Stats NZ data shows the average New Zealand household’s cost of living rose 2.2% in the year to December 2025.
The rise, tracked by household living costs price indexes (HLPIs), comes after a 2.4% increase in the year to September 2025.
HLPI growth, which peaked at 8.2% in the year to December 2022, has kept easing and now matches June 2021 levels at 2.5%.
Meanwhile, the consumer price index (CPI)-measured inflation hit 3.1% in the year to December 2025, up slightly from 3.0% in September 2025.
CPI’s latest peak was 7.3% in the year to June 2022.
Health insurance prices surged 20.3% in the year to the December 2025 quarter.
“This increase had a greater impact on superannuitants, with health insurance contributing 9.3% of their inflation rate of 3.8%. For higher-expenditure households, health insurance contributed one-third of their annual inflation rate of 0.8%. Superannuitants have a higher proportion of their household expenditure on health insurance than other household groups,” Stats NZ said.
Highest-spending households saw the lowest inflation at 0.8%, driven mainly by an 18.6% drop in mortgage interest payments.
“Among highest-spending households, 82.3% own their home, and 57.2% have a mortgage. Since these households spend a higher proportion of their expenditure on interest payments, particularly mortgage interest, falling interest rates have kept their living cost increases comparatively low.”
“Rent increased 1.9% over the year and was the main contributor to rising living costs for beneficiary households. Rent contributed 18.4% of their annual inflation rate of 3.1%.”
“Māori households were similarly affected, with rent contributing 17.3% of their annual inflation rate of 2.2%.”