Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tonga and Samoa

Name: Samoa
Address: WS

For one person, living is cheaper in Samoa: $847 a month against $1,070 in Tonga, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Tonga
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Tonga Living Index
57

Cost of Living Index in Samoa
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Samoa Living Index

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🇹🇴 Tonga

$1,070

/mo nomad

🇼🇸 Samoa

$847

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tonga and in Samoa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,070 in Tonga versus $847 in Samoa.

Tonga $1,070
Samoa $847

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,905 in Tonga versus $2,303 in Samoa.

Tonga $1,905
Samoa $2,303

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,739 in Tonga versus $3,758 in Samoa.

Tonga $2,739
Samoa $3,758

Living in Tonga is roughly 26% more expensive than in Samoa on average.

Both countries sit below the global median: Tonga 21% lower, Samoa 37% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.40 TOP 20.23

$46.41 WST 129

-81.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 TOP 148

$37.03 WST 103

65.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.58 TOP 25.48

$14.81 WST 41.26

-28.56%

Cappuccino

$2.86 TOP 6.89

$2.83 WST 7.89

1.06%

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

$2.90 TOP 6.99

$1.84 WST 5.11

57.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 TOP 6.07

$1.39 WST 3.89

81.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 TOP 8.17

$3.54 WST 9.85

-4.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.88 TOP 11.76

$3.62 WST 10.08

34.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.60 TOP 3.86

$1.77 WST 4.92

-9.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 TOP 2.53

$0.84 WST 2.33

25.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.12 TOP 5.10

$1.79 WST 4.99

18.44%

Eggs

$4.94 TOP 11.91

$4.35 WST 12.10

13.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.76 TOP 21.11

$0.87 WST 2.43

906.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.95 TOP 14.34

$3.69 WST 10.26

61.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.61 TOP 18.32

$8.54 WST 23.79

-10.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 TOP 6.57

$5.18 WST 14.42

-47.30%

Banana (1kg)

$2.75 TOP 6.62

$1.80 WST 5.01

52.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.95 TOP 7.11

$1.84 WST 5.14

60.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.75 TOP 9.04

$4.40 WST 12.24

-14.77%

Potato (1kg)

$3.20 TOP 7.70

$3.61 WST 10.06

-11.36%

Onion (1kg)

$2.61 TOP 6.29

$1.10 WST 3.08

137.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.23 TOP 5.37

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 TOP 3.36

$1.18 WST 3.30

18.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.16 TOP 24.48

$6.21 WST 17.28

63.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.20 TOP 41.44

$16.43 WST 45.77

4.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.09 TOP 7.45

$1.85 WST 5.15

67.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 TOP 8.19

$3.67 WST 10.22

-7.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.06 TOP 4.96

$3.58 WST 9.96

-42.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.49 TOP 100.0

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.12 TOP 5.11

$5.53 WST 15.40

-61.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.06 TOP 4.96

$5.44 WST 15.14

-62.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.51 TOP 100

$21.96 WST 61.2

89.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 TOP 3.54

$1.12 WST 3.11

31.25%

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

$5,897 TOP 14.2K

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

$8,405 TOP 20.2K

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

$188 TOP 453

$17.83 WST 49.65

955.08%

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

$22.53 TOP 54.3

$18.05 WST 50.3

24.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$122 TOP 295

$36.72 WST 102

233.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.75 TOP 76.5

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$41.46 TOP 99.9

Cinema Ticket

$41.90 TOP 101

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

$158 TOP 381

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$253 TOP 610

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$14.63 TOP 35.23

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.80 TOP 42.88

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$20.73 TOP 49.93

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$28.54 TOP 68.8

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$628 TOP 1,512

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$49.33 TOP 119

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$827 TOP 1,992

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$587 TOP 1,413

$1,794 WST 4,997

-67.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$408 TOP 982

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$244 TOP 588

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$682 TOP 1,642

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

Last update for Tonga: October 17, 2026

Last update for Samoa: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tonga

$333 31.1%

Samoa

$73 8.6% 78.2% $260

Groceries & Markets

Tonga

$291 27.2%

Samoa

$240 * 28.3% 17.7% $51

Eating Out

Tonga

$182 17%

Samoa

$488 57.6% 168% $306

Sport & Entertainment

Tonga

$116 10.8%

Samoa

- * 0% 100%

Getting Around

Tonga

$62 5.8%

Samoa

$47 * 5.6% 24.4% $15

Accommodation & Living

Tonga

$49 4.6%

Samoa

- * 0% 100%

Clothing & Footwear

Tonga

$37 3.4%

Samoa

- * 0% 100%

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

Cost Highlights

Dining out costs 71% more in Samoa.

Good to know

🇹🇴 Tonga

🇼🇸 Samoa

🕒 Local time

04:08 4:08 AM

Same time as Tonga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

108,020

200,010

💱 Currency

Tongan Paʻanga TOP T$

Samoan Tala WST T

📈 Exchange rate

1 TOP = 0.415 USD

1 TOP = 0.369 EUR

1 WST = 0.359 USD

1 WST = 0.319 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

WST, USD, EUR to TOP – Tongan Paʻanga Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇴 Tongan Paʻanga (T$)

Tongan Paʻanga exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 2.41 TOP (1 TOP = 0.415 USD). 1 EUR = 2.71 TOP (1 TOP = 0.369 EUR).

Samoan Tala exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 2.79 WST (1 WST = 0.359 USD). 1 EUR = 3.13 WST (1 WST = 0.319 EUR).

USD to TOP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tonga Samoa 890 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Tonga
Samoa

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 Samoa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $847 per month in Samoa and $1,070 in Tonga, there's a 26% gap. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

In Samoa, $1,000 covers most cities easily; in Tonga it stretches only to regional areas and falls short in the capital – you'll need to make trade-offs on housing or lifestyle.

It depends on what you're after: Samoa wins on affordability; Tonga may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.