.53 FJD 90.8

$45.11 NZ$80.4

-10.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.9 FJD 154

$90.3 NZ$161

-23.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$61.4 FJD 138

$136 NZ$242

-54.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$891 FJD 1,996

$1,512 NZ$2,693

-41.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$330 FJD 740

$1,270 NZ$2,263

-73.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,641 FJD 5,916

$2,853 NZ$5,084

-7.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,001 FJD 2,242

$2,522 NZ$4,493

-60.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,320 FJD 2,957

$7,599 NZ$13.5K

-82.63%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$818 FJD 1,832

$5,285 NZ$9,417

-84.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$961 FJD 2,152

$3,052 NZ$5,438

-68.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.7

6.12

25.82%

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

Last update for Suva: October 5, 2026

Last update for Queenstown: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Suva

$330 34.9%

Queenstown

$1.3K 52.5% 284% $940

Groceries & Markets

Suva

$228 24.1%

Queenstown

$359 14.8% 57.4% $131

Eating Out

Suva

$140 14.8%

Queenstown

$241 10% 72.4% $101

Clothing & Footwear

Suva

$92 9.7%

Queenstown

$148 6.1% 61.4% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Suva

$83 8.8%

Queenstown

$191 7.9% 130% $108

Sport & Entertainment

Suva

$44 4.6%

Queenstown

$75 3.1% 71.9% $31

Getting Around

Suva

$29 3.1%

Queenstown

$137 5.7% 370% $108

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $891 in Suva and $1,512 in Queenstown. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Queenstown pays 218% 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: $44.00 in Suva vs $61.0 in Queenstown for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $228 vs $359 per month, with Suva cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇫🇯 Suva

🇳🇿 Queenstown

🕒 Local time

15:22 3:22 PM

16:22 4:22 PM

1 h ahead of Suva

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

100,000 Capital

15,450

💱 Currency

Fijian Dollar FJD $

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 FJD = 0.446 USD

1 FJD = 0.398 EUR

1 NZD = 0.561 USD

1 NZD = 0.5 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 2.24 FJD (1 FJD = 0.446 USD). 1 EUR = 2.51 FJD (1 FJD = 0.398 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.561 USD). 1 EUR = 2 NZD (1 NZD = 0.5 EUR).

USD to FJD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Suva Queenstown 3,120 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Suva
Queenstown

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 Queenstown: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Suva is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 157% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 218% lower in Queenstown. 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: $891 in Suva versus $1,512 in Queenstown. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Suva – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $61.0 in Queenstown. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $927 per month in Suva versus $2,380 in Queenstown – a 157% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $927 in Suva versus $2,380 in Queenstown, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Suva but tight or insufficient in Queenstown. The gap between the two cities makes Suva the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Suva is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Queenstown, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Suva and Queenstown 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 Suva gentler on the wallet – expenses run 157% less than in Queenstown. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.