5. Tokyo
Tokyo (Japan) has an area of 2,194 km², a population of 13.96 million people (in 2021). Japan is known as a country with a high cost of living, in which the capital Tokyo is the place with the highest cost of living in the city in this country. Expensive costs in this city include rent, car ownership and transportation – high-speed trains.
6. Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv (Israel) has an area of 52 km², a population of 460,613 (2020). It is the most expensive city in the Middle East. Tel Aviv is the hub of all things luxury and royalty. The city’s high cost of living is attributed to the appreciation of Israel’s currency, the shekel.
7. Zurich
Zurich (Switzerland) has an area of 87.88 km², population: 443,335 (2020). Switzerland is known as the country for the rich, that’s why the country has 2 cities in the top 10 most expensive cities to live in. This is where a large number of wealthy people live, and those who work in this city have the highest salaries in the world. Many major banks in the world have their headquarters in Zurich.
8. Shanghai
Shanghai (China) has an area of 6,340 km², a population of 26.32 million people (2019). Shanghai is not only one of the most populous cities in the world, but also on the list of the most expensive cities. Shanghai made this list due to its high inflation rate, along with the strength of the Chinese yuan once morest other currencies.
9. Guangzhou
Guangzhou (China) has an area of 7,434 km², a population of 15.31 million (2019). Like Shanghai, Guangzhou has many similarities that explain why it is an expensive city to live in. Such is the strength of the renminbi, high inflation rates, and a consistently high overall cost of living.
10. Seoul
Seoul has an area of 605.2 km² and a population of 10.12 million people (2022). The South Korean city of Seoul is on the red list largely due to the high cost of housing and the down payment that residents have to pay. If you want to buy a house in Seoul, the buyer has to spend 4 times the total income a year, or regarding 250,000 USD. However, these are only places regarding 30 km away from the center. In addition, living expenses such as meals and tuition are also very expensive due to the huge gap between rich and poor in this city.