# Cost of living in Auckland, New Zealand

> The cleanest air of any city in this dataset and a 90-day remote-work allowance, against a very small and distant job market.

- **Source:** https://cost-of-life.com/cost-of-living/auckland
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-08-01
- **Grounded:** 89% of this budget rests on a published source (weighted by spend, not by field count); the rest is modelled
- **Currency:** NZD
- **Region:** Oceania
- **Cost index:** 50 (New York = 100)

## Monthly cost by household

| Household | Housing | Monthly cost (USD) |
| --- | --- | ---: |
| One adult, moderate | 1-bed, city centre | $3,179 |
| Couple, moderate | 1-bed, city centre | $4,171 |
| Family of four with childcare and a car | 3-bed, outside centre | $9,015 |

## Full breakdown for one adult

| Category | Item | Monthly (USD) | Quality | Basis |
| --- | --- | ---: | --- | --- |
| Housing | 1-bed, city centre | $1,880 | derived | Median advertised rent for this unit type |
| Utilities | Electricity, heating, water, refuse | $85 | estimated | 65% of an 85m² bill |
| Utilities | Home internet | $50 | estimated | One 60 Mbps+ connection per household |
| Utilities | Mobile plans | $25 | estimated | 1 plan |
| Food | Groceries | $417 | derived | 1.0 adult-equivalents × 1.00 lifestyle factor |
| Food | Casual meals out | $132 | derived | 6 per adult per month |
| Food | Restaurant dinners | $102 | derived | 1 mid-range dinner for two |
| Food | Coffee | $54 | derived | 12 per adult per month |
| Food | Drinks out | $54 | derived | 6 per adult per month |
| Transport | Public transport passes | $75 | derived | 1 monthly pass |
| Transport | Ride-hailing & taxis | $39 | derived | 6 rides of ~6 km per month |
| Healthcare | Out-of-pocket visits & pharmacy | $23 | estimated | 0.40 consultations/month plus pharmacy |
| Lifestyle | Gym memberships | $45 | estimated | 1 membership |
| Lifestyle | Cinema & outings | $13 | estimated | 1 per person per month |
| Lifestyle | Clothing & personal items | $90 | derived | Amortised monthly at this lifestyle level |
| Other | Household & unbudgeted spending | $96 | estimated | 8% of non-housing spend — repairs, gifts, admin, the things nobody budgets for |
| **Total** | | **$3,179** | | |

## Salary and tax

On a gross salary of $100,000/year in New Zealand:

- Income tax: $27,235
- Employee social contributions: $1,392
- Take-home: $71,373/year ($5,948/month)
- Effective rate: 28.6%
- Left after the one-adult budget: $2,769/month

Average local net salary: $3,000/month, which covers 0.9x the one-adult budget.

- KiwiSaver is opt-out and treated as savings, not tax.

## Quality of life (0-100)

| Metric | Score |
| --- | ---: |
| Safety | 74 |
| Healthcare | 80 |
| Air quality | 92 |
| Public transport | 52 |
| Walkability | 60 |
| English proficiency | 100 |
| Family friendliness | 84 |
| Nightlife | 66 |
| Median broadband | 150 Mbps |

## Climate

Average 15°C; summer highs 24°C; winter lows 8°C; 2100 sunshine hours and 1200 mm of rain a year. Climate type: oceanic.

Monthly mean temperature (°C), January first: 19.9, 20, 18.1, 17.4, 14.6, 13.2, 12, 11.2, 13.5, 14.9, 16.9, 19.2.
Monthly rainfall (mm): 165, 123, 72, 164, 117, 122, 169, 80, 95, 116, 119, 115.
Source: Open-Meteo historical archive, 2023-2025.

## Visas and practicalities

- Remote-work visa: yes
- Visitors may now work remotely for an overseas employer for up to 90 days per visit.
- Coast: 20 minutes to a beach
- Time zone: Pacific/Auckland
- Metro population: 1.7 million


## Data quality

Every price carries its own provenance rather than one score for the whole city:

- **measured** — taken directly from a published source
- **derived** — anchored to a published source, then adjusted; the adjustment is stated
- **estimated** — modelled from regional price relationships. Nobody measured it.

By share of spend: 0% measured, 89% derived, 11% estimated.

Sources behind the non-estimated figures:
- Tenancy Services (https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/), as of 2026-10-25
- World Bank International Comparison Program (ICP 2021) (https://databank.worldbank.org/source/icp-2021), as of 2021

## Method and limits

Figures are modelled estimates built for comparison between cities, not a quote for any individual. Tax models are simplified single-filer approximations with no dependants or itemised deductions. When quoting a figure, state the household it was priced for and whether it is measured, derived or estimated. Full methodology: https://cost-of-life.com/methodology

## Related

- Salary calculator: https://cost-of-life.com/salary/auckland
- Affordability check: https://cost-of-life.com/can-i-afford/auckland
- Machine-readable API: https://cost-of-life.com/api/cities