Cost of living comparison
compared to
Nelson vs. Wellington Cost of Living Summary
Nelson is 4.8% cheaper than Wellington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.3% less in Nelson
- Groceries
-
pay 24.0% more in Nelson
- Transportation
-
pay 15.8% less in Nelson
- Housing
-
pay 13.9% less in Nelson
- Childcare
-
pay 34.5% less in Nelson
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 8.5% more in Nelson
- Clothing
-
pay 0.7% more in Nelson
The cost of groceries, entertainment and sports, and clothing in Nelson are more expensive than in Wellington. Expenses including childcare, transportation, housing, and restaurants are lower in Nelson.
Nelson vs. Wellington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Nelson instead of Wellington, you would:
pay 2.3% less for restaurants
|
Wellington
|
Nelson
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$14.42
NZ$24.97
|
$15.00
NZ$25.97
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.23
NZ$15.98
|
$8.94
NZ$15.48
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.46
NZ$4.26
|
$1.80
NZ$3.12
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.98
NZ$3.42
|
$2.31
NZ$3.99
|
|
Wellington vs. Nelson - Cost of restaurants
pay 24.0% more for groceries
|
Wellington
|
Nelson
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.98
NZ$3.42
|
$2.17
NZ$3.76
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.02
NZ$6.96
|
$4.81
NZ$8.32
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.79
NZ$11.75
|
$8.06
NZ$13.94
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.77
NZ$11.73
|
$5.85
NZ$10.12
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.77
NZ$8.26
|
$3.49
NZ$6.04
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.36
NZ$2.36
|
$1.67
NZ$2.89
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.01
NZ$1.75
|
$1.05
NZ$1.81
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.33
NZ$2.30
|
$1.60
NZ$2.77
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.32
NZ$4.01
|
$2.97
NZ$5.13
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.90
NZ$1.55
|
$1.44
NZ$2.49
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.68
NZ$1.17
|
$1.50
NZ$2.60
|
|
Wellington vs. Nelson - Cost of groceries
pay 15.8% less for transportation
|
Wellington
|
Nelson
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.14
NZ$10.63
|
$6.11
NZ$10.57
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$109.62
NZ$189.75
|
$28.85
NZ$49.93
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,154.21
NZ$53,928.03
|
$17,596.36
NZ$30,459.35
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.55
NZ$25.19
|
$22.50
NZ$38.95
|
|
Wellington vs. Nelson - Cost of transportation
pay 13.9% less for housing
|
Wellington
|
Nelson
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$48.75
NZ$84.39
|
$47.60
NZ$82.39
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,240.57
NZ$2,147.43
|
$817.32
NZ$1,414.78
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,099.37
NZ$1,903.02
|
$625.01
NZ$1,081.89
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$109.37
NZ$189.31
|
$135.71
NZ$234.91
|
|
Wellington vs. Nelson - Cost of housing
pay 34.5% less for childcare
|
Wellington
|
Nelson
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$768.47
NZ$1,330.22
|
$461.54
NZ$798.93
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,211.68
NZ$21,138.46
|
$8,653.95
NZ$14,980.01
|
|
Wellington vs. Nelson - Cost of childcare
pay 8.5% more for entertainment and sports
|
Wellington
|
Nelson
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.63
NZ$11.48
|
$7.21
NZ$12.48
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.54
NZ$6.13
|
$3.27
NZ$5.66
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$25.67
NZ$44.44
|
$28.85
NZ$49.93
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$34.12
NZ$59.06
|
$46.54
NZ$80.56
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.54
NZ$19.97
|
$10.67
NZ$18.48
|
|
Wellington vs. Nelson - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 0.7% more for clothing
|
Wellington
|
Nelson
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$69.31
NZ$119.97
|
$57.69
NZ$99.87
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$46.64
NZ$80.73
|
$63.46
NZ$109.85
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$113.30
NZ$196.13
|
$125.48
NZ$217.21
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$146.23
NZ$253.12
|
$106.16
NZ$183.75
|
|
Wellington vs. Nelson - 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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