Cost of living comparison

 Houston (TX), United States
compared to
 New Zealand
New Zealand vs. Houston Cost of Living Summary

New Zealand is 7.3% cheaper than Houston.

Restaurants
pay 11.2% less in New Zealand
Groceries
pay 9.3% more in New Zealand
Transportation
pay 18.2% more in New Zealand
Housing
pay 32.4% less in New Zealand
Childcare
pay 55.8% less in New Zealand
Entertainment and Sports
pay 16.8% more in New Zealand
Clothing
pay 4.0% more in New Zealand

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

New Zealand vs. Houston Cost Breakdown

If you lived in New Zealand instead of Houston, you would:

pay 11.2% less for restaurants

 
Houston
New Zealand
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $18.00
 
$13.47
NZ$22.42
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$9.00
 
$8.81
NZ$14.66
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.53
 
$2.16
NZ$3.60

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pay 9.3% more for groceries

 
Houston
New Zealand
Bread
1 loaf
$2.97
 
$1.86
NZ$3.10
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.39
 
$3.77
NZ$6.27
Milk (1 gallon) $3.43
 
$6.55
NZ$10.89

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pay 18.2% more for transportation

 
Houston
New Zealand
Gasoline (1 gallon) $2.88
 
$6.26
NZ$10.42
Monthly public transit pass $75.00
 
$69.15
NZ$115.06
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $36,278.39
 
$24,735.85
NZ$41,157.84

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pay 32.4% less for housing

 
Houston
New Zealand
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$66.71
 
$51.16
NZ$85.12
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,582.84
 
$1,007.66
NZ$1,676.65
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,189.12
 
$809.64
NZ$1,347.15

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pay 55.8% less for childcare

 
Houston
New Zealand
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,457.58
 
$611.89
NZ$1,018.12
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $23,000.00
 
$10,661.07
NZ$17,738.89

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pay 16.8% more for entertainment and sports

 
Houston
New Zealand
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.00
 
$6.10
NZ$10.14
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.27
 
$3.30
NZ$5.49
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$9.97
 
$22.88
NZ$38.07

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pay 4.0% more for clothing

 
Houston
New Zealand
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$47.14
 
$65.31
NZ$108.66
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$43.00
 
$40.78
NZ$67.86
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$103.28
 
$93.71
NZ$155.92

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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: July 2025
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