Cost of living comparison

Compare two of 64 cities on rent, groceries, restaurants, transport and utilities, and see the salary you would need to keep the same standard of living.

Choose two cities

How to use this calculator

  • Pick two cities. Start typing a city name and choose it from the list. The comparison runs in your browser and needs no account.
  • Enter your salary. The tool scales it by the ratio of the two overall indices to estimate the salary that buys the same standard of living in the second city.
  • Check the categories. Rent usually drives most of the difference, so look at the breakdown before deciding a move is worth it.
  • Remote pay. If your salary is set for a high-cost city and you live somewhere cheaper, the gap between the two figures is roughly how much further your money goes (often called geo-arbitrage).

Questions

How is the cost of living index calculated?

The indices are approximate figures drawn from public sources such as Numbeo, Expatistan and government statistics. New York City is the baseline at 100, so a city at 70 is about 30% cheaper than New York for that category.

How do I calculate my salary equivalent in another city?

Enter your salary and choose your current city and the city to compare. The tool multiplies your salary by the ratio of the two overall indices to give the salary with the same purchasing power.

Is this tool useful for remote workers?

Yes. If you earn a salary benchmarked to a high-cost city while living somewhere cheaper, it shows roughly how much more your pay buys.

How often is the data updated?

The indices are not live. They show relative costs between cities and are best used for rough comparison, not exact budgeting.

What categories are compared?

Five: rent (apartment costs), groceries (food and household items), restaurants (eating out), transport (public transit and fuel) and utilities (electricity, water, internet). Each is indexed against New York City.