Where you live is the single biggest lever on your finances. Whether you're planning for FIRE, evaluating a remote job, or considering a move abroad, understanding the real cost of living in each city is the first step to making your money go further.
NetWorthCast compares monthly costs across 44 cities in 11 world regions — covering rent, food, transport, utilities, healthcare, taxes, and more. Plug in your income and family size to see exactly how far your paycheck stretches in each location.
Our cost of living database covers 44 cities across every major region. Each city includes monthly estimates for a single person and scaling factors for couples and families.
Every city is broken down into eight cost categories so you can see exactly where your money goes.
Rent is typically the largest expense and varies the most between cities — from under $400/month in Chiang Mai to over $3,000/month in Zurich. Taxes can swing your take-home pay by 30% or more.
NetWorthCast's cost of living comparison is built into your financial forecast, so you can see the real impact on your net worth over time.
A single person in NYC spends roughly $4,800/month on essentials. The same lifestyle in Lisbon costs around $2,200/month — a 54% reduction. Rent alone drops from ~$2,800 to ~$1,100. Portugal's Non-Habitual Resident tax regime can further reduce your effective tax rate.
San Francisco averages $5,500/month for a single person. Bangkok comes in around $1,400/month — roughly 75% cheaper. Food costs drop dramatically, and healthcare is high quality at a fraction of the US price. Thailand's digital nomad visa makes long-term stays viable.
London runs about $4,200/month. Tbilisi averages $1,100/month — a 74% savings. Georgia offers a territorial tax system (foreign-source income is not taxed) and one of the most welcoming visa regimes for remote workers.
Dubai's high rents push monthly costs to about $3,600 for a single person, despite 0% income tax. Bali averages $1,300/month with a similar lifestyle. The trade-off: Dubai offers world-class infrastructure, while Bali offers nature and a slower pace — both with favorable tax treatment for many nationalities.
If you earn in USD, EUR, or GBP and can work from anywhere, cost of living comparison becomes your most powerful financial tool. This strategy — earning in a strong currency while spending in a weaker one — is called geographic arbitrage.
Many cities on our list now offer digital nomad visas or freelancer permits: Portugal, Spain, Georgia, Estonia, Thailand, Colombia, and the UAE all have dedicated programs. Visa type affects your tax obligations, so always check local requirements.
Moving abroad doesn't automatically eliminate your home-country tax obligations. US citizens are taxed on worldwide income. EU residents may trigger tax residency after 183 days. Countries like Georgia, Dubai, and Paraguay offer territorial or zero income tax — but the rules are nuanced. NetWorthCast includes estimated tax rates per city to help you plan.
Combining remote work with a low cost-of-living base can cut years off your FIRE timeline. If your expenses drop by 50%, your FIRE number drops by 50% — and your savings rate jumps, compounding the effect. Use NetWorthCast to model the impact of relocation on your 30-year financial forecast.
A cost of living comparison measures how expensive it is to maintain a similar standard of living in different cities or countries. It covers rent, groceries, transport, utilities, healthcare, and taxes. NetWorthCast compares 44 cities across 11 regions so you can see where your money goes furthest.
Enter your income and family size. The calculator scales costs for each city based on household size and shows a monthly breakdown of rent, food, transport, utilities, healthcare, other expenses, and estimated tax. Compare two cities side by side or browse all 44 ranked by total monthly cost.
Among our 44 cities, Chiang Mai, Sofia, Goa, and Da Nang consistently rank as the most affordable. But the cheapest city for you depends on your lifestyle, family size, and which expense categories matter most to you.
Yes. NetWorthCast includes an estimated effective tax rate for each city so you compare take-home purchasing power, not just pre-tax costs. Tax rates range from 0% in Dubai to over 40% in parts of Western Europe.
Your FIRE number is 25x your annual expenses. Relocating from a $5,000/month city to a $2,500/month city cuts your FIRE number from $1.5M to $750K — roughly halving your time to financial independence.
Geographic arbitrage means earning in a strong currency while living in a lower-cost location. Remote workers use this to save more, invest more, and reach financial independence faster. Learn more about geographic arbitrage.
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