Your dollar goes further here

Travel smarter, not cheaper

This isn't about backpacking on rice and beans. It's about understanding that the same money buys dramatically different experiences depending on where you spend it. A $150/night hotel in Paris is fine. That same $150 in Bali gets you a private villa with a pool, breakfast included, and a view of rice terraces.

The difference is purchasing power — and it's not a small difference. In the right destinations, your money buys 3-5x more than it does at home. That doesn't mean going to worse places. It means going to places where the currency exchange and local cost structure work overwhelmingly in your favor.

We rank destinations by what actually matters to travelers: meal costs, accommodation prices, transport, and the overall cost index. These aren't hostel-only budgets — they're what you'd spend living like a local who goes out and enjoys their city.

Top destinations

Ranked by cost of living, data quality, and relevance.

#1

Bandung

🇮🇩 Indonesia · 2.4M

Cost index: 24Meal: $1Dining index: 14

#2

Da Nang

🇻🇳 Vietnam · 1.3M

Cost index: 26Meal: $2Dining index: 16

#3

Kathmandu

🇳🇵 Nepal · 1.4M

Cost index: 23Meal: $2Dining index: 18

#4

Qingdao

🇨🇳 China · 7.2M

Cost index: 30Meal: $3Dining index: 20

#5

Davao

🇵🇭 Philippines · 1.8M

Cost index: 32Meal: $5Dining index: 25

#6

Cali

🇨🇴 Colombia · 2.4M

Cost index: 31Meal: $4Dining index: 26

#7

Tashkent

🇺🇿 Uzbekistan · 2.0M

Cost index: 29Meal: $6Dining index: 26

#8

Bangkok

🇹🇭 Thailand · 10.7M

Cost index: 43Meal: $3Dining index: 29

#9

Lima

🇵🇪 Peru · 7.7M

Cost index: 35Meal: $4Dining index: 29

#10

Osaka

🇯🇵 Japan · 2.7M

Cost index: 44Meal: $6Dining index: 29

#11

Dammam

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia · 1.3M

Cost index: 43Meal: $7Dining index: 30

#12

Kuala Lumpur

🇲🇾 Malaysia · 1.5M

Cost index: 39Meal: $5Dining index: 31

#13

Durban

🇿🇦 South Africa · 3.3M

Cost index: 35Meal: $8Dining index: 31

#14

Rio de Janeiro

🇧🇷 Brazil · 6.7M

Cost index: 35Meal: $8Dining index: 33

#15

Quito

🇪🇨 Ecuador · 2.8M

Cost index: 34Meal: $5Dining index: 34

#16

Saint Petersburg

🇷🇺 Russia · 5.4M

Cost index: 41Meal: $11Dining index: 39

#17

Plovdiv

🇧🇬 Bulgaria · 329K

Cost index: 40Meal: $9Dining index: 39

#18

Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan · 2.0M

Cost index: 36Meal: $11Dining index: 39

#19

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia · 1.0M

Cost index: 37Meal: $11Dining index: 42

#20

Brno

🇨🇿 Czechia · 379K

Cost index: 52Meal: $10Dining index: 43

#21

Guadalajara

🇲🇽 Mexico · 1.4M

Cost index: 42Meal: $11Dining index: 45

#22

Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea · 10.3M

Cost index: 69Meal: $9Dining index: 46

#23

Manama

🇧🇭 Bahrain · 411K

Cost index: 45Meal: $7Dining index: 46

#24

Córdoba

🇪🇸 Spain · 326K

Cost index: 46Meal: $13Dining index: 48

#25

Hong Kong

🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR, China · 7.5M

Cost index: 74Meal: $8Dining index: 49

#26

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary · 1.7M

Cost index: 49Meal: $12Dining index: 50

#27

Kraków

🇵🇱 Poland · 804K

Cost index: 49Meal: $11Dining index: 50

#28

San Jose

🇺🇸 United States · 997K

Cost index: 110Meal: $11Dining index: 52

#29

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania · 1.9M

Cost index: 46Meal: $14Dining index: 53

#30

Zagreb

🇭🇷 Croatia · 664K

Cost index: 53Meal: $14Dining index: 53

#31

Singapore

🇸🇬 Singapore · 5.6M

Cost index: 88Meal: $10Dining index: 54

#32

Riga

🇱🇻 Latvia · 743K

Cost index: 53Meal: $14Dining index: 55

#33

Palermo

🇮🇹 Italy · 648K

Cost index: 55Meal: $17Dining index: 56

#34

Abu Dhabi

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates · 1.8M

Cost index: 53Meal: $10Dining index: 59

#35

Auckland

🇳🇿 New Zealand · 1.5M

Cost index: 64Meal: $15Dining index: 61

#36

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece · 664K

Cost index: 57Meal: $18Dining index: 63

#37

Montevideo

🇺🇾 Uruguay · 1.3M

Cost index: 59Meal: $18Dining index: 64

#38

Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina · 2.9M

Cost index: 50Meal: $20Dining index: 65

#39

Montreal

🇨🇦 Canada · 1.8M

Cost index: 61Meal: $18Dining index: 66

#40

Lyon

🇫🇷 France · 521K

Cost index: 73Meal: $17Dining index: 67