Cost of living comparison
compared to
Houston vs. New Zealand Cost of Living Summary
Houston is 27.2% more expensive than New Zealand overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 22.4% more in Houston
- Groceries
-
pay 17.2% more in Houston
- Transportation
-
pay 6.5% less in Houston
- Housing
-
pay 55.6% more in Houston
- Childcare
-
pay 96.0% more in Houston
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 8.5% more in Houston
- Clothing
-
pay 2.7% less in Houston
The cost of childcare, housing, restaurants, groceries, and entertainment and sports in Houston are more expensive than in New Zealand. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in Houston. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Houston.
Houston vs. New Zealand Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Houston instead of New Zealand, you would:
pay 22.4% more for restaurants
|
New Zealand
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$14.45
NZ$25.19
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.14
NZ$15.93
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.11
NZ$3.68
|
$2.76
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.02
NZ$3.52
|
$2.23
|
|
New Zealand vs. Houston - Cost of restaurants
pay 17.2% more for groceries
|
New Zealand
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.74
NZ$3.03
|
$3.23
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.88
NZ$6.77
|
$6.32
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.34
NZ$11.05
|
$3.44
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.96
NZ$10.39
|
$4.35
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.01
NZ$6.99
|
$5.20
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.18
NZ$2.06
|
$1.88
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.95
NZ$1.66
|
$0.67
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.29
NZ$2.26
|
$1.67
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.11
NZ$3.68
|
$1.12
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.85
NZ$1.48
|
$1.20
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.80
NZ$1.39
|
$1.05
|
|
New Zealand vs. Houston - Cost of groceries
pay 6.5% less for transportation
|
New Zealand
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.08
NZ$10.60
|
$2.81
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$74.52
NZ$129.96
|
$75.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,777.66
NZ$43,211.84
|
$36,278.39
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.81
NZ$31.06
|
$14.39
|
|
New Zealand vs. Houston - Cost of transportation
pay 55.6% more for housing
|
New Zealand
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$50.00
NZ$87.19
|
$70.76
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$978.36
NZ$1,706.24
|
$1,660.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$810.06
NZ$1,412.73
|
$1,287.77
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$95.66
NZ$166.83
|
$145.65
|
|
New Zealand vs. Houston - Cost of housing
pay 96.0% more for childcare
|
New Zealand
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$635.34
NZ$1,108.03
|
$1,258.33
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,463.91
NZ$23,480.84
|
$26,120.00
|
|
New Zealand vs. Houston - Cost of childcare
pay 8.5% more for entertainment and sports
|
New Zealand
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.04
NZ$10.54
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.35
NZ$5.85
|
$5.41
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$23.12
NZ$40.33
|
$9.95
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.72
NZ$65.79
|
$37.29
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.72
NZ$18.69
|
$15.00
|
|
New Zealand vs. Houston - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 2.7% less for clothing
|
New Zealand
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$65.22
NZ$113.75
|
$45.57
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$39.23
NZ$68.42
|
$44.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.28
NZ$157.45
|
$98.95
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$119.43
NZ$208.28
|
$116.43
|
|
New Zealand vs. Houston - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: November 2025
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