New Zealand vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

New Zealand United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1935
$2454
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4375
$5738
🏠 One person rent
$1113
$1565
🏘️ Family rent
$1847
$2755
🍽️ Food expenses
$550
$624
🚐 Transport expenses
$148
$102
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$3333
$4635
💸 GDP per capita
$48528
$81695
😃 Human freedom index
8.88
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
82.8
77.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
85
69
🌐 English speaking %
97.8%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
91
100
😀 Quality of life
89
87
🏙️ Population
5.12M
332M

The average cost of living in New Zealand ($1935) is 21% less expensive than in the United States ($2454). New Zealand ranked 18th vs 10th for the United States in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.7 months in New Zealand compared to 1.9 months in the United States. Ranked 15th and 20th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in New Zealand vs United States infographic

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Prices in New Zealand vs the United States

We calculate prices for New Zealand and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 31 and 2202 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

New Zealand United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$14.4
$18.7
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$73.6
$75
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$9.77
$10.8
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$6.93
$6.19
 Cappuccino
$3.57
$5.13
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.34
$2.57
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1113
$1641
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$943
$1330
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1992
$2946
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1587
$2414
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$82.9
$123
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$126
$189
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$53.3
$66.1
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
6.82%
6.53%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6644
$4710
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5526
$3231
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.41
$2.37
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$96.7
$70
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$18.9
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.77
$0.98
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.82
$1.08
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.01
$3.5
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.89
$4.35
🥚 Eggs, x12
$6.89
$3.81
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.83
$13
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$10.1
$11.6
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.4
$15.9
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.93
$5.03
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.38
$1.76
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.06
$4.51
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.5
$4.74
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.26
$2.81
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.99
$2.88
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.88
$1.42
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.53
$2.6
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$11.1
$14.4
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.3
$2.17
🚬 Cigarette pack
$24.2
$10.3
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$10.6
$9.41
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.26
$6.07
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.92
$4.4
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.6
$2.13
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$39.4
$51.1
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$13
$14.1
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$36.7
$122
💇 Haircut, simple
$17.5
$20.2
👖 Brand Jeans
$74.9
$52.8
👟 Brand Sneakers
$105
$89.4
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$798
$1400
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$12676
$20224

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in New Zealand vs the United States

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In New Zealand

City Cost of living Population
Auckland
$2205
1.47M
Manukau
$1939
376K
Christchurch
$1981
383K
Wellington
$2235
216K
Hamilton
$1671
177K
Tauranga
$1791
151K
Lower Hutt
$1866
103K
Dunedin
$1463
106K
Napier
$1403
66.3K
Palmerston North
$1318
81.5K
Rotorua
$1274
58.5K
Hibiscus Coast
$1861
59.8K
New Plymouth
$1447
57.6K
Porirua
$1844
59.6K
Nelson
$1640
51.1K
Whangarei
$1531
54.4K
Invercargill
$1359
50.2K
Upper Hutt
$1784
44.3K
Gisborne
$1654
37K
Hastings
$1205
49K
Timaru
$1879
28.7K
Queenstown
$1928
29K
Whanganui
$1573
42.2K
Paraparaumu
$1729
30.1K
Pukekohe
$1634
26.5K
Taupo
$1569
25.4K
Blenheim
$1406
28.2K
Wanaka
$1916
8.9K
Masterton
$1334
21.4K
Avarua
$1099
4.01K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4051
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3187
3.9M
Chicago
$2667
2.75M
Houston
$2248
2.3M
San Diego
$3346
1.39M
Phoenix
$2369
1.61M
San Jose
$3674
1.01M
Dallas
$2550
1.3M
San Francisco
$3781
874K
Philadelphia
$2541
1.6M
San Antonio
$2194
1.43M
Austin
$2473
962K
Seattle
$2908
737K
Indianapolis
$2187
888K
Hempstead
$2702
793K
Charlotte
$2615
875K
Washington
$3139
690K
Boston
$3467
676K
Fort Worth
$2195
919K
Jacksonville
$2386
950K
Columbus
$2252
906K
Denver
$2699
716K
Nashville
$2649
689K
Portland
$2572
653K
Atlanta
$2540
499K
Las Vegas
$2246
642K
Detroit
$2006
639K
Oakland
$3146
441K
El Paso
$1775
679K
Baltimore
$2223
586K