Cost of living comparison
compared to
Wellington vs. San Rafael Cost of Living Summary
Wellington is 4.0% cheaper than San Rafael.
- Restaurants
-
pay 22.1% less in Wellington
- Groceries
-
pay 26.4% less in Wellington
- Transportation
-
pay 2.0 times more in Wellington
- Housing
-
pay 46.6% less in Wellington
- Childcare
-
pay 61.6% less in Wellington
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 1.2% less in Wellington
- Clothing
-
pay 29.9% more in Wellington
The cost of transportation and clothing in Wellington are more expensive than in San Rafael. Expenses including childcare, housing, groceries, restaurants, and entertainment and sports are lower in Wellington. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in Wellington.
Wellington vs. San Rafael Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Wellington instead of San Rafael, you would:
pay 22.1% less for restaurants
|
San Rafael
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$14.42
NZ$25.06
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.95
|
$9.23
NZ$16.04
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.75
|
$2.46
NZ$4.27
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$3.00
|
$1.98
NZ$3.44
|
|
San Rafael vs. Wellington - Cost of restaurants
pay 26.4% less for groceries
|
San Rafael
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.04
|
$1.98
NZ$3.43
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.66
|
$4.02
NZ$6.99
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.78
|
$6.79
NZ$11.79
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.59
|
$6.77
NZ$11.77
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.87
|
$4.77
NZ$8.29
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$1.36
NZ$2.37
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.30
|
$1.01
NZ$1.76
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.75
|
$1.33
NZ$2.31
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.88
|
$2.32
NZ$4.02
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.75
|
$0.90
NZ$1.56
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.75
|
$0.68
NZ$1.18
|
|
San Rafael vs. Wellington - Cost of groceries
pay 2.0 times more for transportation
|
San Rafael
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.69
|
$6.14
NZ$10.67
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$30.00
|
$109.62
NZ$190.44
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$30,000.00
|
$31,154.21
NZ$54,124.77
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$14.55
NZ$25.28
|
|
San Rafael vs. Wellington - Cost of transportation
pay 46.6% less for housing
|
San Rafael
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$78.33
|
$48.75
NZ$84.70
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$3,366.67
|
$1,240.57
NZ$2,155.27
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,833.33
|
$1,099.37
NZ$1,909.96
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$144.15
|
$109.37
NZ$190.00
|
|
San Rafael vs. Wellington - Cost of housing
pay 61.6% less for childcare
|
San Rafael
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,000.00
|
$768.47
NZ$1,335.08
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | ?? |
$12,211.68
NZ$21,215.57
|
|
San Rafael vs. Wellington - Cost of childcare
pay 1.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
San Rafael
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$6.63
NZ$11.53
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.62
|
$3.54
NZ$6.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.00
|
$25.67
NZ$44.60
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$157.50
|
$34.12
NZ$59.28
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.50
|
$11.54
NZ$20.05
|
|
San Rafael vs. Wellington - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 29.9% more for clothing
|
San Rafael
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$41.00
|
$69.31
NZ$120.41
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$38.50
|
$46.64
NZ$81.02
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$102.67
|
$113.30
NZ$196.84
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$123.00
|
$146.23
NZ$254.05
|
|
San Rafael vs. Wellington - 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: December 2025
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in United States vs. New Zealand.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within United States 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
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Wellington or San Rafael. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.