Just looked into which cities are actually the most expensive city in the world to live in right now, and honestly, Switzerland is just on another level. Zurich tops the list at 112.5 on the Cost of Living Index - basically 12.5% pricier than New York. Geneva and Basel follow right after, with scores of 111.4 and 110.7. The fact that six of the top expensive cities globally are all Swiss is wild.

The index compares everything against NYC as the baseline (100 points), factoring in housing, food, transport, utilities, entertainment, and local wages. So when Zurich hits 112.5, you're looking at significantly higher costs across the board. But here's the thing - salaries there average between CHF 7,000-9,000 monthly, which is among the world's highest, so locals aren't getting squeezed as much as you'd think.

Outside Switzerland, you've got some US cities making waves. New York sits at exactly 100 (it's the benchmark), Honolulu's at 94.4, and San Francisco, Seattle, Boston all crack the top 20 for most expensive city rankings. The tech industry has really pushed California's housing through the roof - LA and San Diego both score 76.3.

Norway's another hotspot with Oslo, Trondheim, Bergen, and Stavanger all in the top 25. Singapore represents Asia well at 85.3, while London and Copenhagen round out the expensive list at 83.2 and 81.3 respectively.

What's interesting is how concentrated this is. Europe absolutely dominates the most expensive city in the world rankings, with Switzerland alone taking up half the top spots. Guess if you want affordable living, you're looking pretty far down that list.