Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Waitakere and Honiara

For one person, living costs are similar in Waitakere and in Honiara: $1,758 and $1,718 a month, rent and utilities included.

87

Cost of Living Index in Waitakere
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Waitakere Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
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Honiara Living Index

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Waitakere

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,758

/mo nomad

Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,718

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Waitakere and in Honiara

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

A single person spends $1,758 per month in Waitakere vs $1,718 in Honiara, rent included.

Waitakere $1,758
Honiara $1,718

A couple spends around $2,769 per month in Waitakere vs $2,833 in Honiara, rent included.

Waitakere $2,769
Honiara $2,833

A family of three spends $3,779 per month in Waitakere vs $3,948 in Honiara, rent included.

Waitakere $3,779
Honiara $3,948

Waitakere costs about 2% more than Honiara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Waitakere and Honiara sit above the global median – Waitakere by 30%, Honiara by 27%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 NZ$20.84

$6.94 SBD 56.0

69.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.0 NZ$129

$62.3 SBD 502

17.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.43 NZ$14.91

$12.56 SBD 101

-32.88%

Cappuccino

$3.32 NZ$5.88

$3.49 SBD 28.17

-4.87%

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

$2.29 NZ$4.04

$1.58 SBD 12.75

44.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 NZ$4.27

$1.10 SBD 8.90

120.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.21 NZ$10.98

$2.55 SBD 20.59

143.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.55 NZ$9.82

$5.70 SBD 45.93

-2.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 NZ$2.61

$2.48 SBD 20.01

-40.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.29 NZ$2.28

$1.54 SBD 12.42

-16.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 NZ$3.50

$1.65 SBD 13.29

20.00%

Eggs

$5.20 NZ$9.19

$5.51 SBD 44.40

-5.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.46 NZ$9.66

$6.43 SBD 51.8

-15.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.48 NZ$13.23

$8.58 SBD 69.2

-12.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.77 NZ$20.81

$15.40 SBD 124

-23.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.55 NZ$4.52

$6.38 SBD 51.4

-60.03%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 NZ$3.89

$2.59 SBD 20.89

-15.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.21 NZ$5.68

$8.44 SBD 68.1

-61.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.26 NZ$11.07

$3.66 SBD 29.48

71.04%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 NZ$3.49

$1.94 SBD 15.60

1.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.35 NZ$2.39

$3.41 SBD 27.53

-60.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.52 NZ$4.46

$1.45 SBD 11.72

73.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 NZ$1.67

$1.07 SBD 8.62

-12.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$24.90 NZ$44.04

$4.18 SBD 33.67

495.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 NZ$18.80

$10.70 SBD 86.3

-0.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.02 NZ$7.11

$1.78 SBD 14.36

125.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.01 NZ$7.08

$3.35 SBD 26.98

19.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 NZ$3.12

$0.38 SBD 3.09

363.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$80.2 NZ$142

$24.88 SBD 201

222.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.56 NZ$6.30

$1.20 SBD 9.70

196.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.00 NZ$3.54

$1.21 SBD 9.79

65.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.06 NZ$56.7

$12.41 SBD 100

158.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.63 NZ$2.89

$1.30 SBD 10.50

25.38%

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

$26.1K NZ$46.1K

$18.8K SBD 151.8K

38.58%

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

$23.0K NZ$40.7K

$34.7K SBD 279.9K

-33.66%

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

$57.2 NZ$101

$427 SBD 3,440

-86.60%

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

$36.71 NZ$64.9

$27.52 SBD 222

33.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.7 NZ$95.0

$88.8 SBD 716

-39.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.56 NZ$73.5

$37.21 SBD 300

11.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.24 SBD 74.5

Cinema Ticket

$13.65 NZ$24.14

$4.25 SBD 34.29

221.18%

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

$676 NZ$1,196

$98.2 SBD 792

588.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K NZ$39.4K

$2,891 SBD 23.3K

671.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.2 NZ$110

$27.02 SBD 218

130.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.26 NZ$67.7

$93.7 SBD 756

-59.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 NZ$169

$95.3 SBD 768

0.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 NZ$187

$104 SBD 834

2.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$836 NZ$1,479

$901 SBD 7,263

-7.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$790 NZ$1,397

$436 SBD 3,518

80.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,657 NZ$2,930

$1,867 SBD 15.1K

-11.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,479 NZ$2,615

$1,422 SBD 11.5K

4.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,449 NZ$7,868

$86.7K SBD 699.2K

-94.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,591 NZ$6,350

$63.1K SBD 508.8K

-94.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$443 SBD 3,574

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.83

15.67

-56.41%

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

Last update for Waitakere: October 13, 2026

Last update for Honiara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Waitakere

$790 44.9%

Honiara

$436 25.4% 44.7% $353

Groceries & Markets

Waitakere

$295 16.8%

Honiara

$345 20.1% 17% $50

Eating Out

Waitakere

$220 12.5%

Honiara

$170 9.9% 22.8% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Waitakere

$148 8.4%

Honiara

$543 31.6% 268% $395

Clothing & Footwear

Waitakere

$136 7.7%

Honiara

$144 8.4% 6% $8.1

Getting Around

Waitakere

$101 5.7%

Honiara

$34 2% 66.6% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Waitakere

$69 3.9%

Honiara

$46 2.7% 33.6% $23

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $836 in Waitakere versus $901 in Honiara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $73.0 in Waitakere versus $62.0 in Honiara. Groceries tell a different story – $295 in Waitakere vs $345 in Honiara – so Waitakere wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Waitakere

🇸🇧 Honiara

🕒 Local time

06:54 6:54 AM

04:54 4:54 AM

2 h behind Waitakere

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,830

54,600 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SBD, 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).

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 8.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.11 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Waitakere Honiara 3,380 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Waitakere
Honiara

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

Waitakere vs Honiara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,758 in Waitakere, $1,718 in Honiara – roughly 2% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,637 per month in Waitakere and $2,577 in Honiara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Honiara, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 17% cheaper in Waitakere – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $73.0 in Waitakere and $62.0 in Honiara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Honiara, where all-in costs run around $1,718, than in Waitakere at $1,758. In Honiara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Waitakere it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Honiara – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Honiara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Waitakere makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.