Cost of living comparison

compared to

Wellington vs. Palmerston North Cost of Living Summary

Wellington is 29.4% more expensive than Palmerston North.

Restaurants: pay 1.4% less in Wellington
Groceries: pay 13.8% more in Wellington
Transportation: pay 18.3% more in Wellington
Housing: pay 48.9% more in Wellington
Childcare: pay 66.0% more in Wellington
Entertainment and Sports: pay 27.4% more in Wellington
Clothing: pay 32.5% more in Wellington

The cost of childcare, housing, clothing, entertainment and sports, transportation, and groceries in Wellington are more expensive than in Palmerston North.

Wellington vs. Palmerston North Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 1.4% less for restaurants

	Palmerston North	Wellington
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$14.42 NZ$24.97	$14.42 NZ$24.97
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.91 NZ$17.16	$9.23 NZ$15.98	-6.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.36 NZ$4.08	$2.46 NZ$4.26	+4.3%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.01 NZ$3.48	$1.98 NZ$3.42	-1.7%
Average			-1.4%

Palmerston North vs. Wellington - Cost of restaurants

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pay 13.8% more for groceries

	Palmerston North	Wellington
Bread 1 loaf	$1.99 NZ$3.45	$1.98 NZ$3.42	-0.8%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.89 NZ$6.74	$4.02 NZ$6.96	+3.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.12 NZ$12.32	$6.79 NZ$11.75	-4.6%
Eggs 1 dozen	$5.13 NZ$8.88	$6.77 NZ$11.73	+32.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.99 NZ$6.91	$4.77 NZ$8.26	+19.6%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.07 NZ$1.86	$1.36 NZ$2.36	+27.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.80 NZ$1.39	$1.01 NZ$1.75	+26.0%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.08 NZ$1.87	$1.33 NZ$2.30	+23.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.48 NZ$2.55	$2.32 NZ$4.01	+57.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.91 NZ$1.58	$0.90 NZ$1.55	-2.0%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.95 NZ$1.65	$0.68 NZ$1.17	-28.9%
Average			+13.8%

Palmerston North vs. Wellington - Cost of groceries

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pay 18.3% more for transportation

	Palmerston North	Wellington
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$6.11 NZ$10.57	$6.14 NZ$10.63	+0.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$70.50 NZ$122.03	$109.62 NZ$189.75	+55.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,211.80 NZ$38,448.69	$31,154.21 NZ$53,928.03	+40.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.92 NZ$32.76	$14.55 NZ$25.19	-23.1%
Average			+18.3%

Palmerston North vs. Wellington - Cost of transportation

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pay 48.9% more for housing

	Palmerston North	Wellington
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$45.43 NZ$78.65	$48.75 NZ$84.39	+7.3%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$807.70 NZ$1,398.13	$1,240.57 NZ$2,147.43	+53.6%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$663.47 NZ$1,148.47	$1,099.37 NZ$1,903.02	+65.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$64.71 NZ$112.00	$109.37 NZ$189.31	+69.0%
Average			+48.9%

Palmerston North vs. Wellington - Cost of housing

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pay 66.0% more for childcare

	Palmerston North	Wellington
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$961.55 NZ$1,664.45	$768.47 NZ$1,330.22	-20.1%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$4,843.04 NZ$8,383.31	$12,211.68 NZ$21,138.46	+152.1%
Average			+66.0%

Palmerston North vs. Wellington - Cost of childcare

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pay 27.4% more for entertainment and sports

	Palmerston North	Wellington
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$6.44 NZ$11.14	$6.63 NZ$11.48	+3.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.32 NZ$5.74	$3.54 NZ$6.13	+6.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$17.88 NZ$30.96	$25.67 NZ$44.44	+43.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$22.69 NZ$39.28	$34.12 NZ$59.06	+50.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.65 NZ$14.98	$11.54 NZ$19.97	+33.3%
Average			+27.4%

Palmerston North vs. Wellington - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 32.5% more for clothing

	Palmerston North	Wellington
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$66.35 NZ$114.85	$69.31 NZ$119.97	+4.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$36.06 NZ$62.42	$46.64 NZ$80.73	+29.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$87.26 NZ$151.05	$113.30 NZ$196.13	+29.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$87.98 NZ$152.30	$146.23 NZ$253.12	+66.2%
Average			+32.5%

Palmerston North vs. Wellington - 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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