Moving in: Top five most expensive cities for expats

We recently detailed five costliest countries to relocate to in 2020. If you weren’t surprised to find Switzerland topping the chart then, don’t been taken aback by the fact that four of the top five most expensive cities for foreign workers – according to ECA International’s survey – are Swiss. 

Ashgabat (the capital city for Turkmenistan) was second on the list (after Hong Kong) of most expensive cities in the world recently, as per Mercer’s cost of living survey.

Most expensive five

Now per the international recruitment specialists index – Ashgabat has dethroned Hong Kong at the top of the chart and is closely followed by four Swiss cities in descending order; Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Bern – sending Hong Kong down to sixth spot in the list. 

This list is based on the cost of living in cities around the world for expats. If you are planning to relocate, this may just be the time to rework your economics and then take the plunge.

A little drop in Hong Kong’s ranking is attributed by experts to the persistent political protests and unsettled streets in the country. This aspect may change since Hong Kong, despite ongoing disturbance, has managed the pandemic fairly well in comparison to other countries, which will help its economy recover fast. 

The prevalent scenario

This year, just like everything else, such rankings have also not remained unaffected by coronavirus. Everything from shutting down of international boarders, short-term domestic lockdowns has had some sort of impact on the on cost of living and rankings.

Expensive cities are going to get more expensive as real estate prices boom amid people demanding more office space to maintain social distancing at work and homeowners desire properties with gardens to have access to greens and veggies.