Zurich becomes world’s most expensive city according to latest survey

Zurich has topped Tokyo to become the world’s most expensive city, a survey revealed on Tuesday.

The Swiss Franc’s allure as a safe haven for investors moving their funds out of Euro zone countries pushed Zurich to the top spot from fifth last year, while Geneva came in third, Reuters reported.

Five Australian cities made it into the top 20, led by Sydney and Melbourne in seventh and eighth places, according to the survey.

“Exchange rates have been the greatest influence for the Australian cost of living, with the Australian dollar seeing its value to the U.S. dollar double in a decade,” said survey editor Jon Copestake in a statement.

The Canadian city of Vancouver overtook U.S. cities to become the most expensive city in North America, ranked the 37^th most expensive city in the world. Los Angeles was the most expensive U.S. city – at equal 42^nd spot with Shanghai – while New York came in 47th on the list.

The Worldwide Cost of Living survey was carried out by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The survey of 130 cities worldwide compares more than 400 individual prices across 160 products, including food, clothing, transport, rental prices and private schools.

Asian cities moved up the ranking, with Singapore gaining one place to 9th spot and Seoul climbing nine places to 27th.

But Asia was also home to some of the world’s cheapest cities. Three of the four cheapest were in the Indian subcontinent: New Delhi and Mumbai in India, and Karachi in Pakistan, which was the cheapest of the cities surveyed.

The 10 most expensive cities are:

1. Zurich  (Switzerland)
2. Tokyo  (Japan)
3. Geneva (Switzerland)
4. Osaka Kobe (Japan)
5. Oslo  (Norway)
6. Paris  (France)
7. Sydney  (Australia)
8. Melbourne  (Australia)
9. Singapore
10. Frankfurt  (Germany)

The 10 least expensive cities are:

1. Muscat (Oman)
2. Dhaka (Bangladesh)
3. Algiers (Algeria)
4. Kathmandu (Nepal)
5. Panama City (Panama)
6. Jeddah (Saudi Arabia)
7. New Delhi (India)
8. Tehran (Iran)
9. Mumbai (India)
10. Karachi (Pakistan)

Source: Economist Intelligence Unit