The most expensive cities worldwide - 2024
Expat cost of living ranking
Ranking
EuroCost International's annual cost of living ranking compares expat living costs in major locations worldwide, including housing costs but excluding health and education costs.
The 2024 ranking is based on prices recorded in June 2024 and updated on the basis of September 2024 exchange rates. 283 locations have been considered for this ranking.
Key points
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The city of Geneva is the most expensive city in the world for expatriates in 2024. The Swiss franc has strengthened this year against the euro and the US dollar, which partly explains the Swiss city's rise in the ranking.
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It is ahead of Hong Kong, which has lost its first place. The high cost of living in Hong Kong is mainly due to the price of rents, which are the highest in the world for expatriates.
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Then comes New York City, which remains in third place, followed by London, which moved up one place compared to last year. The British capital replaces Singapore, which has fallen from fourth to fifth place this year.
The city of Geneva is the most expensive city in the world for expatriates in 2024. The Swiss franc has strengthened this year against the euro and the US dollar, which partly explains the Swiss city's rise in the ranking.
It is ahead of Hong Kong, which has lost its first place. The high cost of living in Hong Kong is mainly due to the price of rents, which are the highest in the world for expatriates.
Then comes New York City, which remains in third place, followed by London, which moved up one place compared to last year. The British capital replaces Singapore, which has fallen from fourth to fifth place this year.
The US dollar continues to weaken against the euro, down 1.8% from last year, after a previous drop of 7.8% between 2022 and 2023. However, US cities remain very present at the top of our ranking with 10 cities in our top 30, particularly due to high rental prices.
Unlike previous years, the ranking remains fairly stable compared to last year and the cities in the top 30 are almost similar to those in the 2023 ranking. We simply note that the city of Atlanta is now included in the table in 26th position, while two other American cities, Chicago and Portland, are leaving this ranking. We will also note the return of the city of Sydney and the capital of Angola, Luanda. On the other hand, Conakry, the capital of Guinea, is leaving the top 30.
At the European level, Copenhagen is the most expensive city behind Swiss cities and London. It should be noted that the Danish capital is thus the most expensive city in the European Union. Within the euro zone, the cost of living is the highest in the capital of the Netherlands, Amsterdam.
Regional rankings
Africa
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Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is the most expensive city in Africa in 2024. It ranks 13th worldwide. Then comes Bangui, which was at the top of this regional ranking last year. The capital of the Central African Republic also lost one place in the world ranking, falling from 15th to 16th position. In Angola, the capital Luanda is back among the most expensive cities in the Africa zone. After a sharp devaluation of its currency in 2023, Luanda is now ranked 27th worldwide and 3rd on the continent. Among the most expensive cities of this ranking, we can also mention the capitals of Chad (Ndjamena), Guinea (Conakry) and Mozambique (Maputo). At the bottom of the ranking, cities in Botswana (Gaborone), Malawi (Lilongwe) and South Africa (Johannesburg, Cape Town and Pretoria) are currently the least expensive. |
Americas
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The 10 most expensive cities in the Americas are all located in the same country, namely the United States. As last year, New York remains the most expensive city ahead of San Francisco and the Hawaiian capital, Honolulu. It should be noted that the dollar has weakened against many currencies, causing some American cities to fall in our global ranking. Los Angeles thus drops from 10th to 15th place worldwide, and Miami from 18th to 21st place. In Canada, the city of Toronto remains the most expensive in the country. The Canadian dollar weakened slightly against the euro (-1.1%) but strengthened a little against the American dollar. In Argentina, the new president and his government devalued the peso by more than 50% of its value in December 2023. Inflation in the capital Buenos Aires remains very high and we will surely have to wait before measuring the potentially beneficial effects of the measures taken. Asunción, capital of Paraguay, remains the least expensive city in the American continent for the 2024 ranking.
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Asia-Oceania
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Hong Kong is the most expensive city in Asia-Oceania for expatriates, with the highest rent costs in the world. The Hong Kong dollar has remained rather stable over the last 12 months compared to the euro and the US dollar. In this regional ranking, we then find the cities of Singapore, then the South Korean capital, Seoul. Tokyo, the Japanese capital, is now more expensive than China's major cities, represented by Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou. Among the cheapest cities in Asia, we can mention Kathmandu in Nepal or Vientiane, capital of Laos. In Oceania, the most expensive city is the Australian city of Sydney.
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Europe
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Geneva is the most expensive city in Europe in 2024, but also the most expensive city in the world for expatriates. The other Swiss cities also monopolize the top spots in the European ranking, since there are five cities from this country in the top six positions. Second place in the European ranking is occupied by the city of London, where the cost of living in general and housing in particular remain very high. We can also note that the pound sterling has strengthened by a little more than 2% compared to the euro since last year. Within the European Union, Copenhagen, the Danish capital remains the most expensive city. Amsterdam remains the most expensive city in the euro zone, still ahead of Vienna and Paris. The cities of Pristina, capital of Kosovo, and Sarajevo in Bosnia-Herzegovina are among the least expensive cities in Europe for expatriates among the cities included in our ranking.
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Middle East
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In a region in the midst of crisis, the Israeli cities of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem are those where the cost of living is the most expensive for expatriates. Then we find Beirut, capital of Lebanon, a country now also affected by the war, then the cities of Amman in Jordan and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. At the bottom of the ranking, the city of Lahore in Pakistan is one of the least expensive cities in this area.
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Our methodology
EuroCost International's cost of living surveys aim at comparing the cost of living for expatriates worldwide. They cover the whole basket of goods and services consumed by expatriates, excepted health and school costs (specific reports are provided for the latter).
The ranking is based on surveys conducted in June 2024 and includes rental costs. It should be noted that the rent prices used in this study are those paid by expatriates and that they are not representative for average rents paid by local inhabitants of the surveyed locations.
Rent prices used for this ranking are average rents for different types of housing favoured by expatriates and collected in the specific areas where they live. In some cities, prices for a specific type of housing can significantly differ from one area to another. This is for example the case for London, Mumbai and New York. Detailed information per city can be obtained in EuroCost International's rent surveys.