Not only is California home to the US’s second most expensive city, according to Mercer, it’s also home to its fourth—San Francisco (Honolulu, Hawaii, snagged the country’s third place designation). Like so many places on this list, limited housing with a lot of demand makes LA so costly. According to Apartments.com, the average rent here is $2,167 per month. The median listing price for a home is $1.2 million, which is up 2.5% from last year, according to Realtor.com. Perhaps it’s the Pacific Coast in year-round nearly perfect weather that continues to draw residents.
Frequently asked questionsWhat makes a city more expensive?
It’s no fluke that Hong Kong, Singapore, and Zurich landed at the top of this list. In fact, the same three cities were the most expensive places on Mercer’s previous list as well. So what factors contribute to the high costs of living, especially for international workers, which is primarily what Mercer focuses on? Housing markets, hefty transportation costs, and higher cost of goods and services consistently affect Hong Kong, Singapore, and Zurich. As for cities that move around a bit more on the ranking, factors such as inflation and exchange-rate fluctuations, geopolitical volatility, and local conflicts can affect a place’s affordability from one year to the next.
What is the least expensive city in the world?
On the opposite side of the list, the world’s three least expensive cities are Islamabad, Pakistan; Lagos, Nigeria; and Abuja, Nigeria; ranking 224, 225, and 226, respectively. Mercer notes that currency depreciation in these places is the driving force behind their more affordable status.
What is the most expensive country in the world?
Swiss cities nabbed nearly half the spots on the top 10 list, clearly making Switzerland one of the most expensive countries in the world. The European nation known for its luxury watches and winter skiing landed among the top five on the World Population Review’s Most Expensive Countries to Live In 2026 list. According to that ranking, the monthly cost of living in Switzerland is $3,189 (USD), compared to just $384 in Egypt, which is at the opposite end of the list. (For comparison’s sake, monthly living costs in the US are reported at $2,504.) Iceland, Singapore, and the Cayman Islands also landed in the top five for most expensive, with Monaco taking the top spot—monthly living costs there come in at a whopping $7,831.