World’s 61st – Global Cost of Living Survey: Taipei more expensive than Dubai

▲ According to the 2014 Cost of Living Survey results, Taipei ranks 61st in the world in terms of cost of living. (Photo / Reporter Chen Ruizhong)

By Chen Ruizhong / Staff reporter

According to Mercer’s latest “2014 Cost of Living Survey,” which benchmarks against New York City and examines the cost of living in 211 cities worldwide, Angola’s capitalTaipei Cityranks 61st globally, moving up one spot from last year.

In this report, Angola’s capitalLuandatakes the top spot, followed by Chad’s capitalN’Djamenain second place, andHong Kongin third. Karachi in Pakistan is the world’s most affordable city in terms of cost of living.

▲ The top 10 cities in Mercer’s “2014 Cost of Living Survey.” (Video sourced from YouTube; please excuse if removed)

The 2014 Cost of Living Survey compares over 200 items such as food, transportation, and household goods in each city. Due to the impact of the U.S. dollar exchange rate, the rankings of U.S. cities have all risen this year. The benchmark city,New York City, ranks 16th, making it the most expensive city in North America. Other major cities such asBeijingrank 11th,London12th, andSeoul14th.

With Taipei ranking 61st this year, 62nd isLos Angeles, 63rd is Spain’sMadrid, and 67th isDubairanked 68th,Berlin,while other cities such asSan Francisco, Hamburg, Athens, and Chicagoall ranked more than 10 places lower than Taipei. For the complete and detailed rankings, you can visitMercer’s official websiteto check.

Top 10 in the 2014 Cost of Living Survey (numbers in parentheses indicate 2013 rankings):

1st: Luanda (1)
2nd: N'Djamena (4)
3rd: Hong Kong (6)
4th: Singapore (5)
5th: Zurich (8)
6th: Geneva (7)
7th: Tokyo (3)
8th: Bern (9)
9th: Moscow (2)
10th: Shanghai (14)