Global Cost of Living Guide 2026

Global City Rankings

Compare the cost of living in cities worldwide by monthly expenses, affordability, quality of life, safety, and healthcare. Explore city-level rankings to find affordable places to live, work, study, retire, or relocate.

Cost of Living Rankings by City

Our city rankings help you compare destinations based on average monthly living costs and important quality-of-life indicators. Whether you are looking for the cheapest cities to live in, affordable destinations for expats, or cities with a high quality of life, the table below provides a quick starting point for comparing locations around the world.

All Cities

Compare monthly cost, affordability, safety, healthcare, and quality of life.

280 cities

Global city cost of living rankings showing monthly cost, cost index, quality of life, safety, and healthcare.
#	City	Monthly Cost	Cost Index	Quality of Life	Safety	Healthcare
1	New York United States	$4,200per month	100	68	52	75	View →
2	London United Kingdom	$3,800per month	92	74	55	82	View →
3	Hong Kong China (SAR)	$4,000per month	95	72	80	82	View →
4	Bali Indonesia	$1,100per month	35	78	70	55	View →
5	Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam	$950per month	32	74	68	60	View →
6	Singapore Singapore	$3,500per month	88	84	90	88	View →
7	Zurich Switzerland	$4,800per month	110	92	88	95	View →
8	Paris France	$3,400per month	86	79	48	88	View →
9	Tokyo Japan	$3,200per month	85	86	88	90	View →
10	Sydney Australia	$3,300per month	84	88	76	84	View →
11	Dubai United Arab Emirates	$2,900per month	72	80	86	78	View →
12	Toronto Canada	$3,100per month	78	82	72	86	View →
13	Berlin Germany	$2,400per month	65	86	68	90	View →
14	Amsterdam Netherlands	$3,000per month	80	88	70	88	View →
15	Los Angeles United States	$3,900per month	94	70	46	72	View →
16	Melbourne Australia	$3,000per month	80	90	78	85	View →
17	Vienna Austria	$2,600per month	70	92	80	90	View →
18	Barcelona Spain	$2,200per month	62	84	56	86	View →
19	Chicago United States	$3,200per month	82	65	38	74	View →
20	Seoul South Korea	$2,700per month	75	82	80	88	View →
21	San Francisco United States	$4,500per month	105	66	40	78	View →
22	Stockholm Sweden	$3,000per month	82	90	78	90	View →
23	Munich Germany	$2,900per month	78	88	78	90	View →
24	Kuala Lumpur Malaysia	$1,200per month	38	74	60	72	View →
25	Bangkok Thailand	$1,400per month	40	70	58	74	View →
26	Istanbul Turkey	$1,300per month	42	62	50	68	View →
27	Mexico City Mexico	$1,400per month	40	62	35	65	View →
28	São Paulo Brazil	$1,400per month	42	60	30	62	View →
29	Johannesburg South Africa	$1,100per month	35	54	22	60	View →
30	Nairobi Kenya	$900per month	30	52	35	52	View →
31	Cairo Egypt	$800per month	28	50	42	55	View →
32	Mumbai India	$900per month	32	58	50	62	View →
33	Delhi India	$800per month	28	52	40	60	View →
34	Beijing China	$1,800per month	55	65	72	72	View →
35	Shanghai China	$2,000per month	60	68	74	74	View →
36	Jakarta Indonesia	$1,000per month	32	58	52	60	View →
37	Manila Philippines	$900per month	30	55	42	58	View →
38	Karachi Pakistan	$550per month	22	42	28	48	View →
39	Lahore Pakistan	$500per month	20	44	30	50	View →
40	Buenos Aires Argentina	$900per month	35	65	40	65	View →
41	Bogotá Colombia	$900per month	32	60	38	64	View →
42	Lima Peru	$950per month	34	58	35	60	View →
43	Lagos Nigeria	$800per month	30	42	25	42	View →
