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NYC is officially the most expensive city in the world

It's the first time ever that NYC tops the list.

Anna Rahmanan
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Anna Rahmanan
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Last year, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) used the Worldwide Cost of Living Index to deem New York one of the ten most expensive cities in the world. As suspected given the constant increase in our average rent prices and living expenses, our very own town has actually topped that list this year for the very first time ever, officially becoming the most expensive city to live in in the whole world, tying in first place with Singapore.

Considering New York was in sixth place in 2021, this is obviously a big deal.

To come up with the annual ranking, which you can browse in full right here, the EIU compares over 400 individual prices across 200 products and services that range in form and function in 172 different cities.

The methodology also yields a slew of interesting insights about the global economy. This year, for example, the study indicates that the average cost of living is up by a bit over 8%, mostly because of the effects of the pandemic and the Russian war in Ukraine.

"The war in Ukraine, Western sanctions on Russia and China's zero-Covid policies have caused supply-chain problems that, combined with rising interest rates and exchange-rate shifts, have resulted in a cost-of-living crisis across the world," explained Upasana Dutt, the head of worldwide cost of living at EIU, in an official statement. "We can clearly see the impact in this year's index, with the average price rise across the 172 cities in our survey being the strongest we've seen in the 20 years for which we have digital data. The rise in petrol prices in cities was particularly strong (as it was last year), but food, utilities and household goods are all getting more expensive for city-dwellers."

Below, find the ten most expensive cities to live in in the world in 2022:

1. New York and Singapore (tie)
3. Tel Aviv, Israel
4. Hong Kong and Los Angeles (tie)
6. Zurich, Switzerland
7. Geneva, Switzerland
8. San Francisco, California
9. Paris, France
10. Copenhagen, Denmark

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