Living Expenses

Studying in New Zealand is considered to be less expensive compared with other popular English-speaking countries. As a student, you may want to budget for living costs in the range of $10,000-$18,000, depending on your own lifestyle. If you like shopping or eating out, then your budget will need to be larger than that of students who try to be thrifty.

Indicative costs and prices:

Accommodation (Share) From $80/week
Accommodation (On your own) From $200/week
Electricity $100-150 (Summer) $150-200 (Winter)
Posting a letter (Domestic) 60 cents
Posting a letter (International) $1.90
Coffee $5.00
Meal at a restaurant $8.00-$40.00
Big Mac at McDonald’s $4.45
Local phone calls Free
Price of prepaid mobile phones From $60
Phone charge for a prepaid mobile From 89 cents/minute
Laptop computer From $800
Internet (Dial-up) From $10/month
Internet (ASDL) From $40/month
Movie (student price) $13
Bus fare $1.50-2.00
Price of a used car From $2,000 (From $5,000 for cars in better condition)

Costs and prices above are just indicative and may change at any time.