How much do hostels cost around the world? Hostel Price Index for 2023
The hostel industry has had some serious struggles in the past few years, but as of early 2023, most hostels have reopened and are welcoming backpackers and other budget travelers. Every year we research hostel prices in over 130 of the world’s top destinations to compile our Backpacker Index, which ranks all of the world’s best destinations from cheapest to most expensive for budget travelers. This year we are publishing just the hostel portion of the research and it’s displayed below.
The Backpacker Index has been running since 2011 and it includes a basket of daily averages for food, transportation, attractions, drinks & entertainment, and a hostel dorm bed for the night. It may surprise some people to see that hostel dorm beds range from just over US$3 per night to over US$70 per night, and the dorm bed itself can often account for half the daily expense total. I find it interesting comparing the list below with our Backpacker Index to see which places have weirdly cheap hostels and which have weirdly expensive hostels.
How we created the Hostel Index
The Hostel Index shows the price per night (including taxes and fees) for one person in a shared dorm room, using the average of a Thursday and Friday night in mid April, 2023.
Since hostels open, close, and change names on a regular basis, we only chose hostels with a large number of overall reviews. It appears to be easy to generate up to 100 very positive reviews when you first open up, so it’s hard to trusts brand-new hostels. But once you’ve been open and busy for at least a year, it’s very difficult to manipulate review scores so places with hundreds or thousands of reviews tend to be easier to trust.
Wherever possible we chose the cheapest well-located hostel with a minimum of an 8.0 review score on Hostelworld.com, which is our booking partner. If the best-reviewed cheap hostel in a city is on the outskirts of town or near the airport, we don’t use it. This way it’s more of an apples-to-apples comparison.
2023 Hostel trends we noticed
In doing this research it was a little bit surprising how few hostels seemed to have gone out of business during the pandemic. Especially for those first two years of 2020 and 2021, it was hard to imagine a business that would be harder hit than a public facility where up to 36 strangers would be sleeping in the same room together. I’m sure many hostels DID go out of business, but it’s good news that so many didn’t.
Unsurprisingly, there appears to have been a huge trend towards smaller dorm rooms and private rooms where one group books the entire room for themselves. Every large city used to have several big hostels where every room seemed to have at least 12 beds, and now it seems that most places only have a few large rooms and far more smaller rooms with 4 or 6 beds, and private rooms with 2 to 4 beds.
Price of Travel's Hostel Index for 2023
The list below shows the nightly rate for the cheapest well-located and well-reviewed hostel in each city for an average of a Thursday and Friday night in April, 2023.
| Rank | City | Country | Hostel name | Price per night |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Siem Reap | Cambodia | Siem Reap Pub Hostel | $3.19 |
| 2 | Kathmandu | Nepal | WanderThirst Hostels | $3.60 |
| 3 | Luang Prabang | Laos | Sunrise Riverside Pool Hostel | $3.78 |
| 4 | Marrakech | Morocco | Kasbah Red Castle Hostel | $4.10 |
| 5 | Hoi An | Vietnam | Bed Station Hostel & Pool Bar Hoi An | $4.45 |
| 6 | Cusco | Peru | Magicpacker Hostel | $5.31 |
| 7 | Pokhara | Nepal | Kiwi Backpackers Hostel Pokhara | $5.34 |
| 8 | Vientiane | Laos | Dream Home Hostel | $5.46 |
| 9 | Chiang Mai | Thailand | Monkey Toe Guesthouse | $5.89 |
| 10 | Kuta, Bali | Indonesia | Bali Caps | $6.09 |
| 11 | Phuket | Thailand | Baan Baan Hostel | $6.25 |
| 12 | Kuala Lumpur | Malaysia | Step Inn Guest House and Hostel | $6.36 |
| 13 | Fes | Morocco | Funky Fes | $6.36 |
| 14 | Hanoi | Vietnam | Hanoi Central Backpackers Hostel | $6.39 |
| 15 | Cairo | Egypt | Dahab Hostel | $6.47 |
