Living in Queenstown

In Queenstown, unemployment is 1.5% (2023).

Queenstown had 25,050 residents in March 2023 and is a city in New Zealand. Queenstown covers 86.61 km², with a population density of 303.3 people per km² in March 2023.

Last checked 2026-10-0712 sources

Population25,050people7 Mar 2023Official source · Stats NZ Urban Rural 2023 place summaries — Census population

Median gross salary (region)3,004EUR/month30 Jun 2025Official source · Table 18: LEED measures, by industry (based on ANZSIC06) and region, June 2025 quarter

Median rent1,754EUR/month31 Jul 2026District figureOfficial source · Rental bond data — monthly by territorial authority

Unemployment rate1.5%country median 3.3% — 55% belowOfficial source · Stats NZ

Recorded crime4,113incidents per 100,00030 Jun 2026District figureOfficial source · Victimisations Time and Place — Map export, July 2025 to June 2026

Which New Zealand-wide rules apply when you move to Queenstown?

National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.

Visa and entry rulesPassport-specific entry and national residence context.BenefitsCountry-wide eligibility and official application routes.Taxes in New ZealandNational rates and thresholds that apply in Queenstown.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

What recurs every month2 published recurring costs, € per month

€ / month

Mobile plan, 10 GB€37

Internet, 60 Mbps€36

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited	35.54 EUR/month	30 Sept 2026	One NZ fixed broadband³Official · national market
Mobile plan, 10 GB	37.06 EUR/month	30 Sept 2026	One NZ Endless Plus³Official · national market
Median monthly rent	1,754 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Rental bond data — monthly by territorial authority⁶Official · county

Is Queenstown a good place to live?

There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.

Try your profile

Remote worker42%strong on work, weak on air quality · range 31–53%

Skilled employee53%strong on work, weak on education · range 43–63%

Student33%strong on legal route, weak on education · range 21–45%

Family63%strong on family, weak on education · range 51–75%

Retirement28%strong on safety, weak on admin · range 14–42%

Work and income

What is the unemployment rate in Queenstown?

The unemployment rate is 1.5 % (2023). Source: Stats NZ⁸

Unemployment across cities in New ZealandUnemployment in Queenstown is 1.5%. Of 91 cities with data, 42 have unemployment of 2 to under 4%.

0–22–44–66–88–1014–16

Queenstown 1.5%

Unemployment rate (%)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Median gross salary (regional)	3,004 EUR/month	30 Jun 2025	Table 18: LEED measures, by industry (based on ANZSIC06) and region, June 2025 quarter¹¹Official · regional context
Unemployment rate	1.5 %country median 3.3%	31 Dec 2023	Stats NZ⁸Official

What does a salary buy in Queenstown?

Take-home pay after tax, minus rent and the everyday bills this city publishes. Each line names its source.

Left over each month€604of €2,430 take-home

Rent
Internet
Mobile
Left over

Line-by-line breakdown and sources

Each month	€
Take-home payOECD Taxing Wages 2025, single, no children. Includes central and local income tax and employee social contributions; euro amounts at the ECB average for 2026-08.	€2,430
Rentmedian rent of a whole dwelling · official · Rental bond data · 2026-07-31	− €1,754
Internet€36 · official · One NZ fixed broadband · 2026-09-30	− €36
Mobile plan€37 · official · One NZ Endless Plus · 2026-09-30	− €37
Other everyday billsnot published for this city: public transport pass, utilities	—
Left overbefore the bills this city does not publish	€604

Take-home pay for other salaries and households Compare with another city Check a job offer in Queenstown Salary needed to live in Queenstown

Public employment service

No exact public employment office is currently linked to Queenstown. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.

Country-level information

Work and Income employment service — Public employment service

Ministry of Social Development, New Zealand

Job Search

Open official service

Open the New Zealand service overview

Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Queenstown. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.

Safety

How safe is Queenstown?

Police recorded about 4,113 incidents per 100,000 (2025-07/2026-06). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: Victimisations Time and Place — Map export, July 2025 to June 2026¹²

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents	4,113 incidents per 100,000	30 Jun 2026	Victimisations Time and Place — Map export, July 2025 to June 2026¹²Official · county

Mobility and administration

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Destinations from nearest airport	4 count	3 Aug 2026	OpenFlights⁴Official
Nearest airport	ZQN	3 Aug 2026	OurAirports⁵Official
Distance to nearest airport	7 km	3 Aug 2026	OurAirports⁵Official

Language courses and integration

No exact city-level course record is currently published for Queenstown. These verified national programmes may still apply; use the official programme page to check local availability.

