Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tel Aviv-Yafo and Queenstown

For one person, living is cheaper in Queenstown: $2,370 a month against $3,664 in Tel Aviv-Yafo, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

176

Cost of Living Index in Tel Aviv-Yafo
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Tel Aviv-Yafo Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Queenstown
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Queenstown Living Index

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Tel Aviv-Yafo

🇮🇱 Israel

$3,664

/mo nomad

Queenstown

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,370

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tel Aviv-Yafo 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 Tel Aviv-Yafo and in Queenstown actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,664 in Tel Aviv-Yafo versus $2,370 in Queenstown.

Tel Aviv-Yafo $3,664
Queenstown $2,370

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,410 in Tel Aviv-Yafo versus $3,764 in Queenstown.

Tel Aviv-Yafo $5,410
Queenstown $3,764

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,156 in Tel Aviv-Yafo versus $5,158 in Queenstown.

Tel Aviv-Yafo $7,156
Queenstown $5,158

Living in Tel Aviv-Yafo is roughly 55% more expensive than in Queenstown, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Tel Aviv-Yafo 169% above, Queenstown 74% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.13 ₪81.5

$17.26 NZ$30.67

51.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$128 ₪400

$86.8 NZ$154

47.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$20.15 ₪62.8

$9.76 NZ$17.33

106.45%

Cappuccino

$5.47 ₪17.07

$3.28 NZ$5.82

66.77%

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

$3.88 ₪12.11

$2.29 NZ$4.07

69.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 ₪9.68

$2.08 NZ$3.69

49.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.09 ₪34.58

$6.75 NZ$11.99

64.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.81 ₪33.73

$6.19 NZ$11.00

74.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.57 ₪8.01

$2.14 NZ$3.80

20.09%

White Bread (500g)

$4.42 ₪13.79

$1.96 NZ$3.48

125.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.72 ₪11.60

$1.78 NZ$3.16

108.99%

Eggs

$5.28 ₪16.46

$5.80 NZ$10.30

-8.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.19 ₪66.1

$8.53 NZ$15.16

148.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.93 ₪49.69

$10.16 NZ$18.06

56.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.64 ₪80.0

$15.81 NZ$28.09

62.18%

Apples (1kg)

$4.66 ₪14.54

$2.92 NZ$5.19

59.59%

Banana (1kg)

$3.77 ₪11.76

$2.40 NZ$4.27

57.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.51 ₪7.84

$3.89 NZ$6.92

-35.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.37 ₪10.50

$5.50 NZ$9.76

-38.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 ₪6.02

$3.55 NZ$6.31

-45.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.92 ₪5.98

$1.84 NZ$3.27

4.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.73 ₪8.51

$2.42 NZ$4.29

12.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.60 ₪8.11

$1.97 NZ$3.49

31.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.73 ₪45.95

$27.67 NZ$49.16

-46.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.16 ₪50.4

$9.24 NZ$16.42

74.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.66 ₪11.43

$4.50 NZ$8.00

-18.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.74 ₪14.77

$6.63 NZ$11.77

-28.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.56 ₪7.98

$1.88 NZ$3.34

36.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$103 ₪320

$128 NZ$228

-20.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.16 ₪12.99

$2.69 NZ$4.78

54.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.10 ₪3.42

$1.92 NZ$3.42

-42.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.67 ₪61.4

$29.48 NZ$52.4

-33.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.65 ₪8.27

$1.70 NZ$3.02

55.88%

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

$54.6K ₪170.4K

$26.7K NZ$47.4K

104.93%

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

$54.5K ₪170.0K

$22.5K NZ$40.0K

142.12%

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

$441 ₪1,374

$111 NZ$196

298.72%

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

$11.53 ₪35.96

$28.93 NZ$51.4

-60.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.78 ₪108

$51.8 NZ$92.1

-32.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$93.8 ₪292

$55.9 NZ$99.3

67.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.56 ₪70.4

$26.64 NZ$47.32

-15.32%

Cinema Ticket

$16.09 ₪50.2

$11.17 NZ$19.84

44.05%

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

$1,665 ₪5,192

$983 NZ$1,746

69.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$31.2K ₪97.3K

$7,685 NZ$13.7K

305.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$125 ₪389

$60.0 NZ$107

107.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$85.2 ₪266

$46.90 NZ$83.3

81.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$170 ₪529

$91.0 NZ$162

86.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$201 ₪626

$137 NZ$244

46.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,294 ₪7,154

$1,523 NZ$2,705

50.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,716 ₪5,352

$1,162 NZ$2,065

47.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,794 ₪11.8K

$2,918 NZ$5,184

30.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,861 ₪8,922

$2,294 NZ$4,076

24.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$20.7K ₪64.5K

$7,612 NZ$13.5K

171.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$13.9K ₪43.4K

$5,271 NZ$9,364

164.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,170 ₪13.0K

$3,054 NZ$5,425

36.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.03

6.12

-17.81%

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

Last update for Tel Aviv-Yafo: October 25, 2026

Last update for Queenstown: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tel Aviv-Yafo

$1.7K 46.9%

Queenstown

$1.2K 49% 32.3% $554

Groceries & Markets

Tel Aviv-Yafo

$511 13.9%

Queenstown

$369 15.6% 27.7% $142

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tel Aviv-Yafo

$487 13.3%

Queenstown

$191 8.1% 60.7% $296

Eating Out

Tel Aviv-Yafo

$440 12%

Queenstown

$270 11.4% 38.6% $170

Clothing & Footwear

Tel Aviv-Yafo

$261 7.1%

Queenstown

$151 6.4% 42.2% $110

Sport & Entertainment

Tel Aviv-Yafo

$126 3.4%

Queenstown

$78 3.3% 37.9% $48

Getting Around

Tel Aviv-Yafo

$122 3.3%

Queenstown

$148 6.3% 21.1% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,294 in Tel Aviv-Yafo and $1,523 in Queenstown. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tel Aviv-Yafo pays 37% 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: $128 in Tel Aviv-Yafo vs $87 in Queenstown for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $511 vs $369 per month, with Queenstown cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇱 Tel Aviv-Yafo

🇳🇿 Queenstown

🕒 Local time

04:16 4:16 AM

15:16 3:16 PM

11 h ahead of Tel Aviv-Yafo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

438,818

15,450

💱 Currency

Israeli New Shekel ILS ₪

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 ILS = 0.321 USD

1 ILS = 0.288 EUR

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.506 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD, EUR to ILS – Israeli New Shekel Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇱 Israeli New Shekel (₪)

Israeli New Shekel exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 3.12 ILS (1 ILS = 0.321 USD). 1 EUR = 3.47 ILS (1 ILS = 0.288 EUR).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.506 EUR).

USD to ILS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tel Aviv-Yafo Queenstown 15,820 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Tel Aviv-Yafo
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

Tel Aviv-Yafo vs Queenstown: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Queenstown is about 35% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 37% higher in Tel Aviv-Yafo, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,294 in Tel Aviv-Yafo versus $1,523 in Queenstown. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Queenstown – a meal for two runs $87 versus $128 in Tel Aviv-Yafo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $3,664 per month in Tel Aviv-Yafo versus $2,370 in Queenstown – Queenstown is about 35% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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

Safety-wise, Tel Aviv-Yafo and Queenstown are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Queenstown wins on affordability, Tel Aviv-Yafo on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.