Cost of living comparison
compared to
Helena vs. Auckland Cost of Living Summary
Helena is 19.6% more expensive than Auckland.
Helena vs. Auckland Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Helena instead of Auckland, you would:
pay 56.4% more for restaurants
|
Auckland
|
Helena
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$14.01
NZ$24.77
|
$21.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.96
NZ$15.85
|
$18.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.98
NZ$3.50
|
$2.22
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.76
NZ$3.12
|
$1.75
|
|
Auckland vs. Helena - Cost of restaurants
pay 4.2% more for groceries
|
Auckland
|
Helena
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.20
NZ$3.90
|
$3.78
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.29
NZ$7.59
|
$9.00
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.26
NZ$12.84
|
$3.96
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.26
NZ$11.08
|
$3.67
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.51
NZ$7.97
|
$4.08
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.30
NZ$2.29
|
$2.14
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.95
NZ$1.69
|
$0.81
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.34
NZ$2.37
|
$2.04
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.63
NZ$4.65
|
$1.84
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.95
NZ$1.68
|
$0.99
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.70
NZ$1.24
|
$0.68
|
|
Auckland vs. Helena - Cost of groceries
pay 19.2% less for transportation
|
Auckland
|
Helena
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.98
NZ$12.34
|
$3.77
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$121.78
NZ$215.36
|
$60.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$25,206.41
NZ$44,573.67
|
$35,850.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.93
NZ$31.70
|
$37.34
|
|
Auckland vs. Helena - Cost of transportation
pay 42.6% more for housing
|
Auckland
|
Helena
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$50.70
NZ$89.65
|
$91.74
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,312.12
NZ$2,320.29
|
$1,786.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,217.10
NZ$2,152.26
|
$1,533.33
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$138.93
NZ$245.68
|
$287.72
|
|
Auckland vs. Helena - Cost of housing
pay 57.2% more for childcare
|
Auckland
|
Helena
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,121.14
NZ$1,982.56
|
$1,937.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$19,362.77
NZ$34,240.10
|
$27,700.00
|
|
Auckland vs. Helena - Cost of childcare
pay 4.9% less for entertainment and sports
|
Auckland
|
Helena
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.72
NZ$11.89
|
$5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.41
NZ$6.02
|
$5.12
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$27.17
NZ$48.05
|
$10.38
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.47
NZ$78.65
|
$52.50
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.88
NZ$22.78
|
$12.00
|
|
Auckland vs. Helena - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 24.4% more for clothing
|
Auckland
|
Helena
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$79.70
NZ$140.94
|
$64.75
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$40.10
NZ$70.91
|
$118.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$92.74
NZ$164.01
|
$82.25
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$109.54
NZ$193.71
|
$123.50
|
|
Auckland vs. Helena - Cost of clothing
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this
Change currency:
Compare further: Auckland vs. Helena
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in New Zealand vs. United States.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within New Zealand and United States.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
Ask the Elsewhere Community
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Helena or Auckland. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.