Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wellington and Gizo

For one person, living is cheaper in Gizo: $2,121 a month against $2,342 in Wellington, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Wellington
Learn more

Wellington Living Index
105

Cost of Living Index in Gizo
Learn more

Gizo Living Index

Jump to prices

Wellington

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,342

/mo nomad

Gizo

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$2,121

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Wellington and in Gizo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,342 in Wellington versus $2,121 in Gizo.

Wellington $2,342
Gizo $2,121

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,316 in Wellington versus $3,041 in Gizo.

Wellington $3,316
Gizo $3,041

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,291 in Wellington versus $3,960 in Gizo.

Wellington $4,291
Gizo $3,960

Living in Wellington is roughly 10% more expensive than in Gizo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Wellington 75% above, Gizo 58% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.89 NZ$24.74

$3.15 SBD 25.40

340.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.2 NZ$114

$56.5 SBD 456

13.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.95 NZ$15.95

$15.76 SBD 127

-43.21%

Cappuccino

$3.29 NZ$5.86

$2.76 SBD 22.25

19.20%

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

$2.35 NZ$4.19

$1.26 SBD 10.17

86.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 NZ$2.97

$1.25 SBD 10.10

33.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.24 NZ$12.90

$2.55 SBD 20.61

183.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.75 NZ$12.03

$2.53 SBD 20.43

166.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 NZ$3.38

$3.29 SBD 26.57

-42.25%

White Bread (500g)

$2.15 NZ$3.83

$1.32 SBD 10.65

62.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.82 NZ$3.24

$1.40 SBD 11.32

30.00%

Eggs

$6.73 NZ$11.99

$7.24 SBD 58.5

-7.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.05 NZ$16.13

$8.64 SBD 69.8

4.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.54 NZ$17.01

$6.33 SBD 51.1

50.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.30 NZ$27.27

$8.74 SBD 70.6

75.06%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 NZ$5.64

$6.88 SBD 55.5

-54.07%

Banana (1kg)

$2.23 NZ$3.98

$6.01 SBD 48.50

-62.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.97 NZ$5.28

$6.33 SBD 51.2

-53.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.33 NZ$11.27

$3.04 SBD 24.56

108.22%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 NZ$3.67

$3.03 SBD 24.49

-32.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.24 NZ$2.20

$2.41 SBD 19.50

-48.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.99 NZ$3.55

$2.43 SBD 19.61

-18.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 NZ$2.13

$1.33 SBD 10.77

-10.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$25.37 NZ$45.20

$4.27 SBD 34.49

494.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.37 NZ$20.26

$12.57 SBD 102

-9.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 NZ$5.65

$1.89 SBD 15.24

67.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 NZ$4.92

$2.19 SBD 17.67

26.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.74 NZ$4.88

$0.39 SBD 3.12

602.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$102 NZ$182

$31.04 SBD 251

228.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.82 NZ$3.24

$1.23 SBD 9.91

47.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.77 NZ$3.16

$2.45 SBD 19.76

-27.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.17 NZ$59.1

$12.41 SBD 100

167.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.83 NZ$3.26

$1.77 SBD 14.25

3.39%

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

$25.6K NZ$45.7K

$20.6K SBD 166.3K

24.45%

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

$25.4K NZ$45.3K

$21.5K SBD 173.4K

18.38%

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

$199 NZ$354

$756 SBD 6,107

-73.72%

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

$32.79 NZ$58.4

$13.69 SBD 111

139.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.5 NZ$95.3

$125 SBD 1,008

-57.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.58 NZ$68.8

$18.41 SBD 149

109.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.40 NZ$29.22

$6.05 SBD 48.87

171.07%

Cinema Ticket

$12.14 NZ$21.64

$4.39 SBD 35.43

176.54%

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

$1,036 NZ$1,847

$121 SBD 981

753.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.9K NZ$22.9K

$1,253 SBD 10.1K

926.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 NZ$140

$24.88 SBD 201

215.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.23 NZ$50.3

$92.0 SBD 743

-69.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 NZ$184

$100 SBD 809

3.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$155 NZ$276

$90.5 SBD 731

71.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,228 NZ$2,187

$608 SBD 4,908

101.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,139 NZ$2,030

$594 SBD 4,799

91.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,171 NZ$3,869

$618 SBD 4,991

251.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,670 NZ$2,975

$1,234 SBD 9,964

35.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,719 NZ$12.0K

$86.8K SBD 700.6K

-92.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,505 NZ$6,246

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,818 NZ$5,022

$395 SBD 3,192

612.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

16.33

-66.99%

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

Last update for Wellington: October 5, 2026

Last update for Gizo: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Wellington

$1.1K 48.3%

Gizo

$594 27.2% 47.8% $545

Groceries & Markets

Wellington

$343 14.5%

Gizo

$354 16.2% 3.2% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Wellington

$285 12.1%

Gizo

$895 40.9% 214% $610

Eating Out

Wellington

$243 10.3%

Gizo

$133 6.1% 45.1% $110

Clothing & Footwear

Wellington

$164 7%

Gizo

$138 6.3% 15.7% $26

Getting Around

Wellington

$124 5.2%

Gizo

$46 2.1% 62.7% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Wellington

$63 2.7%

Gizo

$27 1.2% 56.8% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,228 in Wellington and $608 in Gizo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Wellington pays 613% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $64.0 in Wellington vs $56.0 in Gizo. Groceries flip the comparison at $343 vs $354, with Wellington cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Wellington

🇸🇧 Gizo

🕒 Local time

03:23 3:23 AM

01:23 1:23 AM

2 h behind Wellington

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

215,900 Capital

7,177

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.561 USD

1 NZD = 0.501 EUR

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.111 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.561 USD). 1 EUR = 2 NZD (1 NZD = 0.501 EUR).

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 8.08 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.05 SBD (1 SBD = 0.111 EUR).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Wellington Gizo 4,100 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Wellington
Gizo

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

Wellington vs Gizo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Gizo wins on cost – living expenses run 10% lower than in Wellington. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Gizo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 613% higher in Wellington, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,228 in Wellington versus $608 in Gizo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Wellington pay roughly 3% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Gizo – a meal for two runs $56.0 versus $64.0 in Wellington. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,121 in Gizo versus $2,342 in Wellington, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Gizo but tight or insufficient in Wellington. The gap between the two cities makes Gizo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Gizo delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $2,121 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Gizo hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Wellington and Gizo 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 Gizo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 10% less than in Wellington. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.