Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tauranga and Honiara

For one person, living is cheaper in Honiara: $1,718 a month against $2,123 in Tauranga, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Tauranga outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

104

Cost of Living Index in Tauranga
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Tauranga Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
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Honiara Living Index

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Tauranga

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,123

/mo nomad

Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,718

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tauranga and in Honiara

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

A single person spends $2,123 per month in Tauranga vs $1,718 in Honiara, rent included.

Tauranga $2,123
Honiara $1,718

A couple spends around $2,894 per month in Tauranga vs $2,833 in Honiara, rent included.

Tauranga $2,894
Honiara $2,833

A family of three spends $3,666 per month in Tauranga vs $3,948 in Honiara, rent included.

Tauranga $3,666
Honiara $3,948

Tauranga costs about 24% more than Honiara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Tauranga and Honiara sit above the global median – Tauranga by 57%, Honiara by 27%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.92 NZ$24.62

$6.94 SBD 56.0

100.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.2 NZ$119

$62.3 SBD 502

7.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.85 NZ$15.66

$12.56 SBD 101

-29.54%

Cappuccino

$3.39 NZ$6.00

$3.49 SBD 28.17

-2.87%

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

$1.83 NZ$3.23

$1.58 SBD 12.75

15.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.79 NZ$3.16

$1.10 SBD 8.90

62.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.53 NZ$8.02

$2.55 SBD 20.59

77.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.72 NZ$10.12

$5.70 SBD 45.93

0.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 NZ$3.47

$2.48 SBD 20.01

-20.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 NZ$3.34

$1.54 SBD 12.42

22.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.60 NZ$2.83

$1.65 SBD 13.29

-3.03%

Eggs

$6.16 NZ$10.90

$5.51 SBD 44.40

11.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.02 NZ$14.19

$6.43 SBD 51.8

24.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.32 NZ$16.48

$8.58 SBD 69.2

8.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.35 NZ$20.07

$15.40 SBD 124

-26.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.46 NZ$4.35

$6.38 SBD 51.4

-61.44%

Banana (1kg)

$2.12 NZ$3.75

$2.59 SBD 20.89

-18.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.24 NZ$3.97

$8.44 SBD 68.1

-73.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.81 NZ$8.51

$3.66 SBD 29.48

31.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 NZ$3.13

$1.94 SBD 15.60

-8.76%

Onion (1kg)

$1.20 NZ$2.11

$3.41 SBD 27.53

-64.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.03 NZ$3.58

$1.45 SBD 11.72

40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 NZ$1.93

$1.07 SBD 8.62

1.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.00 NZ$35.38

$4.18 SBD 33.67

378.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.62 NZ$15.25

$10.70 SBD 86.3

-19.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 NZ$3.70

$1.78 SBD 14.36

17.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.26 NZ$5.76

$3.35 SBD 26.98

-2.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.71 NZ$3.03

$0.38 SBD 3.09

350.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$24.88 SBD 201

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.27 NZ$4.01

$1.20 SBD 9.70

89.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 NZ$3.41

$1.21 SBD 9.79

59.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.43 NZ$55.6

$12.41 SBD 100

153.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.71 NZ$3.02

$1.30 SBD 10.50

31.54%

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

$25.0K NZ$44.2K

$18.8K SBD 151.8K

32.68%

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

$21.7K NZ$38.3K

$34.7K SBD 279.9K

-37.57%

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

$114 NZ$202

$427 SBD 3,440

-73.24%

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

$26.75 NZ$47.31

$27.52 SBD 222

-2.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.3 NZ$89.0

$88.8 SBD 716

-43.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.1 NZ$97.5

$37.21 SBD 300

48.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.97 NZ$30.00

$9.24 SBD 74.5

83.66%

Cinema Ticket

$11.16 NZ$19.74

$4.25 SBD 34.29

162.59%

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

$717 NZ$1,268

$98.2 SBD 792

630.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K NZ$19.5K

$2,891 SBD 23.3K

281.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.7 NZ$116

$27.02 SBD 218

143.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.15 NZ$65.7

$93.7 SBD 756

-60.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.5 NZ$160

$95.3 SBD 768

-5.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 NZ$191

$104 SBD 834

4.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 NZ$1,914

$901 SBD 7,263

20.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,177 NZ$2,082

$436 SBD 3,518

169.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,590 NZ$2,813

$1,867 SBD 15.1K

-14.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,449 NZ$2,563

$1,422 SBD 11.5K

1.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,680 NZ$8,276

$86.7K SBD 699.2K

-94.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,247 NZ$3,974

$63.1K SBD 508.8K

-96.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,951 NZ$5,219

$443 SBD 3,574

565.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.37

15.67

-65.73%

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

Last update for Tauranga: October 12, 2026

Last update for Honiara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tauranga

$1.2K 55.5%

Honiara

$436 25.4% 62.9% $741

Groceries & Markets

Tauranga

$295 13.9%

Honiara

$345 20.1% 16.8% $50

Eating Out

Tauranga

$227 10.7%

Honiara

$170 9.9% 25.1% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tauranga

$191 9%

Honiara

$543 31.6% 184% $352

Clothing & Footwear

Tauranga

$136 6.4%

Honiara

$144 8.4% 6% $8.2

Sport & Entertainment

Tauranga

$77 3.7%

Honiara

$46 2.7% 41% $32

Getting Around

Tauranga

$19 * 0.9%

Honiara

$34 2% 79.6% $15

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,083 in Tauranga versus $901 in Honiara. 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 566% higher in Tauranga, 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 $67.0 in Tauranga versus $62.0 in Honiara. Groceries tell a different story – $295 in Tauranga vs $345 in Honiara – so Tauranga wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Tauranga

🇸🇧 Honiara

🕒 Local time

10:46 10:46 AM

08:46 8:46 AM

2 h behind Tauranga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

155,200

54,600 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SBD, USD, EUR to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

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).

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 8.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.11 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tauranga Honiara 3,540 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Tauranga
Honiara

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

Tauranga vs Honiara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,123 in Tauranga, $1,718 in Honiara – roughly 24% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,184 per month in Tauranga and $2,577 in Honiara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67.0 in Tauranga and $62.0 in Honiara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 17% cheaper in Tauranga – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Honiara, where all-in costs run around $1,718, than in Tauranga at $2,123. In Honiara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Tauranga it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Honiara – 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 Honiara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Tauranga makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.