The cost of living

[Metro007]

New rankings about cost of living of 131 cities worldwide:

http://www.economist.com/blogs/graph.../daily-chart-7

Do someone know where to download the entire list? Or do we have to buy it?

[kevi]

There's a link in the 1st sentence of the story you posted. Just register, bring the data back and we will all discuss.

[Dimethyltryptamine]

I've tried that and it doesn't give the whole 150. It does the top 10 the bottom 10 and what the list already shows on the site :/

[Skyprince]

But do they seriously compare apple to apple of similar size ?

For example, when comparing the price of 2-bedroom apartment for this survey, if they take 110 sqm apartment in New York as sample, do they exactly take the 110sqm ( similar-size ) apartment in Karachi or Mumbai with the similar level of grandeur/luxury as sample ?

How do we know it ?

[xrtn2]

prices in São Paulo Brazil

very funny hahaha

image hosted on flickr

[Skyprince]

20-30% more expensive than Carrefour in Kuala Lumpur

[xrtn2]

Originally Posted by Skyprince

20-30% more expensive than Carrefour in Kuala Lumpur

The brazilian food at supermarkets is very cheap, the meat is one the most cheaper in the world.

[xrtn2]

Originally Posted by abel01

For example, when comparing the price of 2-bedroom apartment for this survey, if they take 110 sqm apartment in New York as sample, do they exactly take the 110sqm ( similar-size ) apartment in Karachi or Mumbai with the similar level of grandeur/luxury as sample ?

I dont think so.

[Metro007]

Originally Posted by abel01

For example, when comparing the price of 2-bedroom apartment for this survey, if they take 110 sqm apartment in New York as sample, do they exactly take the 110sqm ( similar-size ) apartment in Karachi or Mumbai with the similar level of grandeur/luxury as sample ?

I first misunderstood the question... Of course they do otherwise they could not have made any comparaison, i mean this ranking would have been useless.

[aaabbbccc]

Interesting topic
let us suppose I make 30,000 dollar a year and my friend makes 50,000 dollars a year
I live in a city where the cost of living is very cheap
my friend lives in a city that is extremely expensive for the same stuff
Is that mean I am " wealthier " than he is even if he makes more than I do ??

[henrique42]

Prices in Brazil are absurd. Only the very very very basic items are reasonably priced. For a country that exports its meat, prices are sky high. Ofcourse, second line types of meat, that most people eat are not that expensive, but hey, you must have strong teeth to chew on it...
Ham, sausages etc are of a terrible quality, salted and of dubious mixures.
But most people eat almost EVERY day brown beans, rice ,lettuce and a piece of cheap meat, and are happy and consider themselves fortunate, but if you long for something more, like a french cheese, steak or anything else of some qualtiy, prepare yourself.
Cost of Life in Brazil, a 3rd world country, exceeds that of f.e. the US.

http://economia.estadao.com.br/notic...ua,99424,0.htm

[Metro007]

Originally Posted by aaabbbccc

Interesting topic
let us suppose I make 30,000 dollar a year and my friend makes 50,000 dollars a year
I live in a city where the cost of living is very cheap
my friend lives in a city that is extremely expensive for the same stuff
Is that mean I am " wealthier " than he is even if he makes more than I do ??

Perhaps you would like to ask this question again, being more precise?

[hmueller2]

Frankfurt more expensive than London..

[Metro007]

Originally Posted by hmueller2

Frankfurt more expensive than London..

Why not? I remember London being quite expensive. But FRA as well. For me the most expensive city i have seen was Reykjavik. But it was 2001, so things may have changed.

[Aaronj09]

Since the devaluation of the pound, London is significantly cheaper to live in for foreigners or Brits returning from abroad then what it used to be. One big factor for people returning to the UK after moving abroad is the cost of living becomes too expensive but they discover the cost of living back home is considerably cheaper.

[hmueller2]

Originally Posted by Metro007

Why not? I remember London being quite expensive. But FRA as well. For me the most expensive city i have seen was Reykjavik. But it was 2001, so things may have changed.

Of course Frankfurt is expensive, but definately not as much as London.
Housing is very low compared to London (the most expensive city in Germany is Munich btw)

[DiggerD21]

Originally Posted by aaabbbccc

Interesting topic
let us suppose I make 30,000 dollar a year and my friend makes 50,000 dollars a year
I live in a city where the cost of living is very cheap
my friend lives in a city that is extremely expensive for the same stuff
Is that mean I am " wealthier " than he is even if he makes more than I do ??

You could calculate a local purchasing power parity by checking local salaries against local prices. The purchasing parity would be a relative figure. And when for example the one person earning 30,000 dollars has a local purchasing power of 120%, while the one with 50,000 dollars has a local purchasing power of 80%, then you could come to the conclusion that the one earning less is actually "wealthier", as he can buy more goods (locally) than the other person.

[DiggerD21]

Originally Posted by hmueller2

Of course Frankfurt is expensive, but definately not as much as London.
Housing is very low compared to London (the most expensive city in Germany is Munich btw)

Germany as a whole is rather an exception when it comes to housing prices, especially for renting flats. In many european countries with much lower household income than Germany the renting prices are almost as high as in German cities.

[aamachado]

This list strengthen my theory that the US and Canada are the only
high-income countries without a high cost of living.
Two other things grabbed my attention:
-Moscow is not as expensive as I thought .
-Rio de Janeiro´s absence. I expected the city to be on the list especially
for its INSANE housing prices.

[yubnub]

Originally Posted by aamachado

This list strengthen my theory that the US and Canada are the only
high-income countries without a high cost of living.
Two other things grabbed my attention:
-Moscow is not as expensive as I thought .
-Rio de Janeiro´s absence. I expected the city to be on the list especially
for its INSANE housing prices.

i have recently moved to canada (montreal). I can tell you it is quite expensive to live here, mostly because of tax. Even though my salary is far higher than it was in the UK i lose most of what i gain in extra taxes. I dont know about the USA but this place has a high cost of living for sure