Aucklanders are more worried about their finances than Wellingtonians and Cantabrians, new survey data shows.

The biennial New Zealand General Social Survey (NZGSS) is the largest social survey Statistics NZ carries out after the census, questioning 8,795 people. It finished in March of this year.

Aucklanders were the most likely to be just scraping by, with 26.7 percent rating themselves as having "only just enough money", compared to 20 percent of Wellingtonians and 23.8 percent of Cantabrians.

Those in our largest city were also the most likely (12.2 per cent) to feel that they had "not enough money" to meet everyday needs, compared to Wellingtonians (10.4 per cent) and Cantabrians (9.1 per cent).

Seven out of ten Wellingtonians (69.6 percent) felt they had "enough" or "more than enough" money, compared to 57.8 per cent of Aucklanders and 67.1 per cent of Cantabrians.

WELLINGTONIANS THE MOST SATISFIED, JUST

New Zealanders were generally satisfied with their lives, with 82.6 percent of those questioned rating their 'overall life satisfaction' 7 out of 10 or higher. The majority also felt that their lives were going somewhere, with 87.1 percent rating their 'sense of purpose' 7/10 or above.

The differences between Auckland, Wellington and Canterbury was typically small.

Among Wellingtonians, 83.2 percent rated their life satisfaction 7/10 or above, compared with 81.6 per cent of Cantabrians.

CANTERBURY NOT SO RACIST

The widely held perception of Christchurch as the most racist city was challenged by results.

Almost eight out of ten (78.2 per cent) of Cantabrians claimed they would be 'very comfortable' or 'comfortable' with a new neighbour who was from a racial or ethnic minority, compared to 75.6 percent of Aucklanders and 77.8 percent of Wellingtonians.

Meanwhile, only 15.5 percent of Cantabrians said they had felt discriminated against in the last year, compared to 17.7 percent of Aucklanders and 18.3 percent of Wellingtonians.