Country-level information

English Language Teaching — Intensive Literacy and Numeracy Fund — State Language Course

Tertiary Education Commission

For adult migrants, refugees, adult speakers of other languages.

EnglishIn Person, Online, HybridSubsidised

Open official information

New Zealand settlement services — Newcomer Adaptation

Immigration New Zealand

For migrants, refugees, newcomers.

In Person, Online, HybridFree

Open official information

Open the full New Zealand section

National programme information is not treated as proof of a course location in Queenstown.

Find courses near Queenstown

Climate and air quality

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Monthly extreme high temperature	Jan 27.26 · Feb 25.45 · Mar 21.51 · Apr 18.39 · May 15.35 · Jun 11.33 · Jul 8.26 · Aug 12.78 · Sep 13.66 · Oct 19.75 · Nov 22.5 · Dec 22.4 °C	31 Dec 2001	NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center¹Official
Monthly extreme low temperature	Jan -0.68 · Feb -1.76 · Mar -2.37 · Apr -5.35 · May -7 · Jun -11.11 · Jul -10.84 · Aug -13.65 · Sep -5.72 · Oct -5.17 · Nov -5.3 · Dec -2.33 °C	31 Dec 2001	NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center¹Official
Average temperature by month	Jan 10.99 · Feb 10.89 · Mar 9.13 · Apr 6.12 · May 3.25 · Jun 0.68 · Jul 0 · Aug 1.35 · Sep 3.22 · Oct 4.87 · Nov 7.3 · Dec 9.78 °C	31 Dec 2001	NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center¹Official

Population and city profile

How many people live in Queenstown?

The published population was 25,050 people in March 2023. Source: Stats NZ Urban Rural 2023 place summaries — Census population¹⁰

Foreign residents and their share come from different publications that count different groups (for example citizens of another country, or people born abroad, or of foreign origin), so 19,206 is not 40.2% of the population. Each row names its source.

Who lives hereResidents by nationality, % of population

By nationality

National passport23.3%
Foreign residents76.7%

Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
City area	86.61 km²	1 Jan 2023	Official Stats NZ Urban-rural 2023 area for the exact UR2023 urban-area code. AREA_SQ_KM is the clipped official geography used here; no territorial-authority or SA observation is substituted.²Official
Foreign-resident share	40.2 %	31 Dec 2023	Stats NZ⁸Official
Foreign residents	19,206 people	31 Dec 2023	Stats NZ⁸Official
Population density	303.3 people/km²	7 Mar 2023	Reproducible exact-UR2023 density using the existing official Stats NZ population denominator and the exact official UR2023 area. No observation geography is promoted.⁷Official
Population	25,050 people	7 Mar 2023	Stats NZ Urban Rural 2023 place summaries — Census population¹⁰Official

International community in Queenstown

Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.

Country of birth

Census usually resident population count for the 2023 Census place-summary geography · 2023 Census

Published group	People	Share
United Kingdom and Ireland	3,510	14.2%
Asia	3,123	12.7%
Other	1,899	7.7%
Australia	1,335	5.4%
Europe (excl United Kingdom and Ireland)	1,311	5.3%
North America	678	2.7%
Middle East and Africa	513	2.1%
Pacific Islands	294	1.2%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁹

Ancestry or ethnicity

Census usually resident population count for the 2023 Census place-summary geography · 2023 Census

Published group	People	Share
European	18,627	74.4%
Asian	3,966	15.8%
Middle Eastern/Latin American/African	2,070	8.3%
Māori	1,596	6.4%
Pacific Peoples	468	1.9%
Other Ethnicity	261	1.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁹

Ancestry or ethnicity

Census usually resident population count for the 2023 Census place-summary geography · 2023 Census

Published group	People	Share
New Zealand European	13,935	55.6%
Other European	4,203	16.8%
Latin American	1,971	7.9%
Māori	1,596	6.4%
Southeast Asian	1,092	4.4%
Indian	1,017	4.1%
Chinese	876	3.5%
European nfd	867	3.5%
Other Asian	810	3.2%
Other Ethnicity	261	1.0%

Show 11 more groups

Published group	People	Share
Asian nfd	204	0.8%
Samoan	168	0.7%
Cook Islands Maori	93	0.4%
Fijian	93	0.4%
Middle Eastern	63	0.3%
Tongan	57	0.2%
Other Pacific Peoples	51	0.2%
African	39	0.2%
Niuean	30	0.1%
Tokelauan	12	0.0%
Pacific Peoples nfd	9	0.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁹

Alternatives for people set on Queenstown

Three places for the three reasons people leave a city on the shortlist: stay in the region, stay in the country, or keep the budget and change the country. A percentage appears only where both cities publish that metric from the same source, period and grain. Distances are straight lines — travel times are not collected yet.