44	Casablanca Morocco	$950per month	32	58	52	58	View →
45	Cape Town South Africa	$1,200per month	38	68	32	65	View →
46	Riyadh Saudi Arabia	$2,000per month	58	68	80	72	View →
47	Tel Aviv Israel	$3,600per month	90	74	52	82	View →
48	Rome Italy	$2,400per month	68	78	58	84	View →
49	Lisbon Portugal	$2,100per month	62	84	75	82	View →
50	Prague Czech Republic	$1,800per month	55	84	76	82	View →
51	Warsaw Poland	$1,700per month	52	80	72	78	View →
52	Taipei Taiwan	$2,000per month	62	84	84	88	View →
53	Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam	$1,000per month	35	65	62	62	View →
54	Auckland New Zealand	$2,800per month	76	86	78	84	View →
55	Miami United States	$3,700per month	90	72	50	72	View →
56	Abu Dhabi United Arab Emirates	$2,700per month	70	78	88	80	View →
57	Doha Qatar	$2,600per month	68	76	86	78	View →
58	Oslo Norway	$4,400per month	108	92	86	92	View →
59	Copenhagen Denmark	$4,000per month	100	92	82	92	View →
60	Helsinki Finland	$3,300per month	88	90	84	92	View →
61	Brussels Belgium	$2,800per month	78	80	55	86	View →
62	Geneva Switzerland	$5,000per month	115	90	86	95	View →
63	Madrid Spain	$2,200per month	64	82	62	88	View →
64	Milan Italy	$2,600per month	72	76	58	84	View →
65	Budapest Hungary	$1,500per month	48	78	68	76	View →
66	Bucharest Romania	$1,300per month	42	70	62	68	View →
67	Athens Greece	$1,700per month	55	72	62	74	View →
68	Kyiv Ukraine	$1,000per month	38	58	30	60	View →
69	Moscow Russia	$1,600per month	55	58	45	65	View →
70	Tehran Iran	$700per month	25	50	42	60	View →
71	Baghdad Iraq	$800per month	30	35	20	40	View →
72	Amman Jordan	$1,500per month	50	62	68	68	View →
73	Accra Ghana	$900per month	32	50	55	48	View →
74	Addis Ababa Ethiopia	$700per month	26	44	48	40	View →
75	Dar es Salaam Tanzania	$750per month	28	46	50	42	View →
76	Kathmandu Nepal	$600per month	22	48	55	48	View →
77	Colombo Sri Lanka	$800per month	30	56	58	60	View →
78	Dhaka Bangladesh	$650per month	24	40	38	45	View →
79	Yangon Myanmar	$700per month	26	42	35	40	View →
80	Phnom Penh Cambodia	$800per month	30	50	52	45	View →
81	Tashkent Uzbekistan	$650per month	26	52	62	55	View →
82	Almaty Kazakhstan	$1,100per month	38	60	55	60	View →
83	Baku Azerbaijan	$1,100per month	40	60	60	60	View →
84	Tbilisi Georgia	$1,000per month	36	62	65	60	View →
85	Yerevan Armenia	$1,050per month	38	58	62	58	View →
86	Tunis Tunisia	$850per month	30	56	54	58	View →
87	Algiers Algeria	$800per month	28	48	48	52	View →
88	Santiago Chile	$1,400per month	45	68	48	68	View →
89	Caracas Venezuela	$500per month	20	28	10	28	View →
90	Quito Ecuador	$1,000per month	36	60	42	62	View →
91	Havana Cuba	$600per month	25	52	55	72	View →
92	Panama City Panama	$1,700per month	52	66	48	68	View →
93	San José Costa Rica	$1,500per month	48	72	52	74	View →
94	Guadalajara Mexico	$1,100per month	36	64	38	64	View →
95	Medellin Colombia	$850per month	30	64	42	66	View →
96	Perth Australia	$2,700per month	74	86	80	84	View →
97	Vancouver Canada	$3,400per month	86	86	68	86	View →
98	Montréal Canada	$2,500per month	68	82	65	84	View →
99	Seattle United States	$3,900per month	96	74	50	76	View →
100	Boston United States	$4,000per month	98	72	54	80	View →
101	Houston United States	$2,900per month	76	65	44	70	View →
102	Minneapolis United States	$2,700per month	74	72	50	76	View →
103	Brisbane Australia	$2,600per month	72	84	78	82	View →
