Mercer Research released today the results of its annual Cost of Living Ranking survey. The report outlines this year’s most expensive cities for expats. The ranking is based on prices of various items in over 210 cities from all over the world. The costs include services and products like clothing, household goods, transportation, food, entertainment, as well as housing.
The general trend this year is that the number of European cities in the ranking is more than that of any other continent or region. Nevertheless, the leading spots are occupied by Asian cities.
Surprisingly, the priciest city for expats today is not Tokyo. Japan’s capital has dropped from its first position and it is now third, although its rental accommodations continue to come at sky-high prices. The top place in the 2013 Cost of Living Ranking belongs to Angola’s Luanda. At first sight, this is somewhat unexpected since Angola is a rather poor country. Despite that, however, it is very expensive for expatriates because of the high price of secure housing accommodation and imported goods.
The second most costly city in the world for expats is Moscow. The Russian capital has one of the most expensive rental prices in the world. For instance, a luxury 2-bedroom unfurnished apartment in the city will cost you about $4,600 a month. In contrast, this is 14 times higher than prices in Karachi. Important goods in Moscow are also among the priciest on the globe.
The top five of the ranking is completed by Chad’s N’Djamena and Singapore. Expats in both of these cities find rental accommodation really expensive. In addition, the demand for rentals in Singapore is above the average. Similar is the situation with goods. The country’s strong currency only makes things worse.
Switzerland has not one, but three cities in the ranking – Geneva (7), Zurich (8) and Bern (9). The country has been among the priciest for expatriates over the last few years. Therefore, its strong presence on the chart is no news. What is surprising, however, is that, unlike other cities in the ranking, Switzerland’s currency and accommodation costs are both very stable.
On the brink of the top 10 of the most expensive cities for expats is Australia’s Sydney. This is the only Pacific city in the list and it is actually sharing the 9th spot with Bern. The main cause for the high living cost there is the great demand for rentals which increases prices. Also, the insufficient supply in the city is finding hard to keep up with that trend.
Here is the complete list of Mercer’s 2013 Cost of Living Ranking:
- Luanda, Angola
- Moscow, Russia
- Tokyo, Japan
- N’Djamena, Chad
- Singapore, Singapore
- Hong Kong, Hong Kong
- Geneva, Switzerland
- Zurich, Switzerland
- Bern, Switzerland
- Sydney, Australia
According to the report, living costs in the cities included in the ranking are not only influenced by their currency, rental demand and goods’ prices. The research shares that world events, like political and economic turmoils play an even greater role in that.
