Cost of living comparison

French Polynesia

compared to

United States

Riverside vs. Papeete Cost of Living Summary

Riverside is 27.8% more expensive than Papeete.

Restaurants: pay 13.6% less in Riverside
Groceries: pay 13.6% more in Riverside
Transportation: pay 16.1% less in Riverside
Housing: pay 37.5% more in Riverside
Childcare: pay 2.7 times more in Riverside
Entertainment and Sports: pay 21.8% more in Riverside
Clothing: pay 19.0% less in Riverside

The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, and groceries in Riverside are more expensive than in Papeete. Expenses including clothing, transportation, and restaurants are lower in Riverside. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Riverside.

Riverside vs. Papeete Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Riverside instead of Papeete, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 13.6% less for restaurants

	Papeete	Riverside
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$19.58 CFPF2,003	$21.00	+7.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$14.68 CFPF1,502	$12.00	-18.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$3.13 CFPF320	$2.65	-15.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.77 CFPF284	$2.00	-27.9%
Average			-13.6%

Papeete vs. Riverside - Cost of restaurants

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pay 13.6% more for groceries

	Papeete	Riverside
Bread 1 loaf	$0.78 CFPF80	$4.17	+432.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$13.05 CFPF1,335	$5.32	-59.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.30 CFPF644	$4.15	-34.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$6.48 CFPF663	$5.84	-9.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$7.66 CFPF784	$4.74	-38.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.37 CFPF242	$1.57	-33.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.22 CFPF125	$0.78	-36.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$2.66 CFPF273	$1.84	-30.8%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$3.55 CFPF363	$2.26	-36.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.37 CFPF140	$1.42	+3.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.22 CFPF125	$1.12	-7.9%
Average			+13.6%

Papeete vs. Riverside - Cost of groceries

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pay 16.1% less for transportation

	Papeete	Riverside
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.99 CFPF613	$4.74	-20.9%
Monthly public transit pass	??	$60.00
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$19,575.51 CFPF2M	$31,965.00	+63.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$205.54 CFPF21,030	$19.40	-90.6%
Average			-16.1%

Papeete vs. Riverside - Cost of transportation

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pay 37.5% more for housing

	Papeete	Riverside
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$68.84 CFPF7,043	$62.33	-9.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,394.76 CFPF143K	$2,068.50	+48.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$978.78 CFPF100K	$1,649.17	+68.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$144.08 CFPF14,741	$205.84	+42.9%
Average			+37.5%

Papeete vs. Riverside - Cost of housing

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pay 2.7 times more for childcare

	Papeete	Riverside
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$489.39 CFPF50,071	$1,206.00	+146.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$9,787.76 CFPF1M	$28,750.00	+193.7%
Average			+170.1%

Papeete vs. Riverside - Cost of childcare

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pay 21.8% more for entertainment and sports

	Papeete	Riverside
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.18 CFPF325	$7.00	+120.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.04 CFPF413	$5.90	+46.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$12.14 CFPF1,242	$11.00	-9.4%
Monthly membership at local gym	$88.09 CFPF9,013	$35.00	-60.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$14.68 CFPF1,502	$16.50	+12.4%
Average			+21.8%

Papeete vs. Riverside - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 19.0% less for clothing

	Papeete	Riverside
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$71.74 CFPF7,340	$54.27	-24.4%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$75.01 CFPF7,674	$34.67	-53.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$81.53 CFPF8,342	$90.25	+10.7%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$92.98 CFPF9,513	$85.00	-8.6%
Average			-19.0%

Papeete vs. Riverside - 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: June 2026

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