Wellington as a Queenstown alternative in the same country

Better on 1 of 2 metrics measured the same way, worse on 1. Median gross pay, region cannot be compared like for like.

Median gross pay, region: €3,848 (2024) Wellington vs €3,004 (2025) Queenstownno percentage
Nearest airport: 5.0 km Wellington vs 7.0 km Queenstown−29%
Foreign residents: 34.4% Wellington vs 40.2% Queenstown−14%

Full comparison More about Wellington

Alternative cities in New Zealand

Other cities in New Zealand to compare with Queenstown, nearest in population first.

All New Zealand cities

Taupō25,374 residents Pukekohe27,042 residents Timaru28,095 residents Rolleston28,449 residents Blenheim28,788 residents Paraparaumu28,938 residents

How does Queenstown compare?

Pick a city. The answer appears here and the address bar keeps it, so the comparison can be shared; the page stays Queenstown's.

Open the full comparison

Queenstown in rankings

#1 of 27 in Cities with lowest unemployment in New Zealand #1 of 23 in Most international cities in New Zealand #13 of 30 in Cities with the highest foreign-population share #24 of 30 in Cities with the lowest published unemployment #26 of 29 in Largest cities in New Zealand

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Queenstown when the national insurance or residence conditions are met.

Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.

Open the official coverage guide

Country rule verified 2026-08-03.

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

How many people live in Queenstown?

The published population was 25,050 people in March 2023. Source: Stats NZ Urban Rural 2023 place summaries — Census population.

How safe is Queenstown?

What is the unemployment rate in Queenstown?

The unemployment rate is 1.5 % (2023). Source: Stats NZ.

What is the typical salary around Queenstown?

The median gross salary is 3,004 EUR/month. Source: Table 18: LEED measures, by industry (based on ANZSIC06) and region, June 2025 quarter.

How many foreign residents live in Queenstown?

19,206 residents hold a foreign nationality. Source: Stats NZ.

Is Queenstown a good place to live?

Queenstown may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.

How many people born in United Kingdom and Ireland live in Queenstown?

The official country of birth distribution records 3,510 people (14.2%) in the source-defined population for 2023 Census. This is a country of birth measure, not a general estimate of ethnicity or migration status.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation

ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Queenstown, New Zealand: population, rent, salary, jobs [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 5e8a9ad04ce1bdce04e3a3adbb34facf]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/nz/queenstown/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

BibTeX citation

@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_queenstown-new-zealand-population-rent-salary-jobs_86d8f82616e8,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Queenstown, New Zealand: population, rent, salary, jobs},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-10-16},
  version = {5e8a9ad04ce1bdce04e3a3adbb34facf},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/nz/queenstown/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}

Markdown citation

[Queenstown, New Zealand: population, rent, salary, jobs](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/nz/queenstown/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 5e8a9ad04ce1bdce04e3a3adbb34facf; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

JSON Markdown

NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center power.larc.nasa.gov · checked 2026-08-03
Official Stats NZ Urban-rural 2023 area for the exact UR2023 urban-area code. AREA_SQ_KM is the clipped official geography used here; no territorial-authority or SA observation is substituted. services2.arcgis.com · checked 2023-01-01
One NZ fixed broadband one.nz · checked 2026-09-15
OpenFlights raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-08-03
OurAirports davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-08-03
Rental bond data — monthly by territorial authority Rental bond data · tenancy.govt.nz · checked 2026-10-06
Reproducible exact-UR2023 density using the existing official Stats NZ population denominator and the exact official UR2023 area. No observation geography is promoted. services2.arcgis.com · checked 2023-03-07
Stats NZ tools.summaries.stats.govt.nz · checked 2026-08-03
Stats NZ / Tatauranga Aotearoa tools.summaries.stats.govt.nz · checked 2026-08-30
Stats NZ Urban Rural 2023 place summaries — Census population Stats NZ Urban Rural 2023 place summaries · tools.summaries.stats.govt.nz · checked 2026-08-13

Show 2 more sources

Table 18: LEED measures, by industry (based on ANZSIC06) and region, June 2025 quarter api.data.stats.govt.nz · checked 2026-10-07
Victimisations Time and Place — Map export, July 2025 to June 2026 Victimisations Time and Place · public.tableau.com · checked 2026-10-05

Spotted a number that looks wrong? Every value here carries its source and date — tell us what you found and we will re-check it against the source.