Cost of living comparison

Australia

compared to

French Polynesia

Papeete vs. Sydney Cost of Living Summary

Papeete is 23.2% cheaper than Sydney.

Restaurants: pay 15.7% more in Papeete
Groceries: pay 21.3% more in Papeete
Transportation: pay 16.1% less in Papeete
Housing: pay 40.5% less in Papeete
Childcare: pay 73.4% less in Papeete
Entertainment and Sports: pay 29.5% less in Papeete
Clothing: pay 19.3% less in Papeete

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

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

Papeete vs. Sydney Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 15.7% more for restaurants

	Sydney	Papeete
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$17.41 A$25.04	$18.77 CFPF1,993	+7.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$11.84 A$17.03	$14.78 CFPF1,570	+24.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.81 A$4.04	$2.67 CFPF284	-4.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.22 A$3.19	$3.28 CFPF349	+48.2%
Average			+15.7%

Sydney vs. Papeete - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 21.3% more for groceries

	Sydney	Papeete
Bread 1 loaf	$2.85 A$4.09	$2.67 CFPF284	-6.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.93 A$8.54	$13.92 CFPF1,478	+134.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.42 A$9.24	$5.55 CFPF589	-13.6%
Eggs 1 dozen	$5.56 A$7.99	$6.27 CFPF666	+12.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.34 A$6.24	$6.92 CFPF735	+59.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.81 A$2.60	$2.13 CFPF226	+17.8%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.45 A$2.09	$1.12 CFPF119	-23.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.56 A$2.24	$2.98 CFPF316	+91.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.98 A$2.85	$3.56 CFPF379	+80.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.48 A$2.12	$1.22 CFPF130	-17.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.07 A$1.54	$1.01 CFPF107	-5.5%
Average			+21.3%

Sydney vs. Papeete - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 16.1% less for transportation

	Sydney	Papeete
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.40 A$7.77	$5.64 CFPF599	+4.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$151.36 A$217.75	??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$28,893.97 A$41,568.07	$18,766.76 CFPF2M	-35.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$16.24 A$23.36	??
Average			-16.1%

Sydney vs. Papeete - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 40.5% less for housing

	Sydney	Papeete
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$56.21 A$80.87	$69.67 CFPF7,400	+23.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$2,517.32 A$3,621.52	$1,337.13 CFPF142K	-46.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,743.66 A$2,508.51	$938.34 CFPF99,660	-46.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$168.46 A$242.35	$138.13 CFPF14,671	-18.0%
Average			-40.5%

Sydney vs. Papeete - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 73.4% less for childcare

	Sydney	Papeete
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$2,195.71 A$3,158.84	$469.17 CFPF49,830	-78.6%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$28,441.13 A$40,916.61	$9,383.38 CFPF997K	-67.0%
Average			-73.4%

Sydney vs. Papeete - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 29.5% less for entertainment and sports

	Sydney	Papeete
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$7.66 A$11.02	$3.28 CFPF349	-57.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.97 A$5.72	$3.40 CFPF361	-14.4%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$44.55 A$64.09	$12.86 CFPF1,365	-71.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$75.28 A$108.30	$84.45 CFPF8,969	+12.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$17.41 A$25.04	$14.08 CFPF1,495	-19.1%
Average			-29.5%

Sydney vs. Papeete - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 19.3% less for clothing

	Sydney	Papeete
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$78.68 A$113.19	$68.78 CFPF7,305	-12.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$69.62 A$100.16	$71.91 CFPF7,637	+3.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$111.40 A$160.26	$78.16 CFPF8,302	-29.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$133.24 A$191.68	$89.14 CFPF9,468	-33.1%
Average			-19.3%

Sydney vs. Papeete - 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 October 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Sydney vs. Papeete

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Papeete?

More cost comparisons

Sydney vs.

London

Sydney vs.

New York City

Sydney vs.

Melbourne

Sydney vs.

Lima

Sydney vs.

Reykjavik

Sydney vs.

Shanghai

Sydney vs.

Ho Chi Minh City

Sydney vs.

Athens

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Australia vs. French Polynesia. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Australia and French Polynesia.

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 Sydney

Add prices for Papeete

Ask the Elsewhere Community

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