Cheapest Cities in the Americas — Cost of Living Index (2026)

90 cities in the Americas across 17 countries, ranked from cheapest to most expensive. New York City is the baseline at 100 — a city at 40 is roughly 60% cheaper than New York for the same basket of rent, food, transport, and utilities.

Cities ranked

Countries

Cheapest

Cuenca · 30.3

Most expensive

Honolulu · 101.9

Cheapest cities (one per country)

1.Cuenca, Ecuador30.3
2.Asuncion, Paraguay31.5
3.Cali, Colombia31.6
4.Salvador, Brazil33
5.Lima, Peru34.7
6.Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic41.4
7.San Salvador de Jujuy, Argentina41.9
8.San Salvador, El Salvador42
9.Mérida, Mexico42.1
10.Santiago, Chile44
11.Panama City, Panama47.1
12.Kingston, Jamaica55.1

Most expensive cities

1.Honolulu, United States101.9
2.New York City, United States100
3.Washington, D.C., United States89.1
4.Seattle, United States88.9
5.San Jose, United States88.4
6.Oakland, United States84
7.Los Angeles, United States82.2
8.San Diego, United States81
9.Irvine, United States79.5
10.Sacramento, United States78.8
11.Philadelphia, United States78.5
12.New Orleans, United States78

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Full ranking

#	City	Country	Index	vs. New York	1BR rent
1	Cuenca	Ecuador	30.3	70% cheaper	$446
2	Asuncion	Paraguay	31.5	69% cheaper	$504
3	Cali	Colombia	31.6	68% cheaper	$406
4	Salvador	Brazil	33	67% cheaper	$495
5	Belo Horizonte	Brazil	33.5	67% cheaper	$510
6	Porto Alegre	Brazil	34.1	66% cheaper	$410
7	Quito	Ecuador	34.1	66% cheaper	$486
8	Fortaleza	Brazil	34.3	66% cheaper	$408
9	Colombo	Brazil	34.5	66% cheaper	$470
10	Lima	Peru	34.7	65% cheaper	$706
11	Florianópolis	Brazil	34.8	65% cheaper	$573
12	Bogota	Colombia	34.9	65% cheaper	$563
13	Barranquilla	Colombia	35	65% cheaper	$415
14	Rio de Janeiro	Brazil	35.1	65% cheaper	$639
15	Campinas	Brazil	35.4	65% cheaper	$422
16	Guayaquil	Ecuador	36.3	64% cheaper	$450
17	Medellín	Colombia	36.5	64% cheaper	$686
18	Brasilia	Brazil	36.9	63% cheaper	$493
19	Santo Domingo	Dominican Republic	41.4	59% cheaper	$770
20	San Salvador de Jujuy	Argentina	41.9	58% cheaper	$899
21	San Salvador	El Salvador	42	58% cheaper	$899
22	São Paulo	Brazil	42	58% cheaper	$659
23	Mérida	Mexico	42.1	58% cheaper	$592
24	Guadalajara	Mexico	42.2	58% cheaper	$883
25	Santiago	Chile	44	56% cheaper	$607
26	Santiago de Querétaro	Mexico	45.3	55% cheaper	$868
27	Panama City	Panama	47.1	53% cheaper	$1,320
28	Mexico City	Mexico	48.3	52% cheaper	$1,169
29	Xico	Mexico	49.5	51% cheaper	$994
30	Monterrey	Mexico	50	50% cheaper	$1,003
31	Kingston	Jamaica	55.1	45% cheaper	$1,479
32	Montevideo	Uruguay	57.1	43% cheaper	$664
33	San Jose	Costa Rica	57.3	43% cheaper	$984
34	Windsor	Canada	57.9	42% cheaper	$1,209
35	Brampton	Canada	58	42% cheaper	$1,398
36	Québec	Canada	59.4	41% cheaper	$947
37	Winnipeg	Canada	59.4	41% cheaper	$1,008
38	Huntsville	United States	59.5	41% cheaper	$1,445
39	Montreal	Canada	60.1	40% cheaper	$1,294
40	London	Canada	61.9	38% cheaper	$1,284
41	Regina	Canada	62	38% cheaper	$1,078
42	Ottawa	Canada	62.3	38% cheaper	$1,472
43	Halifax	Canada	62.7	37% cheaper	$1,540
