Cost of living comparison

compared to

Preston vs. Wellington Cost of Living Summary

Preston is 0.7% more expensive than Wellington.

Restaurants
pay 7.0% less in Preston
Groceries
pay 8.9% less in Preston
Transportation
pay 10.3% more in Preston
Housing
pay 12.9% more in Preston
Childcare
pay 18.6% more in Preston
Entertainment and Sports
pay 1.3% less in Preston
Clothing
pay 19.9% less in Preston

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

Preston vs. Wellington Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Preston instead of Wellington, you would:

pay 7.0% less for restaurants

 
Wellington
Preston
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $14.42
NZ$24.97
$16.66
£12.49
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$9.23
NZ$15.98
$8.68
£6.51
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.46
NZ$4.26
$2.06
£1.54

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pay 8.9% less for groceries

 
Wellington
Preston
Bread
1 loaf
$1.98
NZ$3.42
$1.46
£1.09
Local cheese (8 oz) $4.02
NZ$6.96
$5.45
£4.09
Milk (1 gallon) $6.79
NZ$11.75
$6.14
£4.60

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pay 10.3% more for transportation

 
Wellington
Preston
Gasoline (1 gallon) $6.14
NZ$10.63
$7.14
£5.36
Monthly public transit pass $109.62
NZ$189.75
$100.16
£75.08
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $31,154.21
NZ$53,928.03
$37,772.71
£28,315.37

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pay 12.9% more for housing

 
Wellington
Preston
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$48.75
NZ$84.39
$42.01
£31.50
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,240.57
NZ$2,147.43
$1,018.27
£763.32
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,099.37
NZ$1,903.02
$845.77
£634.01

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pay 18.6% more for childcare

 
Wellington
Preston
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $768.47
NZ$1,330.22
$1,275.34
£956.03
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $12,211.68
NZ$21,138.46
$8,680.31
£6,506.98

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pay 1.3% less for entertainment and sports

 
Wellington
Preston
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $6.63
NZ$11.48
$5.34
£4.00
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.54
NZ$6.13
$4.15
£3.11
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$25.67
NZ$44.44
$17.29
£12.96

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pay 19.9% less for clothing

 
Wellington
Preston
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$69.31
NZ$119.97
$79.01
£59.23
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$46.64
NZ$80.73
$44.73
£33.53
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$113.30
NZ$196.13
$73.45
£55.06

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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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