What are the most expensive countries to live in?
By Beatrice Clarke
International relocation website MoveHub has created an infographic of comparative living costs around the world for 2015.
Using data compiled by internet database Numbeo, MoveHub’s map colour codes countries based on their Consumer Price Index (CPI), which is calculated in relation to the cost of living in New York City. Prices of groceries, transport, utilities and eating out are combined in a series of indices to calculate a country's CPI. A country with a CPI of 70 means that its cost of living is 30 per cent cheaper than in NYC.
The Netherlands is at the higher end of the scale, raking 16th with a CPI of 86, meaning it is 14 per cent cheaper to live in than NYC.
France, Belgium, Italy and Sweden are other EU nations with a CPI close to the Netherlands. Switzerland tops the chart with a CPI of 126, with living costs a whole 26 per cent higher than in the Big Apple.
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Beatrice is a native Melbournian who moved to the Netherlands in 2009. With a background in independent publishing and fashion, Beatrice honed her understanding of Dutch language and culture working for three years in cosmopolitan Heerhugowaard. Read more