Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Vanuatu and Tonga

Name: Tonga
Address: TO

For one person, living is cheaper in Tonga: $1,070 a month against $3,216 in Vanuatu, rent and utilities included – about $25,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

156

Cost of Living Index in Vanuatu
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Vanuatu Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Tonga
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Tonga Living Index

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🇻🇺 Vanuatu

$3,216

/mo nomad

🇹🇴 Tonga

$1,070

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Vanuatu and in Tonga

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,216 in Vanuatu versus $1,070 in Tonga.

Vanuatu $3,216
Tonga $1,070

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,324 in Vanuatu versus $1,905 in Tonga.

Vanuatu $4,324
Tonga $1,905

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,432 in Vanuatu versus $2,739 in Tonga.

Vanuatu $5,432
Tonga $2,739

Living in Vanuatu is roughly 201% more expensive than in Tonga on average.

Vanuatu (137% above) and Tonga (21% below) straddle the global median.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.42 VUV 1,457

$8.40 TOP 20.23

47.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.9 VUV 6,553

$61.3 TOP 148

-8.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.15 VUV 1,660

$10.58 TOP 25.48

33.74%

Cappuccino

$3.97 VUV 466

$2.86 TOP 6.89

38.81%

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

$2.30 VUV 270

$2.90 TOP 6.99

-20.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 VUV 274

$2.52 TOP 6.07

-7.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.03 VUV 590

$3.39 TOP 8.17

48.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.35 VUV 863

$4.88 TOP 11.76

50.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.13 VUV 367

$1.60 TOP 3.86

95.62%

White Bread (500g)

$2.50 VUV 293

$1.05 TOP 2.53

138.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.86 VUV 452

$2.12 TOP 5.10

82.08%

Eggs

$6.21 VUV 728

$4.94 TOP 11.91

25.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.29 VUV 1,911

$8.76 TOP 21.11

85.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$16.00 VUV 1,876

$5.95 TOP 14.34

168.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.25 VUV 1,554

$7.61 TOP 18.32

74.11%

Apples (1kg)

$6.57 VUV 771

$2.73 TOP 6.57

140.66%

Banana (1kg)

$2.07 VUV 243

$2.75 TOP 6.62

-24.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.91 VUV 459

$2.95 TOP 7.11

32.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$10.09 VUV 1,184

$3.75 TOP 9.04

169.07%

Potato (1kg)

$8.96 VUV 1,052

$3.20 TOP 7.70

180.00%

Onion (1kg)

$4.34 VUV 510

$2.61 TOP 6.29

66.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.60 VUV 305

$2.23 TOP 5.37

16.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 VUV 137

$1.40 TOP 3.36

-17.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.57 VUV 1,122

$10.16 TOP 24.48

-5.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.45 VUV 1,460

$17.20 TOP 41.44

-27.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.94 VUV 344

$3.09 TOP 7.45

-4.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.99 VUV 351

$3.40 TOP 8.19

-12.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.29 VUV 151

$2.06 TOP 4.96

-37.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.7 VUV 7,943

$41.49 TOP 100.0

63.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.51 VUV 295

$2.12 TOP 5.11

18.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.81 VUV 95.4

$2.06 TOP 4.96

-60.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.00 VUV 587

$41.51 TOP 100

-87.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.84 VUV 216

$1.47 TOP 3.54

25.17%

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

$23.0K VUV 2.7M

$5,897 TOP 14.2K

290.80%

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

$37.3K VUV 4.4M

$8,405 TOP 20.2K

344.10%

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

$624 VUV 73.2K

$188 TOP 453

231.92%

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

$22.95 VUV 2,692

$22.53 TOP 54.3

1.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$360 VUV 42.2K

$122 TOP 295

194.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.9 VUV 7,963

$31.75 TOP 76.5

113.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.80 VUV 1,971

$41.46 TOP 99.9

-59.48%

Cinema Ticket

$41.90 TOP 101

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

$632 VUV 74.1K

$158 TOP 381

300.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,850 VUV 803.5K

$253 TOP 610

2605.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.81 VUV 4,787

$14.63 TOP 35.23

178.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$66.5 VUV 7,797

$17.80 TOP 42.88

273.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.2 VUV 9,991

$20.73 TOP 49.93

310.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 VUV 12.1K

$28.54 TOP 68.8

261.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,566 VUV 183.7K

$628 TOP 1,512

149.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 VUV 140.6K

$49.33 TOP 119

2329.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,359 VUV 394.0K

$827 TOP 1,992

306.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,897 VUV 222.5K

$587 TOP 1,413

223.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,080 VUV 713.1K

$408 TOP 982

1390.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,184 VUV 256.2K

$244 TOP 588

794.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$345 VUV 40.4K

$682 TOP 1,642

-49.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.18

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

Last update for Vanuatu: October 20, 2026

Last update for Tonga: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Vanuatu

$1.2K 37.3%

Tonga

$49 4.6% 95.9% $1.1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Vanuatu

$1K 31.3%

Tonga

$333 31.1% 66.9% $674

Groceries & Markets

Vanuatu

$482 15%

Tonga

$291 27.2% 39.5% $191

Eating Out

Vanuatu

$248 7.7%

Tonga

$182 17% 26.7% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Vanuatu

$133 4.1%

Tonga

$37 3.4% 72.4% $96

Getting Around

Vanuatu

$79 2.5%

Tonga

$62 5.8% 21.8% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Vanuatu

$68 * 2.1%

Tonga

$116 10.8% 70.2% $48

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

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $794 in Vanuatu, $206 in Tonga. Capital cities: $1,587 in Port Vila vs $619 in Nuku'alofa.

National salary averages: $488 in Vanuatu, $672 in Tonga. Higher pay doesn't always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 285% higher in Vanuatu.

Dining out costs 33% more in Vanuatu.

Public transport is 136% more expensive in Vanuatu.

Salaries are 38% higher in Tonga, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Tonga.

Good to know

🇻🇺 Vanuatu

🇹🇴 Tonga

🕒 Local time

00:37 12:37 AM

02:37 2:37 AM

2 h ahead of Vanuatu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

300,019

108,020

💱 Currency

Vanuatu Vatu VUV Vt

Tongan Paʻanga TOP T$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 VUV = 8.53 USD

1,000 VUV = 7.58 EUR

1 TOP = 0.415 USD

1 TOP = 0.369 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TOP, USD, EUR to VUV – Vanuatu Vatu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇺 Vanuatu Vatu (Vt)

Vanuatu Vatu exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 117 VUV (1,000 VUV = 8.53 USD). 1 EUR = 132 VUV (1,000 VUV = 7.58 EUR).

Tongan Paʻanga exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 2.41 TOP (1 TOP = 0.415 USD). 1 EUR = 2.71 TOP (1 TOP = 0.369 EUR).

USD to VUV in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Vanuatu Tonga 1,770 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Vanuatu
Tonga

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

Vanuatu vs Tonga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,070 per month in Tonga and $3,216 in Vanuatu, there's a 201% gap. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Day-to-day life is cheaper in Tonga: lower grocery prices, cheaper commutes, and more affordable meals out. Over time, those daily savings make a real difference to your monthly budget and ability to put money away.

Rent for a central one-bedroom averages $794 in Vanuatu and $206 in Tonga. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

In Tonga, $1,000 covers most cities easily; in Vanuatu 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: Tonga wins on affordability; Vanuatu may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.