Moscow ranks as world's priciest city By JACKIE FARWELL, AP Business Writer
Mon Jun 18, 5:11 PM ET



NEW YORK - Moscow is the world's most expensive city for the second year in a row, thanks to an appreciating ruble and rising housing costs, a new survey reports.

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The cost of living for expatriates in the Russian capital is nearly 35 percent higher than in New York, which served as the base city for the survey released Monday.

London, estimated at 26 percent more expensive than New York, climbed three spots to second place on a strengthening British pound and steep rental prices.

South Korea's Seoul ranked third, followed closely by Tokyo at No. 4.

The survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting ranked 143 cities around the world, measuring the comparative cost of more than 200 areas such as housing, transportation and food. The findings are designed to help multinational employers determine compensation for their expatriate workers.

In Moscow, a luxury two-bedroom apartment will cost an expat $4,000 a month; a CD rings up at $24.83; one copy of an international daily newspaper is $6.30; and a fast-food hamburger meal totals $4.80.

A strengthening euro boosted 30 European cities to top spots on the 2007 list — Copenhagen, Geneva, Zurich and Oslo, respectively, placed among the top 10.

Eight Asian cities made the top 50, though Taipei, Taiwan, plunged 20 places to No. 48.

New York and Los Angeles were the only two North American cities to rank among the highest 50, though both fell in the rankings due to a depreciating U.S. dollar, Mercer reported.

The Big Apple dropped five places to No. 15, while Los Angeles fell to No. 42 from No. 29 in 2006.

Ranking as the least expensive city for the fifth year in a row was Paraguay's capital of Asuncion, where the cost of living is half that of New York, Mercer estimated.

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These rankings need to be taken with a few grains of salt. These "statistics" are used to decide how much extra or less money HR departments pay (or dock) expats for "cost of living" pay adjustments. Largely moot, since the major expenses, such as apartments, cars and hotels are paid directy by the corporations anyway.

The military has these COLA adjustments as well.

The rank is compiled by averaging the cost of a few randomly selected products, which may not be common in the local markets. For example, maple syrup was about $100/gallon in Amsterdam. Guess what? It just isn't a common there.

These ranks are heavily skewed by the exchange rate of the dollar at the time the survey is done. Most people are paid in local currency, so this isn't always fair. GBP and Euros are historically strong right now, hence the lower rank of US cities.

I don't care what they say, "anywheresville" U.S.A. is more pricey than anywhere else on the globe.

Not when you are paying taxes over 50%. Western Europe is much worse than the US, tax burden is high for working class people, fuel is twice as expensive, clothes are twice as expensive. "Socialized" health care is only socialized in many countries if you a poor, otherwise, you still pay for that too. ~20% VAT is worse than the sales tax in most states as well.

The US is the cheapest place I've ever lived (excepting Boston/NYC/San Fran)

Moscow is expensive for the locals too, not just for the expats. It's ridiculously overpriced. Despite that, I love this city to death


You're not serious, are you? Compared to Sweden, Norway, Austria, or whatever country in Europe, USA is cheap.

My parents live in Moscow, and they spend much more money on groceries a month than me and hubster do in the San Fran area. But that may be because we eat mainly MacCheese and Hamburger Helper, and they buy good stuff

If you were to factor in your mortgage/rent, car payment, insurance, utilities, expenses.... it's not so much that the cost of living is so much higher here in the U.S., it's the STANDARD of living that's so much higher. It's expected that you'll own a car and drive where ever you go, that you'll live in a single family home, that you'll have "personal" things. In Europe, Moscow or anywhere else, and other places in the world, there are far more "shared costs" than in the U.S. That's why the U.S. is more expensive.

you have not lived in Canada where you pay 14% in sales tax and the price of gas is over $4 US a gallon and insurance rates are nearly 1.5-3 times that of US insurance rates. The price of a home in my neighbourhood, which is approx 25 miles from Toronto starts at $400,000 . The US is comparatively a lot cheaper to live in, which was part of the reason why we decided to move there as opposed to continuing to live in Canada.

I wouldn't even say that the US has the highest standard of living in the world (it doesn't). It isn't from the cost of living, so much as from lower wages.

Taxes are cheap in the states. Insurance is cheap. Food is cheap. Median household income in the US is about $47,000 - which isn't that bad. The US is one of the easiest places in the world to make money/start a business/find a job.

OMG, it sounds like a steal!! $400,000 for a home is not bad. Where we live, a wooden one bedroom shack goes for $600,000 minimum, and a nice 3-bedroom house will cost you no less than $800,000.

When I left Boston it was about $500,000 for a tiny 1 bedroom condo, even outside the city.

It is still possible to find a house for $130,000 in FL. $200,000 gets you a fairly decent place, for 300, on the water. It is possible to spend millions here, but not necessary.

In San Francisco, I wouldn't sell you a carport for that much!
But in Texas news homes can be found in the $80,000 and luxury starting in the $400,000.

In San Francisco, I wouldn't sell you a carport for that much!
But in Texas news homes can be found in the $80,000 and luxury starting in the $400,000.
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Dallas is still fairly cheap. Parking spots (not covered) in Boston were going for about $80,000 when I left. $100,000 in a garage, and a few grand a year on top of that. Condos in Boston usually did not come with parking spots.

I pay about $100/year! for a garaged spot across the street from home in Downtown St Petersburg. Free on-street parking, and we have a garage in the house too.

In Cincinnati, I live in a one bedroom apartment (that's a divided part of a two family home) with a driveway, garage, back yard with trees, flowers and a fire pit, for $400 a month.

A very nice 3B/R, 2Ba, home in the city can be had for under $100,000 and brand-new custom homes in the 'burbs are going for right around $150,000. The "luxury" can be custom built for around $250,000.

But, what the f#@k is in Cincinnati?