116 World cities by price: Backpacker Index for 2012
Being able to compare cities by price within a region can be helpful for those who are figuring out where to visit on an upcoming trip, but for people in the earliest stages of planning it might be even more interesting to see the whole world on the same list. Having been completely updated for 2012, the World Backpacker Index now includes 116 cities and destinations, ranked below from cheapest to most expensive.
Through most of the world prices went up only modestly during 2011, though currency shifts did scramble the order from last year in some cases as well. Unsurprisingly, the world’s cheapest destinations tend to be in Asia and Latin America, but some fantastic bargains can be found in the former-East zone in Europe as well.
Detailed information available by region
- Africa and Middle East Backpacker Index for 2012
- Asia Backpacker Index for 2012
- Australia/New Zealand Backpacker Index for 2012
- European Backpacker Index for 2012
- North America Backpacker Index for 2012
- South and Central America Backpacker Index for 2012
What the prices below mean
There is a longer explanation of the Backpacker Index on each of the regional pages, but the short version is that we found the price for a group of things for each destination, and then translated that into US dollars in late January 2012. While this data is meant for backpackers and budget travelers, the proportions will be nearly identical, so the list should also be useful to those with more money to spend.
For each city this daily total includes:
- A dorm bed at a good and cheap hostel
- 3 budget meals
- 2 public transportation rides
- 1 paid cultural attraction
- 3 cheap beers (as an “entertainment fund”)
Backpacker Index: 116 global destinations for 2012
(Converted into USDs in late January, 2012)
Cheapest to most expensive
- Pokhara, Nepal – US$15.83
- Hanoi, Vietnam – $16.54
- Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – $17.36
- Chiang Mai, Thailand – $18.59
- Hoi An, Vietnam – $18.70
- Goa, India – $18.80
- Kathmandu, Nepal – $19.33
- Phnom Penh, Cambodia – $19.95
- Luang Prabang, Laos – $19.96
- Quito, Ecuador – $20.30
- La Paz, Bolivia – $21.55
- Bangkok, Thailand – $22.29
- Kuta, Bali, Indonesia – $22.92
- Manila, Philippines – $24.01
- Sofia, Bulgaria – $24.19
- Krakow, Poland – $25.53
- Mexico City, Mexico – $25.56
- Siem Reap, Cambodia – $25.70
- Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – $25.72
- Phuket, Thailand – $25.87
- Belgrade, Serbia – $26.00
- Vientiane, Laos – $26.03
- Delhi, India – $26.08
- Cairo, Egypt – $26.23
- Lima, Peru – $26.23
- Beijing, China – $26.37
- Cusco, Peru – $26.51
- Riga, Latvia – $26.60
- Amman, Jordan – $26.70
- Fez, Morocco – $27.71
- Panama City, Panama - $27.90
- Kiev, Ukraine – $28.56
- Marrakech, Morocco – $28.89
- Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina – $29.39
- Antigua, Guatemala – $29.65
- Taipei, Taiwan – $29.90
- Dakar, Senegal – $30.29
- Cartagena, Colombia – $31.15
- Bucharest, Romania – $32.28
- Budapest, Hungary – $32.55
- Mumbai, India – $32.69
- San Jose, Costa Rica – $33.44
- Montevideo, Uruguay - $33.59
- Warsaw, Poland – $33.77
- Shanghai, China – $33.91
- Antalya, Turkey – $34.33
- Seoul, South Korea – $34.60
- Beirut, Lebanon – $34.74
- Santiago, Chile – $36.81
- Bratislava, Slovakia – $36.84
- Macau, China – $38.94
- Hong Kong, China – $38.94
- Istanbul, Turkey – $40.11
- Buenos Aires, Argentina – $41.15
- St. Petersburg, Russia – $42.02
- Singapore, Singapore – $42.54
- Cancun, Mexico – $43.90
- Zagreb, Croatia – $44.10