104	Cebu City Philippines	$800per month	28	58	48	60	View →
105	Bern Switzerland	$4,600per month	105	91	90	94	View →
106	Luxembourg City Luxembourg	$4,200per month	102	88	82	90	View →
107	Reykjavik Iceland	$4,300per month	106	90	92	90	View →
108	Dublin Ireland	$3,600per month	90	80	72	82	View →
109	Edinburgh United Kingdom	$2,900per month	78	78	68	82	View →
110	Manchester United Kingdom	$2,600per month	72	72	58	80	View →
111	Sofia Bulgaria	$1,100per month	38	68	60	65	View →
112	Zagreb Croatia	$1,600per month	52	74	70	74	View →
113	Tallinn Estonia	$1,800per month	58	78	72	78	View →
114	Riga Latvia	$1,600per month	52	72	62	72	View →
115	Vilnius Lithuania	$1,650per month	54	74	64	74	View →
116	Sarajevo Bosnia & Herzegovina	$1,050per month	36	62	62	60	View →
117	Belgrade Serbia	$1,300per month	44	68	58	66	View →
118	Skopje North Macedonia	$900per month	32	58	58	58	View →
119	Tirana Albania	$950per month	34	60	58	56	View →
120	Nicosia Cyprus	$2,000per month	62	74	74	74	View →
121	Valletta Malta	$2,100per month	66	76	78	78	View →
122	Kuwait City Kuwait	$2,200per month	62	70	78	72	View →
123	Muscat Oman	$2,000per month	58	70	84	72	View →
124	Beirut Lebanon	$1,200per month	45	48	30	55	View →
125	Islamabad Pakistan	$600per month	24	50	38	52	View →
126	Kabul Afghanistan	$450per month	18	22	8	25	View →
127	Mandalay Myanmar	$580per month	22	44	32	38	View →
128	Vientiane Laos	$750per month	28	52	64	42	View →
129	Dili Timor-Leste	$850per month	32	40	48	35	View →
130	Port Moresby Papua New Guinea	$1,200per month	45	36	18	35	View →
131	Suva Fiji	$1,100per month	42	58	52	52	View →
132	Montevideo Uruguay	$1,500per month	50	72	52	72	View →
133	Asunción Paraguay	$850per month	30	55	40	55	View →
134	La Paz Bolivia	$750per month	28	52	40	50	View →
135	Guayaquil Ecuador	$950per month	34	56	35	60	View →
136	Managua Nicaragua	$750per month	28	50	42	50	View →
137	Port-au-Prince Haiti	$600per month	25	22	12	22	View →
138	Santo Domingo Dominican Republic	$1,200per month	40	62	42	60	View →
139	Kingston Jamaica	$1,400per month	48	55	28	58	View →
140	Harare Zimbabwe	$800per month	32	38	38	32	View →
141	Kampala Uganda	$650per month	26	44	42	38	View →
142	Kigali Rwanda	$850per month	32	56	68	52	View →
143	Luanda Angola	$1,500per month	52	36	30	30	View →
144	Dakar Senegal	$800per month	30	50	52	45	View →
145	Abidjan Côte d'Ivoire	$900per month	34	46	40	44	View →
146	Pyongyang North Korea	$400per month	15	18	45	30	View →
147	Ulaanbaatar Mongolia	$900per month	32	48	50	50	View →
148	Frankfurt Germany	$2,800per month	76	86	70	90	View →
149	Hamburg Germany	$2,700per month	74	86	68	90	View →
150	Cologne Germany	$2,500per month	70	84	66	90	View →
151	Marseille France	$2,500per month	72	72	44	86	View →
152	Lyon France	$2,600per month	74	80	54	87	View →
153	Florence Italy	$2,400per month	70	78	62	84	View →
154	Naples Italy	$1,900per month	58	68	48	80	View →
155	Porto Portugal	$1,900per month	58	82	76	80	View →
156	Seville Spain	$1,900per month	58	80	62	86	View →
157	Valencia Spain	$1,850per month	56	82	64	86	View →
158	Osaka Japan	$2,900per month	80	85	88	90	View →
159	Kyoto Japan	$2,800per month	78	84	90	90	View →
160	Busan South Korea	$2,300per month	66	80	82	86	View →
161	Shenzhen China	$2,200per month	65	70	76	74	View →
162	Guangzhou China	$1,900per month	58	66	74	72	View →
163	Chengdu China	$1,700per month	52	68	74	70	View →
164	Hanoi Vietnam	$950per month	33	64	64	60	View →
