Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tonga and Papua New Guinea

Name: Papua New Guinea
Address: PG

For one person, living is cheaper in Tonga: $1,070 a month against $1,364 in Papua New Guinea, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Papua New Guinea outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

52

Cost of Living Index in Tonga
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Tonga Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Papua New Guinea
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Papua New Guinea Living Index

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🇹🇴 Tonga

$1,070

/mo nomad

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

$1,364

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tonga and in Papua New Guinea

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

A single person spends $1,070 per month in Tonga vs $1,364 in Papua New Guinea, rent included.

Tonga $1,070
Papua New Guinea $1,364

A couple spends around $1,905 per month in Tonga vs $2,170 in Papua New Guinea, rent included.

Tonga $1,905
Papua New Guinea $2,170

A family of three spends $2,739 per month in Tonga vs $2,976 in Papua New Guinea, rent included.

Tonga $2,739
Papua New Guinea $2,976

The cost of living in Tonga is roughly 22% lower than in Papua New Guinea on average.

Tonga sits 21% below the global median, while Papua New Guinea is 1% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.40 TOP 20.23

$7.09 PGK 31.04

18.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 TOP 148

$44.55 PGK 195

37.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.58 TOP 25.48

$5.35 PGK 23.42

97.76%

Cappuccino

$2.86 TOP 6.89

$2.33 PGK 10.18

22.75%

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

$2.90 TOP 6.99

$0.79 PGK 3.44

267.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 TOP 6.07

$0.67 PGK 2.92

276.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 TOP 8.17

$2.59 PGK 11.35

30.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.88 TOP 11.76

$3.97 PGK 17.38

22.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.60 TOP 3.86

$1.80 PGK 7.88

-11.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 TOP 2.53

$1.50 PGK 6.57

-30.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.12 TOP 5.10

$1.32 PGK 5.78

60.61%

Eggs

$4.94 TOP 11.91

$3.63 PGK 15.89

36.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.76 TOP 21.11

$6.49 PGK 28.42

34.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.95 TOP 14.34

$5.76 PGK 25.21

3.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.61 TOP 18.32

$9.18 PGK 40.19

-17.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 TOP 6.57

$4.00 PGK 17.52

-31.75%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 TOP 6.62

$3.29 PGK 14.39

-16.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.95 TOP 7.11

$6.15 PGK 26.93

-52.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.75 TOP 9.04

$5.12 PGK 22.42

-26.76%

Potato (1kg)

$3.20 TOP 7.70

$3.29 PGK 14.41

-2.74%

Onion (1kg)

