Not San Francisco or Zurich, but it’s Tel Aviv that is the most expensive city on the planet.

Via Unsplash / @Adam Jang


When it comes to the most expensive city in the world, our minds would automatically wander to New York, London, or Hong Kong. However, much to our surprise, it is Israel’s Tel Aviv that has recently topped the charts as the most expensive city on planet earth.

Tel Aviv Via Instagram / @telaviv

According to a biannual report by the Economist Intelligence Unit, the Israeli city has outdone others in the EIU’s December 2021 worldwide cost of living index for the first time ever. It is further believed that the soaring shekel and price increases for goods, including groceries and transport, were the main factors in it taking the top spot.

The city of lights has come second. Via Unsplash / @Chris Karidis

The city made it on the first place after climbing up from the fifth spot last year. Coming a close second was Paris and Singapore, followed by Zurich, Hong Kong, New York, Geneva, Copenhagen, Los Angeles, and Osaka, in that order.

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The Big Apple is at number 6. Via Unsplash / @Oliver Niblett

Commenting on it, Upasana Dutt, head of worldwide cost of living at EIU, said, “Although most economies across the world are now recovering as Covid-19 vaccines are rolled out, many major cities are still seeing spikes in cases, leading to social restrictions. These have disrupted the supply of goods, leading to shortages and higher prices.”

She further added, “Over the coming year, we expect to see the cost of living rise further in many cities as wages increase in many sectors. However, we are also expecting central banks to raise interest rates cautiously to stem inflation. So, the price increases should start to moderate from this year’s level.”

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The Worldwide Cost of Living is a biannual survey conducted by EIU that compares more than 400 individual prices across 200 products and services in 173 cities. Further, the rankings are calculated with New York as the base city.

These are the most expensive cities in the world for 2021 –
1. Tel Aviv, Israel
2. Paris, France
2. Singapore
4. Zurich, Switzerland
5. Hong Kong, China
6. New York, U.S.
7. Geneva, Switzerland
8. Copenhagen, Denmark
9. Los Angeles, U.S.
10. Osaka, Japan

[Via – Bloomberg]

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A lawyer with a zeal for writing, Ekta has a deep love for linguistics, travel, and philosophy. Not an adrenalin junkie but likes going on occasional hikes to beat the weekday blues. Her bucket list includes escapades to Vietnam, Cambodia, and Morocco.