Living in the Cook Islands
What it costs, how you get off the island, what the weather does and what is actually here — from published data rather than from anybody's brochure. 55 properties are on the market as we write this.
Business, climate and property relocation snapshot Compare assessed markets
What it costs
Half the homes for sale in the Cook Islands are asking more than NZ$895,000 — about £383k — and half less. That is 4% below the middle of the 31 islands on this site. Renting, the middle of the market is NZ$540 a month (£231).
Cheaper, if the number above is the problem: St Lucia (£377k), Turks & Caicos (£368k), Curaçao (£366k), Cyprus (£335k). Search every island by budget.
Costs about the same: St Lucia, Turks & Caicos, Curaçao — worth a look if you have not fixed on a place.
Getting off the island
Getting there
Within an hour's flight
The weather, month by month
Climate · Avarua
Station: RAROTONGA INTL · 3.2 km from the representative point.
Explore monthly temperature and rainfall
Typical daytime temperature
1991–2020 station normals · Average daily high (°C)
Representative-station climate context, not today’s weather or a property-level hazard assessment. Missing monthly values are not estimated.
Read the values and sample counts
| Period or area | Average daily high (°C) |
|---|---|
| Jan | 29 |
| Feb | 30 |
| Mar | 30 |
| Apr | 29 |
| May | 28 |
| Jun | 27 |
| Jul | 26 |
| Aug | 25 |
| Sep | 26 |
| Oct | 27 |
| Nov | 28 |
| Dec | 29 |
Rainfall through the year
1991–2020 station normals · Mean monthly precipitation (mm)
Representative-station climate context, not today’s weather or a property-level hazard assessment. Missing monthly values are not estimated.
Read the values and sample counts
| Period or area | Mean monthly precipitation (mm) |
|---|---|
| Jan | 200 |
| Feb | 170 |
| Mar | 160 |
| Apr | 154 |
| May | 130 |
| Jun | 53 |
| Jul | 97 |
| Aug | 90 |
| Sep | 81 |
| Oct | 63 |
| Nov | 99 |
| Dec | 186 |
12 months of the year are above 20°C in the day. Recorded averages from the nearest long-running weather station, not a forecast.
What is actually here
16 schools · 7 doctors & pharmacies · 28 food shops · 31 restaurants · 2 beaches · 1 golf · 1 sailing & marinas · 1 theatres & cinemas
On the island 187 places
What's on in the Cook Islands
10/01Cook Islands National 18ft Tangaroa Outrigger Class ChampionshipsCook Islands Yacht Squadron (CIYS)10/01Laser Class National Championships
Cook Islands Yacht Squadron (CIYS)10/14Taunga Tutara Awards 2026
Cook Islands awards venue TBC · Rarotonga10/23Cook Islands Squash Open 2026
What is for sale right now
Browse 45 homes for sale 10 to rent
Also in Pacific: Samoa, Vanuatu.
What this page does not tell you
Nothing here is tax, residency or immigration advice, and we do not publish rules we cannot source — those change, they differ by nationality, and getting them wrong costs you far more than a search does. Take them from the island's own government. Prices are asking prices from agents' own sites, not achieved prices. Flight times are estimates and routes change with the season.
Compiled 2026-11-07 from 2 agent sites plus published climate, airport and mapping data. How this works · Compare every island side by side