Cost of living comparison

Vanuatu

compared to

New Zealand

Wellington vs. Port Vila Cost of Living Summary

Wellington is 16.4% cheaper than Port Vila.

Restaurants: pay 14.2% less in Wellington
Groceries: pay 38.0% less in Wellington
Transportation: pay 21.4% more in Wellington
Housing: pay 31.2% less in Wellington
Childcare: pay 78.0% more in Wellington
Entertainment and Sports: pay 1.8% less in Wellington
Clothing: pay 9.5% more in Wellington

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

Planning a move to New Zealand? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Wellington vs. Port Vila Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Wellington instead of Port Vila, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 14.2% less for restaurants

	Port Vila	Wellington
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$12.67 VUV1,500	$13.73 NZ$24.74	+8.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$14.35 VUV1,700	$9.02 NZ$16.26	-37.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.28 VUV270	$2.42 NZ$4.36	+6.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.36 VUV279	$1.71 NZ$3.08	-27.5%
Average			-14.2%

Port Vila vs. Wellington - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 38.0% less for groceries

	Port Vila	Wellington
Bread 1 loaf	$1.94 VUV230	$2.16 NZ$3.90	+11.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$8.86 VUV1,050	$4.62 NZ$8.33	-47.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$10.63 VUV1,259	$7.12 NZ$12.84	-33.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$6.23 VUV737	$6.89 NZ$12.43	+10.7%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$7.40 VUV877	$4.37 NZ$7.88	-40.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$3.24 VUV384	$1.40 NZ$2.52	-56.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.96 VUV113	$0.99 NZ$1.78	+3.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.78 VUV211	$1.37 NZ$2.47	-23.2%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$4.21 VUV499	$2.93 NZ$5.28	-30.4%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$4.02 VUV476	$0.95 NZ$1.72	-76.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.57 VUV186	$0.57 NZ$1.03	-63.7%
Average			-38.0%

Port Vila vs. Wellington - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 21.4% more for transportation

	Port Vila	Wellington
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$6.78 VUV803	$7.03 NZ$12.67	+3.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$67.55 VUV8,000	$101.23 NZ$182.44	+49.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$23,220.47 VUV3M	$25,203.61 NZ$45,424.18	+8.5%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$9.29 VUV1,100	$16.19 NZ$29.18	+74.3%
Average			+21.4%

Port Vila vs. Wellington - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 31.2% less for housing

	Port Vila	Wellington
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$363.08 VUV43,000	$53.32 NZ$96.10	-85.3%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,579.90 VUV187K	$1,215.08 NZ$2,189.93	-23.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,131.05 VUV134K	$1,141.32 NZ$2,056.99	+0.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$484.28 VUV57,353	$149.83 NZ$270.03	-69.1%
Average			-31.2%

Port Vila vs. Wellington - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 78.0% more for childcare

	Port Vila	Wellington
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$624.84 VUV74,000	$1,055.30 NZ$1,901.96	+68.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,873.26 VUV814K	$12,899.11 NZ$23,247.93	+87.7%
Average			+78.0%

Port Vila vs. Wellington - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 1.8% less for entertainment and sports

	Port Vila	Wellington
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.07 VUV600	$7.28 NZ$13.13	+43.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.08 VUV483	$3.34 NZ$6.03	-18.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$9.29 VUV1,100	$25.18 NZ$45.38	+171.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$68.29 VUV8,088	$38.09 NZ$68.66	-44.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	??	$12.04 NZ$21.71
Average			-1.8%

Port Vila vs. Wellington - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 9.5% more for clothing

	Port Vila	Wellington
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$40.99 VUV4,854	$77.76 NZ$140.14	+89.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$67.55 VUV8,000	$28.15 NZ$50.73	-58.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$84.40 VUV9,995	$101.77 NZ$183.42	+20.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$101.28 VUV11,995	$152.66 NZ$275.13	+50.7%
Average			+9.5%

Port Vila vs. Wellington - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Port Vila vs. Wellington

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Wellington?

More cost comparisons

Port Vila vs.

Lima

Port Vila vs.

Moscow

Port Vila vs.

Toronto

Port Vila vs.

Sydney

Port Vila vs.

New York City

Port Vila vs.

Rome

Port Vila vs.

Bangkok

Port Vila vs.

London

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Vanuatu vs. New Zealand. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Vanuatu and New Zealand.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Add prices for Port Vila

Add prices for Wellington

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Wellington or Port Vila. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.