As resources become more and more scarce, countries around the world are facing increasing costs of living. While the cost of living in a particular country is usually correlated with average wages, it is undeniable that some citizens around the globe are having more trouble making ends meet than others. But which are the most expensive countries of them all?
Following, we would like to present you with a list we have compiled of the 15 most expensive countries to be living in 2014, in the same key as we have earlier compiled a list of the 10 most expensive cities in the world. The following nations have been ranked according to their consumer price index, which is a relative indicator used to estimate prices of consumer goods, such as groceries, transportation, utilities, and restaurants, but excluding accommodation expenses, such as mortgage or rents. We have also included other indicators, such as rent index, groceries index, and local purchasing power. All of the indexes used in the making of the countdown are relative to prices in New York City, US, which is considered to have a 100% index in all categories. For example, if the consumer price index is 140% in a certain country, it can be assessed that goods are 40% pricier than in New York.
Curious to see which countries have made it on this year’s countdown? Let’s take a look at the countdown.
No. 15: Belgium
Consumer price index: 100.04
Rent index: 34.89
Groceries Index: 93.51
Restaurant Index: 105.82
Local purchasing power: 87.93
No. 14: United Kingdom
Consumer price index: 100.11
Rent index: 44.19
Groceries Index: 94.25
Restaurant Index: 96.94
Local purchasing power: 94.34
No. 13: France
Consumer price index: 100.21
Rent index: 36.86
Groceries Index: 100.19
Restaurant Index: 98.7
Local purchasing power: 92.9
No. 12: Finland
Consumer price index: 103.28
Rent index: 35.32
Groceries Index: 100.4
Restaurant Index: 103.17
Local purchasing power: 97.9
No. 11: Bahamas
Consumer price index: 103.44
Rent index: 47.35
Groceries Index: 98
Restaurant Index: 96.49
Local purchasing power: 93.37
No. 10: Sweden
Consumer price index: 103.68
Rent index: 33.79
Groceries Index: 100.35
Restaurant Index: 103.76
Local purchasing power: 106.11
No. 9: New Zealand
Consumer price index: 104.48
Rent index: 42.43
Groceries Index: 104.47
Restaurant Index: 90.09
Local purchasing power: 87.58
No. 8: Ireland
Consumer price index: 106.61
Rent index: 39.24
Groceries Index: 102.67
Restaurant Index: 100.03
Local purchasing power: 96.64
No. 7: Australia
Consumer price index: 108.51
Rent index: 57.97
Groceries Index: 105.03
Restaurant Index: 97.44
Local purchasing power: 104.2
No. 6: Luxembourg
Consumer price index: 109.93
Rent index: 64.11
Groceries Index: 97.07
Restaurant Index: 126.51
Local purchasing power: 115.31
No. 5: Iceland
Consumer price index: 111.75
Rent index: 41.07
Groceries Index: 121.07
Restaurant Index: 106.06
Local purchasing power: 59.54
No. 4: Venezuela
Consumer price index: 114.36
Rent index: 39.59
Groceries Index: 132.15
Restaurant Index: 96.24
Local purchasing power: 17.87
No. 3: Denmark
Consumer price index: 114.87
Rent index: 40.05
Groceries Index: 102.61
Restaurant Index: 132.27
Local purchasing power: 100.66
No. 2: Switzerland
Consumer price index: 143.88
Rent index: 63.84
Groceries Index: 148.50
Restaurant Index: 145.59
Local purchasing power: 138.05
No. 1: Norway
Consumer price index: 144.45
Rent index: 58.88
Groceries Index: 135.52
Restaurant Index: 165.88
Local purchasing power: 94.4
