Cost of Living in Wellington, 🇳🇿 New Zealand - For Locals, Nomads, and Tourists

AI estimate Updated Mar 22, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost

Housing $2,218 $1,576 $2,451 $1,138 $123

Utilities — $163 $263 $128 —

Internet & Mobile $82 $76 $105 $61 $5

Groceries $187 $438 $963 $321 $9

Transportation $128 $105 $321 $82 $20

Dining Out $1,138 $496 $642 $204 $64

Leisure Activities $292 $233 $438 $88 $29

Health Insurance $73 $64 $163 — $7

Visa & Legal Fees $26 $38 $70 — $1

Total $4,144 $3,189 $5,416 $2,022 $258

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Housing

Apartment (1 bedroom) $1,429.98 per month

Coworking Space $283.08 per month

Airbnb (1 month) $2,801.60 per month

Coliving Space $933.87 per month

Food & Dining

Coffee $3.39 per cup

Beer $7.00 per pint

Meal (Inexpensive) $14.59 per meal

Fast Food Combo $9.63 per meal

Apples $2.63 per kg

Bread $2.22 per loaf

Milk $1.98 per liter

Rice $1.87 per kg

Chicken Fillets $10.80 per kg

Beef $14.01 per kg

Wine (Mid-range) $11.67 per bottle

Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) $78.79 per meal

Water (1.5L bottle) $1.46 per bottle

Transportation

Taxi Start $2.45 per trip

Taxi per km $2.04 per km

Monthly Transport Pass $93.39 per month

Gasoline $1.66 per liter

Ride-hailing (5km) $10.51 per trip

Scooter Rental $6.13 per month

Services

Mobile Plan $32.10 per month

Internet (60 Mbps+) $55.45 per month

Gym Membership $49.61 per month

Tennis Court (Weekend) $14.59 per hour

SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) $20.43 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket $12.84 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans $75.88 per pair

Summer Dress $43.77 per dress

Running Shoes $107.98 per pair

Personal Care

Haircut $26.26 per visit

Laundry $7.00 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) $37.94 per visit

Pharmacy (basic meds) $8.46 per purchase

About these costs

Method: AI estimate
Last updated: Mar 22, 2026
Generated by: Model not recorded
Last changed: None yet
Exchange rate: 1 USD = 1.7133 NZD

Generated by an AI model without cited sources and not yet checked by research. A research pass replaces these values with sourced ones, compared with similar cities.

Wellington cost of living