165	Da Nang Vietnam	$800per month	28	68	68	58	View →
166	Phuket Thailand	$1,500per month	45	72	60	72	View →
167	Chiang Mai Thailand	$1,100per month	35	74	64	70	View →
168	George Town Malaysia	$1,100per month	36	76	62	74	View →
169	Johor Bahru Malaysia	$1,050per month	34	72	58	72	View →
170	Bandung Indonesia	$850per month	28	60	54	58	View →
171	Surabaya Indonesia	$900per month	30	60	54	60	View →
172	Washington D.C. United States	$3,900per month	95	70	48	76	View →
173	Denver United States	$3,500per month	88	76	52	74	View →
174	Phoenix United States	$3,000per month	78	68	48	70	View →
175	Atlanta United States	$3,100per month	80	66	42	72	View →
176	Dallas United States	$2,950per month	76	66	46	70	View →
177	San Diego United States	$3,800per month	92	76	56	76	View →
178	Portland United States	$3,300per month	86	72	48	74	View →
179	Wellington New Zealand	$2,700per month	74	84	80	84	View →
180	Christchurch New Zealand	$2,400per month	68	82	82	82	View →
181	Rio de Janeiro Brazil	$1,450per month	44	62	28	62	View →
182	Cartagena Colombia	$950per month	32	66	44	64	View →
183	Belo Horizonte Brazil	$1,200per month	38	60	32	62	View →
184	Curitiba Brazil	$1,150per month	36	65	36	64	View →
185	Jeddah Saudi Arabia	$1,900per month	55	66	78	72	View →
186	Ankara Turkey	$1,150per month	38	60	52	68	View →
187	Izmir Turkey	$1,100per month	36	64	56	68	View →
188	Pune India	$850per month	30	60	54	64	View →
189	Bangalore India	$900per month	32	62	52	66	View →
190	Hyderabad India	$800per month	28	60	54	64	View →
191	Chennai India	$780per month	28	58	54	64	View →
192	Kolkata India	$680per month	24	54	52	60	View →
193	Astana Kazakhstan	$1,100per month	40	60	58	62	View →
194	Bishkek Kyrgyzstan	$620per month	25	52	58	52	View →
195	Dushanbe Tajikistan	$560per month	22	44	52	42	View →
196	Ashgabat Turkmenistan	$700per month	28	40	55	42	View →
197	Thimphu Bhutan	$750per month	30	65	72	58	View →
198	Malé Maldives	$1,600per month	55	65	68	60	View →
199	Nay Pyi Taw Myanmar	$520per month	20	38	38	35	View →
200	Bandar Seri Begawan Brunei	$1,500per month	48	68	80	72	View →
201	Dili Timor-Leste	$850per month	32	40	48	35	View →
202	Taipei Taiwan	$2,000per month	62	84	84	88	View →
203	Antananarivo Madagascar	$550per month	22	36	38	28	View →
204	Lilongwe Malawi	$550per month	22	38	44	30	View →
205	Lusaka Zambia	$700per month	28	44	42	38	View →
206	Gaborone Botswana	$1,000per month	38	55	50	52	View →
207	Windhoek Namibia	$1,100per month	42	56	42	55	View →
208	Libreville Gabon	$1,100per month	40	46	44	45	View →
209	Yaoundé Cameroon	$800per month	30	42	40	38	View →
210	Conakry Guinea	$650per month	26	34	35	28	View →
211	Freetown Sierra Leone	$600per month	24	32	52	26	View →
212	Ouagadougou Burkina Faso	$600per month	24	34	28	26	View →
213	Bamako Mali	$600per month	24	32	30	24	View →
214	Niamey Niger	$530per month	22	28	32	22	View →
215	N'Djamena Chad	$650per month	26	28	28	22	View →
216	Bangui Central African Republic	$530per month	22	22	18	18	View →
217	Brazzaville Republic of Congo	$780per month	30	38	38	32	View →
218	Kinshasa DR Congo	$680per month	28	28	22	22	View →
219	Mogadishu Somalia	$580per month	25	20	10	18	View →
220	Juba South Sudan	$700per month	30	18	14	16	View →
221	Khartoum Sudan	$580per month	24	28	24	28	View →
222	Asmara Eritrea	$480per month	20	30	45	28	View →
223	Djibouti City Djibouti	$950per month	38	42	52	40	View →
