Cost of living comparison

compared to

Reykjavik vs. Palmerston North Cost of Living Summary

Reykjavik is 2.1 times more expensive than Palmerston North.

Restaurants: pay 73.9% more in Reykjavik
Groceries: pay 72.7% more in Reykjavik
Transportation: pay 65.2% more in Reykjavik
Housing: pay 2.2 times more in Reykjavik
Childcare: pay 3.3 times more in Reykjavik
Entertainment and Sports: pay 2.1 times more in Reykjavik
Clothing: pay 2.3 times more in Reykjavik

The cost of childcare, clothing, housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and groceries in Reykjavik are more expensive than in Palmerston North. Notably, childcare, clothing, and housing are significantly more expensive in Reykjavik.

Reykjavik vs. Palmerston North Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Reykjavik instead of Palmerston North, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 73.9% more for restaurants

	Palmerston North	Reykjavik
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$14.42 NZ$24.97	$27.48 ISK3,517	+90.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.91 NZ$17.16	$22.76 ISK2,913	+129.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.36 NZ$4.08	$3.34 ISK427	+41.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.01 NZ$3.48	$2.70 ISK345	+34.1%
Average			+73.9%

Palmerston North vs. Reykjavik - Cost of restaurants

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pay 72.7% more for groceries

	Palmerston North	Reykjavik
Bread 1 loaf	$1.99 NZ$3.45	$4.63 ISK593	+132.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.89 NZ$6.74	$9.44 ISK1,208	+142.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.12 NZ$12.32	$7.63 ISK976	+7.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$5.13 NZ$8.88	$6.50 ISK832	+26.7%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.99 NZ$6.91	$11.29 ISK1,445	+183.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.07 NZ$1.86	$1.59 ISK204	+48.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.80 NZ$1.39	$1.17 ISK150	+45.6%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.08 NZ$1.87	$1.49 ISK190	+37.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.48 NZ$2.55	$2.54 ISK325	+71.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.91 NZ$1.58	$1.70 ISK217	+85.5%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.95 NZ$1.65	$1.13 ISK145	+18.5%
Average			+72.7%

Palmerston North vs. Reykjavik - Cost of groceries

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pay 65.2% more for transportation

	Palmerston North	Reykjavik
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$6.11 NZ$10.57	$9.66 ISK1,236	+58.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$70.50 NZ$122.03	$88.58 ISK11,337	+25.7%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,211.80 NZ$38,448.69	$50,771.00 ISK6,497,672	+128.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.92 NZ$32.76	$28.07 ISK3,592	+48.3%
Average			+65.2%

Palmerston North vs. Reykjavik - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.2 times more for housing

	Palmerston North	Reykjavik
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$45.43 NZ$78.65	$81.97 ISK10,490	+80.4%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$807.70 NZ$1,398.13	$2,259.48 ISK289,169	+179.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$663.47 NZ$1,148.47	$2,034.90 ISK260,427	+206.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$64.71 NZ$112.00	$60.87 ISK7,791	-5.9%
Average			+115.2%

Palmerston North vs. Reykjavik - Cost of housing

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pay 3.3 times more for childcare

	Palmerston North	Reykjavik
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$961.55 NZ$1,664.45	$327.78 ISK41,949	-65.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$4,843.04 NZ$8,383.31	$30,711.08 ISK3,930,404	+534.1%
Average			+234.1%

Palmerston North vs. Reykjavik - Cost of childcare

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pay 2.1 times more for entertainment and sports

	Palmerston North	Reykjavik
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$6.44 NZ$11.14	$13.12 ISK1,680	+103.9%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.32 NZ$5.74	$6.17 ISK790	+86.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$17.88 NZ$30.96	$13.94 ISK1,783	-22.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$22.69 NZ$39.28	$87.35 ISK11,179	+284.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.65 NZ$14.98	$17.18 ISK2,199	+98.6%
Average			+110.3%

Palmerston North vs. Reykjavik - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 2.3 times more for clothing

	Palmerston North	Reykjavik
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$66.35 NZ$114.85	$145.10 ISK18,569	+118.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$36.06 NZ$62.42	$63.97 ISK8,187	+77.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$87.26 NZ$151.05	$193.43 ISK24,755	+121.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$87.98 NZ$152.30	$248.79 ISK31,840	+182.8%
Average			+125.2%

Palmerston North vs. Reykjavik - Cost of clothing

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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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