Rankings

Best Cities Overall

Balanced metros across affordability, tax, visa, safety, and jobs.

#	City	Country	Monthly	Score	Link
1	Kuala Lumpur	Malaysia	$1,050	82	View
2	Bangkok	Thailand	$1,200	80	View
3	Bucharest	Romania	$1,200	80	View
4	Budapest	Hungary	$1,350	80	View
5	Chiang Mai	Thailand	$900	80	View
6	Ho Chi Minh City	Vietnam	$950	80	View
7	Taipei	Taiwan	$1,600	80	View
8	Prague	Czech Republic	$1,600	79	View
9	Warsaw	Poland	$1,500	79	View
10	Abu Dhabi	UAE	$2,300	78	View
11	Bali (Denpasar)	Indonesia	$1,100	78	View
12	Dubai	UAE	$2,500	78	View
13	Porto	Portugal	$1,450	78	View
14	Bogotá	Colombia	$1,100	77	View
15	Istanbul	Turkey	$1,100	77	View
16	Lisbon	Portugal	$1,650	77	View
17	Medellín	Colombia	$1,050	77	View
18	Mexico City	Mexico	$1,400	77	View
19	Santiago	Chile	$1,300	77	View
20	Buenos Aires	Argentina	$900	76	View
21	Marrakech	Morocco	$850	76	View
22	Cape Town	South Africa	$1,100	75	View
23	Madrid	Spain	$2,050	75	View
24	São Paulo	Brazil	$1,200	75	View
25	Valencia	Spain	$1,750	75	View
26	Athens	Greece	$1,550	74	View
27	Dubrovnik	Croatia	$1,700	74	View
28	Playa del Carmen	Mexico	$1,600	74	View
29	Barcelona	Spain	$2,200	73	View
30	Seoul	South Korea	$2,200	72	View
31	Berlin	Germany	$2,300	71	View
32	Milan	Italy	$2,400	70	View
33	Montreal	Canada	$2,200	70	View
34	Tokyo	Japan	$2,600	70	View
35	Rome	Italy	$2,100	69	View
36	Amsterdam	Netherlands	$2,800	68	View
37	Singapore	Singapore	$3,800	68	View
38	Auckland	New Zealand	$2,600	67	View
39	Austin	United States	$2,600	66	View
40	Toronto	Canada	$2,800	66	View
41	Denver	United States	$2,700	65	View
42	Dublin	Ireland	$3,200	65	View
43	Melbourne	Australia	$2,900	64	View
44	Vancouver	Canada	$2,900	64	View
45	Sydney	Australia	$3,200	63	View
46	Paris	France	$2,900	62	View
47	London	United Kingdom	$3,500	61	View
48	Miami	United States	$3,100	60	View
49	New York	United States	$4,200	59	View
50	San Francisco	United States	$4,500	58	View

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

$1,050/mo · Score 82

Bangkok, Thailand

$1,200/mo · Score 80

Bucharest, Romania

$1,200/mo · Score 80

Budapest, Hungary

$1,350/mo · Score 80

Chiang Mai, Thailand

$900/mo · Score 80

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

$950/mo · Score 80

Taipei, Taiwan

$1,600/mo · Score 80

Prague, Czech Republic

$1,600/mo · Score 79

Warsaw, Poland

$1,500/mo · Score 79

#10

Abu Dhabi, UAE

$2,300/mo · Score 78

#11

Bali (Denpasar), Indonesia

$1,100/mo · Score 78

#12

Dubai, UAE

$2,500/mo · Score 78

#13

Porto, Portugal

$1,450/mo · Score 78

#14

Bogotá, Colombia

$1,100/mo · Score 77

#15

Istanbul, Turkey

$1,100/mo · Score 77

#16

Lisbon, Portugal

$1,650/mo · Score 77

#17

Medellín, Colombia

$1,050/mo · Score 77

#18

Mexico City, Mexico

$1,400/mo · Score 77

#19

Santiago, Chile

$1,300/mo · Score 77

#20

Buenos Aires, Argentina

$900/mo · Score 76

#21

Marrakech, Morocco

$850/mo · Score 76

#22

Cape Town, South Africa

$1,100/mo · Score 75

#23

Madrid, Spain

$2,050/mo · Score 75

#24

São Paulo, Brazil

$1,200/mo · Score 75

#25

Valencia, Spain

$1,750/mo · Score 75

#26

Athens, Greece

$1,550/mo · Score 74

#27

Dubrovnik, Croatia

$1,700/mo · Score 74

#28

Playa del Carmen, Mexico

$1,600/mo · Score 74

#29

Barcelona, Spain

$2,200/mo · Score 73

#30

Seoul, South Korea

$2,200/mo · Score 72

#31

Berlin, Germany

$2,300/mo · Score 71

#32

Milan, Italy

$2,400/mo · Score 70

#33

Montreal, Canada

$2,200/mo · Score 70

#34

Tokyo, Japan

$2,600/mo · Score 70

#35

Rome, Italy

$2,100/mo · Score 69

#36

Amsterdam, Netherlands

$2,800/mo · Score 68

#37

Singapore, Singapore

$3,800/mo · Score 68

#38

Auckland, New Zealand

$2,600/mo · Score 67

#39

Austin, United States

$2,600/mo · Score 66

#40

Toronto, Canada

$2,800/mo · Score 66

#41

Denver, United States

$2,700/mo · Score 65

#42

Dublin, Ireland

$3,200/mo · Score 65

#43

Melbourne, Australia

$2,900/mo · Score 64

#44

Vancouver, Canada

$2,900/mo · Score 64

#45

Sydney, Australia

$3,200/mo · Score 63

#46

Paris, France

$2,900/mo · Score 62

#47

London, United Kingdom

$3,500/mo · Score 61

#48

Miami, United States

$3,100/mo · Score 60

#49

New York, United States

$4,200/mo · Score 59

#50

San Francisco, United States

$4,500/mo · Score 58

Malaysia · Asia

MY Kuala Lumpur

$1,050/mo

Overall score 82

Thailand · Asia

TH Bangkok

$1,200/mo

Overall score 80

Romania · Europe

RO Bucharest

$1,200/mo

Overall score 80

Hungary · Europe

HU Budapest

$1,350/mo

Overall score 80

Thailand · Asia

TH Chiang Mai

$900/mo

Overall score 80

Vietnam · Asia

VN Ho Chi Minh City

$950/mo

Overall score 80

Taiwan · Asia

TW Taipei

$1,600/mo

Overall score 80

Czech Republic · Europe

CZ Prague

$1,600/mo

Overall score 79

Poland · Europe

PL Warsaw

$1,500/mo

Overall score 79

UAE · Middle East

AE Abu Dhabi

$2,300/mo

Overall score 78

Indonesia · Asia

ID Bali (Denpasar)

$1,100/mo

Overall score 78

UAE · Middle East

AE Dubai

$2,500/mo

Overall score 78

Best overall cities: composite cost of living comparison

Single-factor lists mislead. Our overall score blends affordability, tax, visa, safety, and employment — then invites a personalized cost of living comparison via city calculators. This is the anchor page for users who want balance, not only the cheapest cities to live or the most costly city in the world extremes.

How to personalize with our calculator stack

Start here for breadth, then run the cost of living calculator on finalists. Treat it as a living expenses calculator, cost of living estimator, and price of living comparison toolkit in one — including informal cost of life comparison searches.

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