I just reviewed a ranking of the most expensive cities in the world and things are pretty crazy. Switzerland literally dominates everything - Zurich, Geneva, Basel, all in the top 6. Zurich leads with an index of 112.5, which means living there costs about 12.5% more than in New York. But well, they also earn monthly salaries between 7,000 and 9,000 CHF, so they have to compensate for something.

The interesting part is that New York is the reference point with 100 points, and everything is compared from there. In the United States, there's quite a bit of variation - Honolulu is at 94.4 due to island costs, San Francisco at 90.7 for tech, Seattle at 86. Norway is also strong in the ranking with Oslo, Trondheim, and Bergen. In Asia, Singapore scores 85.3 and Tel Aviv 81.2.

If you look at the pattern, Europe clearly leads among the most expensive cities in the world. Switzerland is practically unbeatable, but Norway and the United Kingdom also have their expensive cities. What’s most surprising is how much difference there is - while Amsterdam is at 75.9, there are cities where living is 40% cheaper than New York. The index considers housing, food, transportation, services, entertainment, and purchasing power, so it’s quite comprehensive.