Cost of living comparison
Wellington is 10.1% cheaper than Chicago.
If you lived in Wellington instead of Chicago, you would:
pay 22.0% less for restaurants
|
Chicago
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$14.93
NZ$26.40
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.34
|
$8.96
NZ$15.84
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.02
|
$2.57
NZ$4.55
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.44
|
$2.15
NZ$3.81
|
|
pay 5.1% less for groceries
|
Chicago
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.19
|
$1.96
NZ$3.47
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.87
|
$4.15
NZ$7.34
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.94
|
$6.98
NZ$12.34
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.75
|
$6.84
NZ$12.09
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.63
|
$5.06
NZ$8.94
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.44
|
$1.40
NZ$2.47
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.90
|
$1.09
NZ$1.93
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.19
|
$1.48
NZ$2.61
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.27
|
$2.61
NZ$4.62
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.16
|
$1.01
NZ$1.79
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.37
|
$0.84
NZ$1.48
|
|
pay 39.5% more for transportation
|
Chicago
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.16
|
$6.42
NZ$11.35
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$75.00
|
$127.57
NZ$225.54
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,965.00
|
$34,339.84
NZ$60,714.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.43
|
$18.22
NZ$32.20
|
|
pay 12.5% less for housing
|
Chicago
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$58.52
|
$54.27
NZ$95.95
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,360.96
|
$1,487.35
NZ$2,629.68
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,512.92
|
$1,335.17
NZ$2,360.63
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$126.63
|
$134.11
NZ$237.11
|
|
pay 67.4% less for childcare
|
Chicago
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,475.00
|
$871.44
NZ$1,540.73
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$42,300.00
|
$12,649.75
NZ$22,365.19
|
|
pay 11.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
Chicago
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$7.50
|
$7.17
NZ$12.67
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.30
|
$3.41
NZ$6.04
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$17.00
|
$24.46
NZ$43.24
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$72.00
|
$39.85
NZ$70.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$12.24
NZ$21.65
|
|
pay 8.8% more for clothing
|
Chicago
|
Wellington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$64.98
|
$75.78
NZ$133.98
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$51.67
|
$55.09
NZ$97.41
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$97.00
|
$119.44
NZ$211.18
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$146.00
|
$129.60
NZ$229.13
|
|
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