Cost of living comparison
compared to
Waterloo vs. Wellington Cost of Living Summary
Waterloo is 11.7% more expensive than Wellington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 3.7% more in Waterloo
- Groceries
-
pay 9.2% less in Waterloo
- Transportation
-
pay 2.9% less in Waterloo
- Housing
-
pay 0.1% less in Waterloo
- Childcare
-
pay 2.1 times more in Waterloo
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 1.5% less in Waterloo
- Clothing
-
pay 14.6% less in Waterloo
The cost of childcare and restaurants in Waterloo are more expensive than in Wellington. Expenses including clothing, groceries, transportation, entertainment and sports, and housing are lower in Waterloo. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Waterloo.
Waterloo vs. Wellington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Waterloo instead of Wellington, you would:
pay 3.7% more for restaurants
|
Wellington
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$14.42
NZ$25.06
|
$12.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.23
NZ$16.04
|
$11.50
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.46
NZ$4.27
|
$2.29
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.98
NZ$3.44
|
$2.25
|
|
Wellington vs. Waterloo - Cost of restaurants
pay 9.2% less for groceries
|
Wellington
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.98
NZ$3.43
|
$1.90
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.02
NZ$6.99
|
$6.61
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.79
NZ$11.79
|
$3.49
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.77
NZ$11.77
|
$2.89
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.77
NZ$8.29
|
$2.97
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.36
NZ$2.37
|
$1.71
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.01
NZ$1.76
|
$0.57
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.33
NZ$2.31
|
$1.49
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.32
NZ$4.02
|
$1.98
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.90
NZ$1.56
|
$0.52
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.68
NZ$1.18
|
$0.98
|
|
Wellington vs. Waterloo - Cost of groceries
pay 2.9% less for transportation
|
Wellington
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.14
NZ$10.67
|
$2.83
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$109.62
NZ$190.44
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,154.21
NZ$54,124.77
|
$29,500.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.55
NZ$25.28
|
$21.90
|
|
Wellington vs. Waterloo - Cost of transportation
pay 0.1% less for housing
|
Wellington
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$48.75
NZ$84.70
|
$60.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,240.57
NZ$2,155.27
|
$850.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,099.37
NZ$1,909.96
|
$750.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$109.37
NZ$190.00
|
$152.94
|
|
Wellington vs. Waterloo - Cost of housing
pay 2.1 times more for childcare
|
Wellington
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$768.47
NZ$1,335.08
|
$1,628.82
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,211.68
NZ$21,215.57
|
$24,601.00
|
|
Wellington vs. Waterloo - Cost of childcare
pay 1.5% less for entertainment and sports
|
Wellington
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.63
NZ$11.53
|
$4.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.54
NZ$6.15
|
$5.54
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$25.67
NZ$44.60
|
$8.11
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$34.12
NZ$59.28
|
$39.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.54
NZ$20.05
|
$15.00
|
|
Wellington vs. Waterloo - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 14.6% less for clothing
|
Wellington
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$69.31
NZ$120.41
|
$70.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$46.64
NZ$81.02
|
$48.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$113.30
NZ$196.84
|
$59.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$146.23
NZ$254.05
|
$124.00
|
|
Wellington vs. Waterloo - 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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