Top 10 Of The World's Most Highest Cities To Live In 2022: There's New York To Tel Aviv

Times Square, New York City, United States. (Unsplash/Andreas Kruck)

JAKARTA - The ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and the COVID-19 pandemic have also affected the global increase in the cost of living needs in the world.

According to the World Cost of Living Index this year, released by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the average cost of living will rise 8.1 percent in 2022.

"The war in Ukraine, Western sanctions against Russia and China's zero-COVID policy have caused supply chain problems, combined with rising interest rates and exchange rates, have resulted in a worldwide cost of living crisis," Upasana Dutt, head of world cost of living at EIU, said in a media statement, as reported by CNN December 1.

We can clearly see the impact in this year's index, with the average price increase in 172 cities in our survey being the strongest we've seen in 20 years where we have digital data. The increase in gasoline prices in cities is very strong (like last year), but food, utilities and household goods are all becoming more expensive for the city's population," he explained.

So, in an expensive year, which city is the most expensive to live in?

The EIU, which tracks daily spending in 172 cities around the world, is based in London. The British capital fell significantly on this year's list, landing in 27th position.

There are four European cities in the top 10. Zurich, which is ranked sixth, is the highest, with Paris, Copenhagen and fellow Swiss cities, Geneva, completing the rest.

The most significant cause of rising prices in Western Europe is the increase in gas prices, as a result of Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine and the region trying to find alternative gas sources. The price of one liter of gasoline has risen 22 percent compared to last year's period.

Not surprisingly, Russian cities such as Moscow and St. Petersburg have both experienced significant cost of living increases. Meanwhile, the capital of Ukraine, Kyiv, was not analyzed this year.

In addition to the cost of fuel, one of the factors cited by EIU is the uneven value of the Euros, which are used by some but not all European cities on this year's list, the UK uses the pound and Swiss owns the franc.

Three other cities in Europe, Stockholm, Lyon and Luxembourg are also not on the list.

Meanwhile, the position of the city with the highest cost of living this year is occupied by New York, United States with Singapore. On last year's tally, New York was in sixth position.

Two other American metropolitan cities are also in the top 10, namely Los Angeles in fourth place with Hong Kong and San Francisco in eighth place.

In total, 22 of the 172 cities the EIU traces annually are in the US, including Portland, Boston, Chicago and Charlotte. Each of those 22 people has experienced an increase in inflation this year.

Meanwhile, last year's winner, Tel Aviv, dropped to third.

To make a list, EIU compared more than 400 individual prices in more than 200 products and services in 172 cities. They surveyed various businesses, both high-end and lower-class, to find out how much the price fluctuated over the past year.

Another company, global mobility firm ECA International, issues its own rankings for the most expensive cities in the world every year. The ECA list uses slightly different methodologies, looks at daily expenses such as rentals and public transport costs and does not include luxury products in its calculations.

The list, published in June, gives Hong Kong the most expensive city title for the third year in a row and New York in second. However, the ECA list is highly inclined to major Asian cities, as Seoul, Shanghai and other East Asian city centers are all in the top 10.

The EIU list refers to prices in New York City, therefore cities with stronger currencies against the US dollar tend to appear higher in the rankings.

10 The Most Highest City in the World to Live in 2022

1. New York and Singapore

3. Tel Aviv, Israel

4. Hong Kong and Los Angeles

6. Z\"urich, Switzerland

7. Geneva, Switzerland

8. San Francisco, California

9. Paris, France

10. Copenhagen, Denmark