Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Marcos vs. Wellington Cost of Living Summary
San Marcos is 12.4% more expensive than Wellington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 16.2% more in San Marcos
- Groceries
-
pay 5.0% more in San Marcos
- Transportation
-
pay 13.1% less in San Marcos
- Housing
-
pay 28.4% more in San Marcos
- Childcare
-
pay 50.6% more in San Marcos
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 18.0% more in San Marcos
- Clothing
-
pay 18.2% less in San Marcos
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and groceries in San Marcos are more expensive than in Wellington. Expenses including clothing and transportation are lower in San Marcos.
San Marcos vs. Wellington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Marcos instead of Wellington, you would:
pay 16.2% more for restaurants
|
Wellington
|
San Marcos
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$14.42
NZ$24.85
|
$19.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.23
NZ$15.90
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.46
NZ$4.24
|
$2.76
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.98
NZ$3.41
|
$2.23
|
|
Wellington vs. San Marcos - Cost of restaurants
pay 5.0% more for groceries
|
Wellington
|
San Marcos
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.98
NZ$3.41
|
$3.23
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.02
NZ$6.93
|
$4.91
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.79
NZ$11.70
|
$3.44
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.77
NZ$11.67
|
$3.83
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.77
NZ$8.22
|
$5.20
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.36
NZ$2.35
|
$1.88
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.01
NZ$1.74
|
$0.54
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.33
NZ$2.29
|
$1.67
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.32
NZ$3.99
|
$1.12
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.90
NZ$1.54
|
$1.20
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.68
NZ$1.17
|
$1.05
|
|
Wellington vs. San Marcos - Cost of groceries
pay 13.1% less for transportation
|
Wellington
|
San Marcos
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.14
NZ$10.58
|
$2.80
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$109.62
NZ$188.86
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,154.21
NZ$53,677.18
|
$36,278.39
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.55
NZ$25.07
|
$14.39
|
|
Wellington vs. San Marcos - Cost of transportation
pay 28.4% more for housing
|
Wellington
|
San Marcos
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$48.75
NZ$83.99
|
$70.76
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,240.57
NZ$2,137.45
|
$1,340.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,099.37
NZ$1,894.16
|
$1,400.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$109.37
NZ$188.43
|
$145.65
|
|
Wellington vs. San Marcos - Cost of housing
pay 50.6% more for childcare
|
Wellington
|
San Marcos
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$768.47
NZ$1,324.04
|
$670.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,211.68
NZ$21,040.13
|
$26,120.00
|
|
Wellington vs. San Marcos - Cost of childcare
pay 18.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
Wellington
|
San Marcos
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.63
NZ$11.43
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.54
NZ$6.10
|
$4.82
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$25.67
NZ$44.23
|
$8.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$34.12
NZ$58.79
|
$69.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.54
NZ$19.88
|
$15.00
|
|
Wellington vs. San Marcos - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 18.2% less for clothing
|
Wellington
|
San Marcos
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$69.31
NZ$119.42
|
$45.57
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$46.64
NZ$80.35
|
$44.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$113.30
NZ$195.21
|
$98.95
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$146.23
NZ$251.95
|
$116.43
|
|
Wellington vs. San Marcos - 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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