Cost of living comparison
compared to
Los Angeles vs. New Zealand Cost of Living Summary
Los Angeles is 55.9% more expensive than New Zealand overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 40.4% more in Los Angeles
- Groceries
-
pay 58.7% more in Los Angeles
- Transportation
-
pay 9.3% more in Los Angeles
- Housing
-
pay 2.0 times more in Los Angeles
- Childcare
-
pay 2.4 times more in Los Angeles
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 29.5% more in Los Angeles
- Clothing
-
pay 10.7% more in Los Angeles
The cost of childcare, housing, groceries, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and clothing in Los Angeles are more expensive than in New Zealand. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles vs. New Zealand Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Los Angeles instead of New Zealand, you would:
pay 40.4% more for restaurants
|
New Zealand
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$14.45
NZ$25.01
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.14
NZ$15.82
|
$13.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.11
NZ$3.65
|
$2.83
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.02
NZ$3.49
|
$2.26
|
|
New Zealand vs. Los Angeles - Cost of restaurants
pay 58.7% more for groceries
|
New Zealand
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.74
NZ$3.01
|
$4.52
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.88
NZ$6.72
|
$6.67
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.34
NZ$10.97
|
$4.71
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.96
NZ$10.31
|
$7.43
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.01
NZ$6.93
|
$7.55
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.18
NZ$2.04
|
$2.60
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.95
NZ$1.65
|
$1.27
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.29
NZ$2.24
|
$2.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.11
NZ$3.65
|
$2.17
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.85
NZ$1.47
|
$1.38
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.80
NZ$1.38
|
$1.22
|
|
New Zealand vs. Los Angeles - Cost of groceries
pay 9.3% more for transportation
|
New Zealand
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.08
NZ$10.52
|
$4.78
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$74.52
NZ$128.99
|
$93.48
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,777.66
NZ$42,890.20
|
$32,727.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.81
NZ$30.83
|
$18.01
|
|
New Zealand vs. Los Angeles - Cost of transportation
pay 2.0 times more for housing
|
New Zealand
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$50.00
NZ$86.54
|
$74.01
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$978.36
NZ$1,693.54
|
$2,536.54
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$810.06
NZ$1,402.22
|
$1,984.71
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$95.66
NZ$165.59
|
$155.53
|
|
New Zealand vs. Los Angeles - Cost of housing
pay 2.4 times more for childcare
|
New Zealand
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$635.34
NZ$1,099.78
|
$1,762.50
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,463.91
NZ$23,306.07
|
$27,000.00
|
|
New Zealand vs. Los Angeles - Cost of childcare
pay 29.5% more for entertainment and sports
|
New Zealand
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.04
NZ$10.46
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.35
NZ$5.80
|
$5.76
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$23.12
NZ$40.03
|
$11.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.72
NZ$65.30
|
$47.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.72
NZ$18.56
|
$18.00
|
|
New Zealand vs. Los Angeles - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 10.7% more for clothing
|
New Zealand
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$65.22
NZ$112.90
|
$61.25
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$39.23
NZ$67.91
|
$44.15
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.28
NZ$156.27
|
$100.09
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$119.43
NZ$206.73
|
$149.85
|
|
New Zealand vs. Los Angeles - 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: December 2025
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