Pick where you live now and a country you are curious about. We show you, in plain language, whether daily life there is cheaper or more expensive, and what your monthly budget would need to be to live the same way.
This tool compares how pricey daily life is in two countries, using World Bank purchasing power data with the US set at 1.00. Pick both countries, add your monthly spending if you like, and press Compare to see the percent difference and the matching budget.
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You do not need to know anything about finance to use this. Here is what the numbers mean.
This is the main answer. If it says a country is "40% cheaper," it means a normal month of life there, rent, food, transport, the usual, costs roughly 40 percent less than where you live now. "More expensive" means the opposite.
Each bar shows how pricey a country is compared to the United States, which we set at 1.00 as a fixed yardstick. A bar below 1.00 means cheaper than the US; above 1.00 means pricier. Longer bar, more expensive.
If you enter what you spend in a month, we show the amount you would need to live the same way in the other country, first in that country's own money, then in US dollars so it is easy to picture. If the other country is cheaper, that number is smaller than what you spend now.
An exchange rate only tells you how many units of foreign money you get for a dollar. It does not tell you that a haircut, a bus ride, or a week of groceries is far cheaper in some places. We use World Bank "purchasing power" data, which measures what money actually buys on the ground, so the comparison reflects real daily life, not just currency math. The exchange rate is used only for the final "in US dollars" figure, and we show you the exact rate we used.
These are country-wide averages for orientation. A big capital city costs more than a small town, and your own lifestyle matters. Use this to see the shape of the difference, then dig into the details before you decide.
The data. Cost of living is measured as each country's price level: the World Bank purchasing-power-parity conversion factor divided by the market exchange rate, relative to the United States. World Bank purchasing-power figures are 2021 base, inflation-adjusted. Exchange rates are fetched live where available and otherwise fall back to a stored reference set dated September 2026; the tool shows which was used. Figures are country-level estimates, not city-level prices, and are best estimates rather than exact facts.
It comes from World Bank purchasing power figures, which use a 2021 base and are adjusted for inflation. Exchange rates are fetched live when available, or else taken from a stored reference set dated September 2026. The tool shows which one it used.
An exchange rate only tells you how much foreign money a dollar gets. Purchasing power data measures what money actually buys on the ground, such as food and transport. The exchange rate is used only for the final figure in US dollars.
No. The figures are country averages, not city prices. A big capital city usually costs more than a small town, so treat the result as a guide, not a quote.
Each country is measured against the United States, which is set at 1.00. A number below 1.00 means daily life costs less than in the US. A number above 1.00 means it costs more.
By Todd Allyn, Founding Director, Sovereo Intelligence Research. Research standard.