224	Lomé Togo	$650per month	26	38	48	34	View →
225	Cotonou Benin	$700per month	28	40	50	36	View →
226	Monrovia Liberia	$620per month	26	30	40	24	View →
227	Banjul Gambia	$580per month	24	38	52	30	View →
228	Bissau Guinea-Bissau	$520per month	22	30	42	22	View →
229	Bujumbura Burundi	$520per month	22	28	28	22	View →
230	Malabo Equatorial Guinea	$1,100per month	45	36	38	32	View →
231	Moroni Comoros	$620per month	26	38	52	30	View →
232	São Tomé São Tomé and Príncipe	$850per month	35	45	60	38	View →
233	Maseru Lesotho	$620per month	26	38	38	32	View →
234	Mbabane Eswatini	$700per month	28	40	40	34	View →
235	Maputo Mozambique	$700per month	26	40	38	32	View →
236	Andorra la Vella Andorra	$2,400per month	72	82	88	80	View →
237	Nassau Bahamas	$2,200per month	68	70	45	65	View →
238	Manama Bahrain	$2,100per month	62	72	80	74	View →
239	Bridgetown Barbados	$2,200per month	70	72	52	70	View →
240	Minsk Belarus	$1,100per month	42	58	55	68	View →
241	Belmopan Belize	$1,400per month	48	60	38	55	View →
242	Praia Cape Verde	$1,100per month	42	60	62	50	View →
243	Roseau Dominica	$1,200per month	45	62	58	60	View →
244	San Salvador El Salvador	$1,300per month	46	56	32	60	View →
245	Palikir Micronesia	$1,100per month	40	52	60	45	View →
246	St. George's Grenada	$1,600per month	55	68	56	62	View →
247	Guatemala City Guatemala	$1,250per month	44	56	30	58	View →
248	Georgetown Guyana	$1,200per month	45	54	35	50	View →
249	Tegucigalpa Honduras	$1,150per month	42	50	28	52	View →
250	South Tarawa Kiribati	$1,000per month	38	42	58	35	View →
251	Pristina Kosovo	$1,100per month	40	60	60	58	View →
252	Tripoli Libya	$750per month	30	32	18	35	View →
253	Vaduz Liechtenstein	$4,500per month	108	92	92	95	View →
254	Majuro Marshall Islands	$1,100per month	42	44	58	40	View →
255	Nouakchott Mauritania	$700per month	28	36	42	28	View →
256	Port Louis Mauritius	$1,500per month	52	68	62	68	View →
257	Monaco Monaco	$7,000per month	145	90	92	95	View →
258	Podgorica Montenegro	$1,350per month	48	66	66	64	View →
259	Yaren Nauru	$1,300per month	48	38	60	38	View →
260	Ngerulmud Palau	$1,400per month	50	55	68	52	View →
261	Ramallah Palestine	$1,500per month	52	42	22	52	View →
262	San Marino San Marino	$2,600per month	78	84	88	86	View →
263	Basseterre Saint Kitts and Nevis	$1,700per month	58	66	50	62	View →
264	Castries Saint Lucia	$1,750per month	60	68	48	62	View →
265	Kingstown Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	$1,550per month	55	64	50	60	View →
266	Apia Samoa	$1,100per month	42	56	62	52	View →
267	Victoria Seychelles	$2,000per month	68	70	66	65	View →
268	Bratislava Slovakia	$1,850per month	60	78	72	78	View →
269	Ljubljana Slovenia	$2,100per month	68	82	78	82	View →
270	Honiara Solomon Islands	$1,050per month	40	44	50	38	View →
271	Paramaribo Suriname	$1,050per month	38	56	44	55	View →
272	Damascus Syria	$480per month	20	20	12	30	View →
273	Nukuʻalofa Tonga	$1,150per month	44	55	62	50	View →
274	Port of Spain Trinidad and Tobago	$1,650per month	58	62	35	62	View →
275	Funafuti Tuvalu	$1,150per month	45	42	62	38	View →
276	Port Vila Vanuatu	$1,250per month	46	55	58	45	View →
277	Sana'a Yemen	$460per month	20	18	8	20	View →
278	Chișinău Moldova	$1,000per month	38	58	58	60	View →
279	Antigua Antigua and Barbuda	$1,800per month	62	68	52	62	View →
280	Nuku'alofa Tonga	$1,150per month	44	55	62	50	View →

