Cost of living comparison
compared to
Christchurch vs. Wellington Cost of Living Summary
Christchurch is 11.8% more expensive than Wellington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 60.0% more in Christchurch
- Groceries
-
pay 78.9% more in Christchurch
- Transportation
-
pay 68.0% more in Christchurch
- Housing
-
pay 19.0% less in Christchurch
- Childcare
-
pay 46.5% less in Christchurch
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 29.8% less in Christchurch
- Clothing
-
pay 28.7% less in Christchurch
The cost of groceries, transportation, and restaurants in Christchurch are more expensive than in Wellington. Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, clothing, and housing are lower in Christchurch. Notably, groceries is significantly more expensive in Christchurch.
Christchurch vs. Wellington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Christchurch instead of Wellington, you would:
pay 60.0% more for restaurants
|
Wellington
|
Christchurch
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$14.42
NZ$24.97
|
$50.00
BBD100.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.23
NZ$15.98
|
$12.50
BBD25.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.46
NZ$4.26
|
$1.97
BBD3.93
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.98
NZ$3.42
|
$1.54
BBD3.08
|
|
Wellington vs. Christchurch - Cost of restaurants
pay 78.9% more for groceries
|
Wellington
|
Christchurch
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.98
NZ$3.42
|
$2.62
BBD5.25
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.02
NZ$6.96
|
$4.00
BBD7.99
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.79
NZ$11.75
|
$13.15
BBD26.31
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.77
NZ$11.73
|
$4.90
BBD9.80
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.77
NZ$8.26
|
$8.16
BBD16.33
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.36
NZ$2.36
|
$1.38
BBD2.77
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.01
NZ$1.75
|
$1.25
BBD2.49
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.33
NZ$2.30
|
$3.63
BBD7.26
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.32
NZ$4.01
|
$3.79
BBD7.58
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.90
NZ$1.55
|
$2.72
BBD5.44
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.68
NZ$1.17
|
$2.27
BBD4.54
|
|
Wellington vs. Christchurch - Cost of groceries
pay 68.0% more for transportation
|
Wellington
|
Christchurch
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.14
NZ$10.63
|
$7.76
BBD15.52
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$109.62
NZ$189.75
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,154.21
NZ$53,928.03
|
?? | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.55
NZ$25.19
|
$30.50
BBD61.00
|
|
Wellington vs. Christchurch - Cost of transportation
pay 19.0% less for housing
|
Wellington
|
Christchurch
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$48.75
NZ$84.39
|
$55.00
BBD110.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,240.57
NZ$2,147.43
|
$825.00
BBD1,650.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,099.37
NZ$1,903.02
|
$700.00
BBD1,400.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$109.37
NZ$189.31
|
?? | |
Wellington vs. Christchurch - Cost of housing
pay 46.5% less for childcare
|
Wellington
|
Christchurch
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$768.47
NZ$1,330.22
|
$445.00
BBD890.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,211.68
NZ$21,138.46
|
$6,000.00
BBD12,000.00
|
|
Wellington vs. Christchurch - Cost of childcare
pay 29.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
Wellington
|
Christchurch
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.63
NZ$11.48
|
$2.50
BBD5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.54
NZ$6.13
|
$5.00
BBD10.00
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$25.67
NZ$44.44
|
$8.10
BBD16.20
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$34.12
NZ$59.06
|
?? | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.54
NZ$19.97
|
?? | |
Wellington vs. Christchurch - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 28.7% less for clothing
|
Wellington
|
Christchurch
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$69.31
NZ$119.97
|
$57.50
BBD115.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$46.64
NZ$80.73
|
?? | |
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$113.30
NZ$196.13
|
$100.00
BBD200.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$146.23
NZ$253.12
|
$62.50
BBD125.00
|
|
Wellington vs. Christchurch - 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
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