- Prague, Czech Republic – $45.03
- Cape Town, South Africa – $45.59
- San Pedro, Belize – $47.29
- Moscow, Russia – $47.67
- Las Vegas, USA – $48.40
- Tenerife, Spain – $49.87
- Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – $51.16
- Tallinn, Estonia – $55.05
- Tel Aviv, Israel – $55.91
- Lisbon, Portugal – $57.08
- New Orleans, USA – $58.90
- Berlin, Germany – $61.58
- Auckland, New Zealand – $62.30
- Athens, Greece – $62.50
- Dubai, UAE – $62.56
- Bruges, Belgium – $63.16
- Montreal, Canada – $63.76
- Naples, Italy – $63.82
- Ibiza, Spain – $64.74
- Madrid, Spain – $64.74
- Caracas, Venezuela – $64.80
- San Francisco, USA – $65.40
- Reykjavik, Iceland – $65.56
- London, England – $67.19
- Washington DC, USA – $67.80
- Dublin, Ireland – $67.89
- Dubrovnik, Croatia – $68.47
- Los Angeles, USA – $68.56
- Honolulu, USA – $68.60
- Vancouver, Canada – $69.15
- Florence, Italy – $69.61
- Nice, France – $70.00
- Barcelona, Spain – $70.26
- Galway, Ireland – $71.58
- Chicago, USA – $71.60
- Luxembourg City, Luxembourg – $71.71
- Munich, Germany – $73.95
- Edinburgh, Scotland – $74.38
- Hamburg, Germany – $74.61
- Miami Beach, USA – $76.20
- Queenstown, New Zealand – $77.21
- Toronto, Canada – $77.75
- Paris, France – $81.12
- Milan, Italy – $81.32
- Vienna, Austria – $81.84
- Helsinki, Finland – $82.50
- Rome, Italy – $82.50
- Copenhagen, Denmark – $82.65
- Melbourne, Australia – $85.96
- Sydney, Australia – $88.30
- Amsterdam, Netherlands – $88.95
- New York City, USA – $89.30
- Tokyo, Japan – $89.31
- Brussels, Belgium – $91.32
- Venice, Italy – $92.63
- Stockholm, Sweden – $98.37
- Oslo, Norway – $106.53
- Zurich, Switzerland – $121.36
Related posts:
- 9 Africa and Middle East cities by price: Backpacker Index for 2012
- 4 Australia and New Zealand cities by price: Backpacker Index for 2012
- 15 South and Central American cities by price: Backpacker Index for 2012
- 12 North American cities by price: Backpacker Index for 2012
- 26 Asian cities by price: Backpacker Index for 2012
2 Responses to “116 World cities by price: Backpacker Index for 2012”
Adam, Thanks for the comments, and I know exactly what you mean. In the cases you mentioned, it’s because Phnom Penh has cheap hostel beds and Kuta doesn’t, so the accommodation cost in Kuta was higher. Also, hostels in Vientiane are weirdly expensive, quite a bit more per bed than in KL. All other costs are cheaper in Vientiane than in KL, but the idea behind this index is to judge things in a rigid way and show the results, rather than just going with my gut and moving them around freely. The list with all items broken down is available by clicking on the Asia Backpacker Index, linked at the top of every page.
Another thing I hope people realize is that the value of this Backpacker Index is really in knowing that Hanoi is half the price of Bangkok, which is half the price of Singapore, which is half the price of Tokyo, more or less. For the cities that are bunched close together in prices you can just figure they’ll be about the same, even if one is 4 places down the list from another. Then there’s the phenomenon where most of us splurge in the cheap cities and not in the pricey ones. For example, in Siem Reap where beers are US$0.50, I’d have 8 pints a day, and in Bangkok where they are US$3 each, I’d usually have none. -Roger
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Nice list. Based on my experience, there is no way that kuta is more expensive the phnom penh. Just no way. Also, KL cheaper than Vientiane? 3 beers in KL is enough to blow any backpacker budget whereas these costs are negligible in Laos…