Quick City Rankings

Find the most affordable cities and destinations with the strongest quality-of-life scores.

Most Affordable Cities

Cities with the lowest average monthly living costs.

Pyongyang

North Korea

$400/mo 2

Kabul

Afghanistan

$450/mo 3

Sana'a

Yemen

$460/mo 4

Asmara

Eritrea

$480/mo 5

Damascus

Syria

$480/mo

Best Quality of Life

Cities with the highest quality-of-life scores.

Zurich

Switzerland

Score: 92 2

Vienna

Austria

Score: 92 3

Oslo

Norway

Score: 92 4

Copenhagen

Denmark

Score: 92 5

Vaduz

Liechtenstein

Score: 92

Frequently Asked Questions About City Rankings

Which cities have the lowest cost of living?

The cheapest cities to live in can change as local prices, exchange rates, rent, and other expenses change. Cities in South and Southeast Asia and other emerging markets frequently offer lower living costs. Use the rankings table above to compare the monthly cost of living for individual cities.

What is a cost of living index?

A cost of living index measures the relative expense of living in one location compared with a benchmark. It can help you understand whether everyday expenses such as housing, food, transportation, and services are relatively affordable or expensive.

Which cities are best for expats and remote workers?

The best cities for expats and remote workers depend on your budget and priorities. Affordability, internet access, safety, healthcare, infrastructure, lifestyle, and visa requirements are all important factors when choosing an international destination.

How are the city rankings calculated?

The rankings compare city-level indicators including average monthly living costs, cost of living index, quality of life, safety, and healthcare. Individual city pages provide more detailed information for users researching a particular destination.

How can I compare two cities?

You can use the city comparison tool to compare destinations side by side. You can also open any city from the rankings table to see its individual cost of living information.

How to Read the City Rankings

Each city in the rankings table includes an average monthly cost, cost index, quality-of-life score, safety score, and healthcare score. Monthly cost provides a simple estimate of typical living expenses, while the other indicators help put affordability into the context of everyday life.

A lower monthly cost can make a destination attractive for budget-conscious residents, but affordability should not be considered in isolation. Rent, transportation, healthcare, safety, infrastructure, and purchasing power can all influence the real value of living in a city.

Why City Rankings Matter

Comparing cities side by side can help expats, remote workers, students, retirees, and families narrow down potential destinations before relocating. A low-cost city may be ideal for one person while another may prioritize healthcare, safety, infrastructure, or quality of life.

For a more detailed comparison, visit our city comparison tool and compare the destinations that interest you.

Cost of Living by Region

Asia

Many cities across South and Southeast Asia are known for relatively affordable housing, food, transportation, and daily services. Cities in countries such as Vietnam, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Thailand are frequently considered by people seeking lower living costs.

Europe

European cities cover a broad range of living costs. Eastern and Southeastern European destinations can be more affordable, while major Western and Northern European cities often have substantially higher housing and everyday expenses.

Latin America

Latin American cities can offer a balance of living costs, climate, culture, and urban amenities. Affordability varies significantly between countries and individual cities, making city-level comparisons particularly useful.

North America and Oceania

Major cities in North America and Oceania can have higher housing and living expenses, although they may also offer strong infrastructure, healthcare access, employment opportunities, and quality-of-life advantages.

City Ranking Methodology

City rankings should be used as a comparison guide rather than a guarantee of the exact amount an individual will spend. Actual living costs vary according to neighborhood, housing type, household size, lifestyle, transportation choices, and personal spending habits.

For the most useful relocation research, compare the overall city ranking with individual categories such as rent, food, transportation, healthcare, safety, and purchasing power. Visit the relevant city page for additional details before making financial or relocation decisions.