The Americas Expat Cost of Living Comparison Rankings January 2016

Caracas in Venezuela (the world's fifth largest exporter of oil) is the most expensive expat destination in the Americas and in the worldwide rankings. NOTE: Caracas's ranking can vary greatly depending on the exchange rate selected (very expensive using the official exchange rate but very cheap using the black market rate), we have taken the view that Caracas cannot be left out of the rankings, and that the relative, real, cost to a typical professional expatriate, employed by a large corporate at the official exchange rate, be included in the survey. The anticipated fall in the cost of living in Venezuela has not occurred. There are continued shortages of basic grocery items such as flour, milk and toilet paper. The parallel exchange rate continues to exist but is not widely available. Strict government regulations limiting the hiring and compensation of foreign workers is eroding the attractiveness of the country for expatriates.

Xpatulator.com has been created to calculate expatriate pay using online calculators and an extensive database of cost of living and hardship indexes, for 780 international locations. The database is updated quarterly. Subscribers use this information to ensure expatriate salary spending power is maintained when on an international assignment. Salary spending power is affected by cost of living, hardship and exchange rate differences between the home and host location.

Hamilton is the second most expensive location in the Americas, in 10th place globally, this is due to the high price of property and the fact that most items have to be transported to Bermuda adding a great deal to the cost of expatriate items.

New York (Manhattan) NY is the third most expensive location in the Americas, the most expensive city in the USA in 11th place worldwide, this is mainly due to the highly priced rental property market. Overall locations across the United States have climbed the rankings during 2015 as a result of the strong US Dollar against most other global currencies. The second most expensive city in the USA is Honolulu, HI ranked 6th in the region and 27th in the world, followed by San Jose in California ranked 32nd in the world. In comparison the highest ranked city in Canada is Toronto, ranked 130th most expensive in the world in 2016, down 45 places from 2015.The Canadian Dollar lost almost 20% against the US Dollar during 2015.

Completing the top 5 in the Americas are Nassau ranked 4th, and George Town in the Cayman Islands 5th.

For more, read a free cost of living review for the following locations in the Americas:

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