$2.61 TOP 6.29

$2.79 PGK 12.20

-6.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.23 TOP 5.37

$2.01 PGK 8.79

10.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 TOP 3.36

$1.13 PGK 4.94

23.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.16 TOP 24.48

$6.55 PGK 28.66

55.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.20 TOP 41.44

$10.72 PGK 46.94

60.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.09 TOP 7.45

$2.47 PGK 10.83

25.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 TOP 8.19

$3.71 PGK 16.23

-8.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.06 TOP 4.96

$0.46 PGK 2.01

347.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.49 TOP 100.0

$25.35 PGK 111

63.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.12 TOP 5.11

$4.81 PGK 21.07

-55.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.06 TOP 4.96

$2.22 PGK 9.73

-7.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.51 TOP 100

$12.21 PGK 53.5

239.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 TOP 3.54

$0.98 PGK 4.27

50.00%

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

$5,897 TOP 14.2K

$29.0K PGK 127.0K

-79.67%

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

$8,405 TOP 20.2K

$22.7K PGK 99.3K

-62.96%

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

$188 TOP 453

$93.6 PGK 410

101.05%

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

$22.53 TOP 54.3

$24.89 PGK 109

-9.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$122 TOP 295

$104 PGK 454

17.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.75 TOP 76.5

$63.6 PGK 278

-50.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$41.46 TOP 99.9

$24.19 PGK 106

71.39%

Cinema Ticket

$41.90 TOP 101

$8.64 PGK 37.82

384.95%

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

$158 TOP 381

$522 PGK 2,283

-69.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$253 TOP 610

$5,363 PGK 23.5K

-95.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$14.63 TOP 35.23

$36.28 PGK 159

-59.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.80 TOP 42.88

$33.70 PGK 148

-47.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$20.73 TOP 49.93

$64.1 PGK 281

-67.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$28.54 TOP 68.8

$85.4 PGK 374

-66.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$628 TOP 1,512

$1,337 PGK 5,855

-53.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$49.33 TOP 119

$495 PGK 2,167

-90.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$827 TOP 1,992

$2,689 PGK 11.8K

-69.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$587 TOP 1,413

$1,069 PGK 4,678

-45.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$408 TOP 982

$2,026 PGK 8,869

-79.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$244 TOP 588

$3,702 PGK 16.2K

-93.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$682 TOP 1,642

$417 PGK 1,826

63.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.67

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

Last update for Tonga: October 17, 2026

Last update for Papua New Guinea: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tonga

$333 31.1%

Papua New Guinea

$222 16.3% 33.3% $111

Groceries & Markets

Tonga

$291 27.2%

Papua New Guinea

$297 21.8% 1.8% $5.4

Eating Out

Tonga

$182 17%

Papua New Guinea

$127 9.3% 29.9% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Tonga

$116 10.8%

Papua New Guinea

$81 5.9% 30% $35

Getting Around

Tonga

$62 5.8%

Papua New Guinea

$43 3.2% 30.6% $19

Accommodation & Living

Tonga

$49 4.6%

Papua New Guinea

$495 36.3% 904% $446

Clothing & Footwear

Tonga

$37 3.4%

Papua New Guinea

$99 7.2% 169% $62

Cost Breakdown

Average rent: $206 in Tonga vs $751 in Papua New Guinea. For reference, capital cities sit at $619 in Nuku'alofa and $1,507 in Port Moresby.

Average salary: $672 in Tonga vs $311 in Papua New Guinea. The income gap affects purchasing power and how far your budget stretches in each country.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 265% higher in Papua New Guinea.

Dining out costs 11% more in Tonga.

Public transport is 100% more expensive in Tonga.

Salaries are 116% higher in Tonga, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Tonga.

Good to know

🇹🇴 Tonga

🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea

🕒 Local time

11:18 11:18 AM

08:18 8:18 AM

3 h behind Tonga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

108,020

8,935,000

💱 Currency

Tongan Paʻanga TOP T$

Papua New Guinean Kina PGK K

📈 Exchange rate

1 TOP = 0.415 USD

1 TOP = 0.369 EUR

1 PGK = 0.228 USD

1 PGK = 0.203 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PGK, USD, EUR to TOP – Tongan Paʻanga Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇴 Tongan Paʻanga (T$)

Tongan Paʻanga exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 2.41 TOP (1 TOP = 0.415 USD). 1 EUR = 2.71 TOP (1 TOP = 0.369 EUR).

Papua New Guinean Kina exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4.38 PGK (1 PGK = 0.228 USD). 1 EUR = 4.92 PGK (1 PGK = 0.203 EUR).

USD to TOP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tonga Papua New Guinea 4,230 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Tonga
Papua New Guinea

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

Tonga vs Papua New Guinea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tonga is the cheaper option – living costs run roughly 28% lower on average.

Housing costs more in Papua New Guinea: a central one-bedroom averages $751 versus $206 in Tonga.

$1,000 buys a comfortable lifestyle in Tonga, but in Papua New Guinea it only works with careful planning outside the capital. Same money, very different lives.

Tonga is the budget-friendly choice for expats – lower housing and daily costs. But cost isn't everything: visa policies, language, healthcare quality, and job markets all weigh in too.