Cost of living comparison
compared to
New Zealand vs. San Francisco Cost of Living Summary
New Zealand is 35.5% cheaper than San Francisco.
New Zealand vs. San Francisco Cost Breakdown
If you lived in New Zealand instead of San Francisco, you would:
pay 36.8% less for restaurants
San Francisco | New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant | $30.00 | $14.45 NZ$25.59 | |
| Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar | $14.50 | $9.14 NZ$16.18 | |
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) | $3.30 | $2.11 NZ$3.73 | |
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) | $2.59 | $2.02 NZ$3.57 | |
San Francisco vs. New Zealand - Cost of restaurants
pay 40.4% less for groceries
San Francisco | New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread 1 loaf | $5.06 | $1.74 NZ$3.08 | |
| Local cheese (8 oz) | $11.69 | $3.88 NZ$6.88 | |
| Milk (1 gallon) | $5.85 | $6.34 NZ$11.22 | |
| Eggs 1 dozen | $6.26 | $5.96 NZ$10.55 | |
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) | $6.63 | $4.01 NZ$7.09 | |
| Apples (1 lb) | $3.22 | $1.18 NZ$2.09 | |
| Bananas (1 lb) | $1.31 | $0.95 NZ$1.69 | |
| Oranges (1 lb) | $2.37 | $1.29 NZ$2.29 | |
| Tomatoes (1 lb) | $3.23 | $2.11 NZ$3.74 | |
| Potatoes (1 lb) | $1.67 | $0.85 NZ$1.51 | |
| Onions (1 lb) | $1.81 | $0.80 NZ$1.41 | |
San Francisco vs. New Zealand - Cost of groceries
pay 9.4% less for transportation
San Francisco | New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) | $4.89 | $6.08 NZ$10.77 | |
| Monthly public transit pass | $90.00 | $74.52 NZ$131.98 | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | $36,753.89 | $24,777.66 NZ$43,885.34 | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | $20.31 | $17.81 NZ$31.55 | |
San Francisco vs. New Zealand - Cost of transportation
pay 54.0% less for housing
San Francisco | New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl | $68.78 | $50.00 NZ$88.55 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | $3,446.66 | $978.36 NZ$1,732.83 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center | $2,736.00 | $810.06 NZ$1,434.75 | |
| Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating | $179.63 | $95.66 NZ$169.44 | |
San Francisco vs. New Zealand - Cost of housing
pay 74.2% less for childcare
San Francisco | New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | $3,236.11 | $635.34 NZ$1,125.30 | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | $42,000.00 | $13,463.91 NZ$23,846.82 | |
San Francisco vs. New Zealand - Cost of childcare
pay 21.2% less for entertainment and sports
San Francisco | New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) | $8.00 | $6.04 NZ$10.70 | |
| Cappuccino in mid-range area | $5.98 | $3.35 NZ$5.94 | |
| Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar | $14.00 | $23.12 NZ$40.96 | |
| Monthly membership at local gym | $109.64 | $37.72 NZ$66.81 | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | $17.00 | $10.72 NZ$18.99 | |
San Francisco vs. New Zealand - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 12.2% less for clothing
San Francisco | New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular jeans Levi's brand | $70.00 | $65.22 NZ$115.52 | |
| Regular dress from H&M or similar store | $48.82 | $39.23 NZ$69.49 | |
| Running shoes Nike or Adidas | $102.00 | $90.28 NZ$159.90 | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) | $133.67 | $119.43 NZ$211.53 | |
San Francisco vs. New Zealand - 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: June 2026
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