44	Cincinnati	United States	62.9	37% cheaper	$1,613
45	Mississauga	Canada	62.9	37% cheaper	$1,745
46	Saskatoon	Canada	62.9	37% cheaper	$1,058
47	Cleveland	United States	63.3	37% cheaper	$1,638
48	Calgary	Canada	63.6	36% cheaper	$1,371
49	San Antonio	United States	64.4	36% cheaper	$1,550
50	Tucson	United States	64.7	35% cheaper	$1,313
51	Houston	United States	64.9	35% cheaper	$1,708
52	Jacksonville	United States	64.9	35% cheaper	$1,584
53	Kitchener	Canada	65	35% cheaper	$1,392
54	Rochester	United States	65.1	35% cheaper	$1,350
55	Wichita	United States	65.5	35% cheaper	$993
56	Salt Lake City	United States	65.7	34% cheaper	$1,570
57	Detroit	United States	66.5	34% cheaper	$1,520
58	Milwaukee	United States	67	33% cheaper	$1,772
59	Toronto	Canada	67.1	33% cheaper	$1,950
60	Pittsburgh	United States	68.2	32% cheaper	$1,603
61	Vancouver	Canada	68.2	32% cheaper	$1,926
62	Victoria	Canada	68.4	32% cheaper	$1,655
63	Indianapolis	United States	68.9	31% cheaper	$1,718
64	Columbus	United States	69.8	30% cheaper	$1,515
65	San Juan	Puerto Rico (US)	69.9	30% cheaper	$1,704
66	Richmond	United States	70.1	30% cheaper	$1,566
67	Las Vegas	United States	70.6	29% cheaper	$1,576
68	Orlando	United States	71	29% cheaper	$1,843
69	Spokane	United States	71	29% cheaper	$1,708
70	Oklahoma City	United States	71.2	29% cheaper	$1,287
71	Nashville	United States	71.7	28% cheaper	$1,944
72	Baltimore	United States	72.2	28% cheaper	$1,864
73	Saint Louis	United States	72.7	27% cheaper	$1,424
74	Dallas	United States	73.5	27% cheaper	$1,747
75	Reno	United States	75.8	24% cheaper	$1,962
76	Denver	United States	76.5	24% cheaper	$2,082
77	Jersey City	United States	76.5	24% cheaper	$3,246
78	Portland	United States	77.3	23% cheaper	$2,063
79	New Orleans	United States	78	22% cheaper	$1,821
80	Philadelphia	United States	78.5	22% cheaper	$1,922
81	Sacramento	United States	78.8	21% cheaper	$2,036
82	Irvine	United States	79.5	21% cheaper	$3,023
83	San Diego	United States	81	19% cheaper	$3,173
84	Los Angeles	United States	82.2	18% cheaper	$2,600
85	Oakland	United States	84	16% cheaper	$2,093
86	San Jose	United States	88.4	12% cheaper	$3,163
87	Seattle	United States	88.9	11% cheaper	$2,506
88	Washington, D.C.	United States	89.1	11% cheaper	$2,659
89	New York City	United States	100	0% cheaper	$3,800
90	Honolulu	United States	101.9	2% pricier	$2,609

Related rankings

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How this works

Every city is scored on a single index where New York City = 100. The score blends rent, groceries, restaurants, transport, and utilities into one comparable number, so a city at 50 costs about half what New York does for the same lifestyle.

We rank city-level data only — never a country average painted across its cities. A city is included only when it has genuine local price coverage (real rent and meal prices), which keeps the ranking credible at both ends. Countries under active-conflict travel advisories are excluded.

Want this personalized to your budget and home city? Read our full methodology.

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