Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Thames and Suva

For one person, living is cheaper in Suva: $946 a month against $1,966 in Thames, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

96

Cost of Living Index in Thames
Learn more

Thames Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Suva
Learn more

Suva Living Index

Jump to prices

Thames

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,966

/mo nomad

Suva

🇫🇯 Fiji

$946

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Thames and in Suva

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,966 in Thames versus $946 in Suva.

Thames $1,966
Suva $946

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,999 in Thames versus $1,717 in Suva.

Thames $2,999
Suva $1,717

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,032 in Thames versus $2,489 in Suva.

Thames $4,032
Suva $2,489

Living in Thames is roughly 108% more expensive than in Suva, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Thames is 46% above, Suva is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.93 NZ$24.63

$5.93 FJD 13.28

134.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.4 NZ$121

$44.78 FJD 100

52.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.89 NZ$15.72

$7.51 FJD 16.81

18.38%

Cappuccino

$3.42 NZ$6.06

$2.85 FJD 6.37

20.00%

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

$2.02 NZ$3.57

$1.50 FJD 3.36

34.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 NZ$3.08

$0.75 FJD 1.67

132.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.88 NZ$12.16

$3.56 FJD 7.98

93.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.73 NZ$11.90

$4.57 FJD 10.24

47.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.87 NZ$3.31

$1.33 FJD 2.97

40.60%

White Bread (500g)

$2.22 NZ$3.93

$0.57 FJD 1.28

289.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.79 NZ$3.16

$1.13 FJD 2.53

58.41%

Eggs

$6.20 NZ$10.97

$3.38 FJD 7.57

83.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.79 NZ$15.55

$10.18 FJD 22.78

-13.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.68 NZ$17.11

$6.34 FJD 14.19

52.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.82 NZ$29.74

$7.96 FJD 17.82

111.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 NZ$4.95

$2.49 FJD 5.58

12.45%

Banana (1kg)

$2.16 NZ$3.82

$2.43 FJD 5.43

-11.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.91 NZ$5.14

$3.55 FJD 7.94

-18.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.75 NZ$10.17

$3.17 FJD 7.11

81.39%

Potato (1kg)

$2.13 NZ$3.77

$1.26 FJD 2.83

69.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 NZ$2.69

$1.06 FJD 2.37

43.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.98 NZ$3.50

$1.16 FJD 2.61

70.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 NZ$1.84

$0.69 FJD 1.54

50.72%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$26.57 NZ$46.99

$9.89 FJD 22.15

168.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.25 NZ$18.12

$7.19 FJD 16.10

42.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.84 NZ$5.02

$2.11 FJD 4.74

34.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.38 NZ$5.98

$3.39 FJD 7.60

-0.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 NZ$2.56

$0.88 FJD 1.97

64.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$75.4 NZ$133

$22.34 FJD 50.0

237.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.30 NZ$4.06

$0.92 FJD 2.05

150.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.92 NZ$3.40

$0.45 FJD 1.01

326.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.20 NZ$56.9

$8.80 FJD 19.70

265.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 NZ$3.31

$1.43 FJD 3.21

30.77%

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

$25.1K NZ$44.5K

$24.3K FJD 54.5K

3.40%

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

$21.7K NZ$38.4K

$24.7K FJD 55.3K

-12.15%

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

$183 NZ$324

$46.26 FJD 104

296.63%

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

$26.20 NZ$46.33

$12.75 FJD 28.54

105.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.7 NZ$89.6

$24.21 FJD 54.2

109.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.84 NZ$74.0

$36.81 FJD 82.4

13.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.31 FJD 25.32

Cinema Ticket

$13.10 NZ$23.17

$3.42 FJD 7.65

283.04%

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

$1,135 NZ$2,007

$225 FJD 503

404.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.2K NZ$34.0K

$13.4K FJD 30.0K

43.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$79.2 NZ$140

$33.29 FJD 74.5

137.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.93 NZ$70.6

$39.64 FJD 88.8

0.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.3 NZ$163

$68.6 FJD 154

34.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 NZ$197

$59.9 FJD 134

86.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$930 NZ$1,645

$889 FJD 1,992

4.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$821 NZ$1,451

$329 FJD 736

149.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,484 NZ$2,624

$2,589 FJD 5,797

-42.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,486 NZ$2,629

$999 FJD 2,236

48.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,552 NZ$8,050

$1,310 FJD 2,933

247.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,773 NZ$6,673

$820 FJD 1,836

360.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$965 FJD 2,160

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.37

7.7

-30.26%

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

Last update for Thames: October 11, 2026

Last update for Suva: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Thames

$821 41.7%

Suva

$329 34.7% 59.9% $492

Groceries & Markets

Thames

$337 17.1%

Suva

$231 24.4% 31.5% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Thames

$260 13.2%

Suva

$83 8.8% 68% $177

Eating Out

Thames

$242 12.3%

Suva

$140 14.8% 42.1% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Thames

$145 7.4%

Suva

$91 9.6% 37.6% $55

Getting Around

Thames

$93 4.7%

Suva

$29 3.1% 68.8% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Thames

$68 3.5%

Suva

$44 4.6% 35.9% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $930 in Thames and $889 in Suva. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $68.0 in Thames vs $45.00 in Suva for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $337 vs $231 per month, with Suva cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Thames

🇫🇯 Suva

🕒 Local time

06:54 6:54 AM

05:54 5:54 AM

1 h behind Thames

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,500

100,000 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Fijian Dollar FJD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 FJD = 0.447 USD

1 FJD = 0.397 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

FJD, 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).

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).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Thames Suva 2,130 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Thames
Suva

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

Thames vs Suva: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Suva wins on cost – living expenses run 108% lower than in Thames. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Suva the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,949 in Thames and $1,419 in Suva to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $930 in Thames versus $889 in Suva. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Suva runs roughly 237% less than in Thames. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $1,135 in Thames versus $225 in Suva. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $946 in Suva versus $1,966 in Thames, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Suva but tight or insufficient in Thames. The gap between the two cities makes Suva the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Thames and Suva 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 108% less than in Thames. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.