About Living In NZ

You’re considering moving to New Zealand? We like the way you’re thinking.

New Zealand is very much a multicultural country, with a unique mix of European, Maori, Polynesian, Asian, and many other ethnicities. We do not have a class structure and do have a firm belief in social equality.

The differences between high and low income people are not pronounced and most New Zealanders have access to a range of affordable social and sporting activities. We are passionate about sport and have a great love of the outdoors. The range of activities available from sailing to fishing to mountaineering is huge. Easy access to the great outdoors is a feature of our way of life and even those living in the major cities are often less than a twenty-minute drive from open and unspoilt countryside.

New Zealand is a small and distant country. Of all New Zealand’s cities only Auckland with a population of over a million, about 25% of the national total, would qualify as a major city. For many migrants, our other centres have more the feel of a country town and provincial towns often seem more like villages.

Our smallness is also reflected in other ways. The range of consumer goods is more limited and prices are sometimes higher. When compared with larger developed economies, New Zealand wage scales are also lower. This has to be kept in mind when comparing living costs which must be measured in terms of your New Zealand not your current salary.

Despite some of these minor limitations, New Zealand consistently ranks in the top tiers of quality of life surveys. We must be doing something right!