 The citizens of Sydney enjoy the second-highest purchasing power in the world  FRONT PAGE Site Search About us FRONT PAGE Site Search About us    UBS: Most expensive and richest cities ECA: Most expensive cities EIU: Most expensive cities Mercer: Most expensive cities Global Cities Index World's top cities World's richest cities (GDP) Richest cities (earnings) Most powerful cities World's best financial cities Europe's top city brands European growth cities 2009 Real estate USA Real estate Europe European business cities Best world cities to live in World's largest cities and their mayors 2010  Worldwide | Elections | North America | Latin America | Europe | Asia | Africa |                           |
The most expensive and
15 September 2012: Comparing domestic prices for a universal basket of goods against corresponding domestic wages allowed the UBS researchers to examine the difference in relative purchasing power. Therefore people working in Zurich can domestically afford the most in relation to other cities in the survey. |
| 2018 Earnings, Prices & Wealth Survey ||| Introduction ||| The most expensive cities ||| The richest cities ||| The most powerful cities ||| The Big Mac Guide ||| |
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How much a wage is actually worth is best described by comparing purchasing power in relation to goods that are as homogenous as possible around the globe. Thus, in Tokyo it takes nine minutes of work to earn enough to buy a Big Mac, while in Nairobi it takes 81 minutes. Workers in Zurich can buy an iPhone after 22 hours work; in Manila, by contrast, it takes around 20 times longer.
Ranking: The richest cities in the world
(By domestic purchasing power)
|
Rank 2012
|
Rank 2011
|
Cities
|
|
1
|
1
|
Zurich |
|
2
|
2
|
Sydney |
|
3
|
3
|
Luxembourg |
|
4
|
7
|
Geneva |
|
5
|
10
|
Nicosia |
|
6
|
5
|
Los Angeles |
|
7
|
4
|
Miami |
|
8
|
6
|
Dublin |
|
9
|
9
|
Chicago |
|
10
|
8
|
New York City |
|
11
|
12
|
Berlin |
|
12
|
17
|
Copenhagen |
|
13
|
15
|
Toronto |
|
14
|
19
|
Frankfurt |
|
15
|
18
|
Amsterdam |
|
16
|
20
|
Munich |
|
17
|
28
|
Paris |
|
18
|
24
|
Vienna |
|
19
|
16
|
London |
|
20
|
14
|
Helsinki |
|
21
|
21
|
Stockholm |
|
22
|
26
|
Oslo |
|
23
|
25
|
Madrid |
|
24
|
23
|
Tokyo |
|
25
|
30
|
Auckland |
|
26
|
22
|
Lyon |
|
27
|
32
|
Dubai |
|
28
|
11
|
Montreal |
|
29
|
29
|
Barcelona |
|
30
|
13
|
Brussels |
|
31
|
27
|
Milan |
|
32
|
38
|
Johannesburg |
|
33
|
42
|
Seoul |
|
34
|
36
|
Manama |
|
35
|
40
|
Hong Kong |
|
36
|
31
|
Lisbon |
|
37
|
33
|
Taipei |
|
38
|
41
|
Rome |
|
39
|
35
|
Athens |
|
40
|
34
|
Tel Aviv |
|
41
|
37
|
Moscow |
|
42
|
51
|
Bratislava |
|
43
|
39
|
Ljubljana |
|
44
|
45
|
Doha |
|
45
|
44
|
Sao Paulo |
|
46
|
43
|
Tallinn |
|
47
|
46
|
Prague |
|
48
|
53
|
Buenos Aires |
|
49
|
55
|
Lima |
|
50
|
48
|
Rio de Janeiro |
|
51
|
49
|
Kuala Lumpur |
|
52
|
54
|
Vilnius |
|
53
|
50
|
Bogota |
|
54
|
52
|
Warsaw |
|
55
|
56
|
Santiago de Chile |
|
56
|
59
|
Istanbul |
|
57
|
57
|
Riga |
|
58
|
61
|
Shanghai |
|
59
|
58
|
Bucharest |
|
60
|
64
|
Sofia |
|
61
|
60
|
Budapest |
|
62
|
66
|
Bangkok |
|
63
|
63
|
Beijing |
|
64
|
70
|
Mexico City |
|
65
|
65
|
Cairo |
|
66
|
69
|
Mumbai |
|
67
|
62
|
Caracas |
|
68
|
67
|
Delhi |
|
69
|
68
|
Kiev |
|
70
|
72
|
Nairobi |
|
71
|
71
|
Manila |
|
72
|
73
|
Jakarta |
UBS survey: Introduction | The most expensive cities | The richest cities (personal earnings) | Richest cities (purchasing power) | The iPod index |
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Related research
| THE MOST EXPENSIVE AND RICHEST CITIES IN THE WORLD UBS survey (2012): Most expensiv and richeste cities (Intro) | World's most expensive cities (table) | Richest cities by personal earnings (table) | Richest cities by purchasing power (table | The iPod index | ECA International survey (2011): Introduction | Table: World | Table: Europe | Table: Asia | Mercer survey (2012): Most expensive cities EIU survey (2012): Most expensive cities RICHEST CITIES BY GDP Introduction | 150 richest cities in 2005 | 150 richest cities in 2020 | Europe's richest cities | |
THE LARGEST CITIES IN THE WORLD AND THEIR MAYORS 2011
Introduction
Cities by size: 1 to 150 | 151 to 300 | 301 to 450 | 451 to 550 |
Cities in alphabetical order: A to D | E to L | M to R | S to Z |
Cities by countries: A to D | E to L | M to R | S to Z |