| 16 | Bangkok | Thailand | Born Free Hostel | $6.48 |
| 17 | Delhi | India | Joey’s Hostel New Delhi | $6.70 |
| 18 | Colombo | Sri Lanka | Colombo Beach Hostel | $7.01 |
| 19 | Quito | Ecuador | The Secret Garden Quito | $7.19 |
| 20 | Lima | Peru | Flying Dog Hostels B&B | $7.70 |
| 21 | Goa | India | Dreams Hostel | $7.87 |
| 22 | Saigon/HCMC | Vietnam | City Backpackers Hostel | $8.52 |
| 23 | Kiev | Ukraine | Dream Hostel Kiev | $8.58 |
| 24 | Jakarta | Indonesia | The Packer Lodge | $8.97 |
| 25 | Dakar | Senegal | Dakar International House | $8.98 |
| 26 | Granada | Nicaragua | De Boca en Boca | $8.99 |
| 27 | Arusha | Tanzania | The Greenhouse | $9.00 |
| 28 | Zanzibar City | Tanzania | Lost & Found | $9.00 |
| 29 | Mumbai | India | Locomo Stay Work Eat | $9.43 |
| 30 | Sofia | Bulgaria | Hostel Mostel | $9.43 |
| 31 | Mexico City | Mexico | Casa MX Alameda | $9.76 |
| 32 | Amman | Jordan | Farah Hotel | $9.86 |
| 33 | Phnom Penh | Cambodia | Mad Monkey Phnom Penh | $10.00 |
| 34 | La Paz | Bolivia | Wild Rover Hostel La Paz | $10.43 |
| 35 | Hong Kong | China | Budget Hostel Hong Kong | $10.70 |
| 36 | Antigua | Guatemala | Tropicana Hostel | $10.82 |
| 37 | Shanghai | China | Meego Youth Hotel | $11.06 |
| 38 | Macau | China | Hou Kong Hotel (private double) | $11.40 |
| 39 | Boracay Island | Philippines | Frendz Resort & Hostel Boracay | $11.44 |
| 40 | Rio de Janeiro | Brazil | Mambembe Hostel | $11.47 |
| 41 | Istanbul | Turkey | Chillout Lya Hostel Bar | $11.89 |
| 42 | Budapest | Hungary | The Hive Party Hostel Budapest | $11.93 |
| 43 | Buenos Aires | Argentina | Rayuela Hostel Boutique | $12.06 |
| 44 | Sarajevo | Bosnia Herz | Balkan Han Hostel | $12.73 |
| 45 | Athens | Greece | Pagration Youth Hostel | $12.77 |
| 46 | Xian | China | Han Tang Inn Hostel | $12.80 |
| 47 | Panama City | Panama | Hostal Casa Areka | $13.00 |
| 48 | San Jose | Costa Rica | In The Wind Hostel & Guesthouse | $13.24 |
| 49 | Manila | Philippines | Ola! Hostel Manila | $13.41 |
| 50 | Prague | Czechia | PLUS Prague | $13.77 |
| 51 | Yangon | Burma | HOOD Hostel | $13.80 |
| 52 | Cape Town | South Africa | Zebra Crossing | $13.82 |
| 53 | Tallinn | Estonia | Lai 22 Hostel | $13.83 |
| 54 | Bucharest | Romania | Sleep In Hostel | $14.05 |
| 55 | Santa Ana | El Salvador | Hostel Casa Verde Santa Ana | $14.16 |
| 56 | Krakow | Poland | Let’s Rock Party Hostel | $14.24 |
| 57 | Roatan Island | Honduras | Roatan Backpacker’s Hostel | $14.29 |
| 58 | Split | Croatia | Old Town Hostel Split | $14.31 |
| 59 | San Pedro | Belize | Sandbar Beachfront Hostel | $14.35 |
| 60 | Beirut | Lebanon | The Colony Hostel Beirut | $14.98 |
| 61 | Cartagena | Colombia | Viajero Cartagena Hostel | $15.14 |
| 62 | Santiago | Chile | Hostel Providencia | $15.35 |
| 63 | Valletta | Malta | Granny’s Inn Hostel | $15.66 |
| 64 | Vilnius | Lithuania | Jimmy Jumps House/Hostel | $15.77 |
| 65 | Belgrade | Serbia | Habitat-Hostel | $15.91 |
| 66 | Santorini | Greece | Youth Hostel Anna | $17.02 |
| 68 | Montevideo | Uruguay | Viajero Montevideo Hostel | $17.16 |
| 69 | Lisbon | Portugal | Lisbon Destination Hostel | $17.76 |
| 70 | Zagreb | Croatia | Hostel Bureau | $18.79 |
| 71 | Berlin | Germany | Heart of Gold Hostel | $19.11 |
| 72 | Seoul | South Korea | Time Travelers Party Hostel in Hongdae | $19.70 |
| 73 | Warsaw | Poland | Chillout Hostel | $20.16 |
| 74 | Cairns | Australia | Gilligan’s Backpacker Hotel & Resort Cairns | $20.34 |
| 75 | Caracas | Venezuela | Hotel El Arroyo | $20.42 |
| 76 | Riga | Latvia | Tree House Hostel | $20.79 |
| 77 | Dubai | UAE | California Hostel Dubai Beach | $20.98 |
| 78 | Naples | Italy | Hostel of the Sun | $21.28 |
| 79 | Tenerife | Spain | Hostel Tenerife | $21.28 |
| 80 | Taipei | Taiwan | Meander Taipei Hostel - Ximending | $21.41 |
| 81 | Bratislava | Slovakia | Patio Hostel | $21.50 |
| 82 | Sydney | Australia | Big Hostel | $22.21 |
| 83 | Barcelona | Spain | Room018 Bcn | $22.23 |
| 84 | Beijing | China | Peking International Youth Hostel | $22.42 |
| 85 | Florence | Italy | PLUS Florence | $22.98 |
| 86 | Helsinki | Finland | CheapSleep Helsinki | $22.98 |
| 87 | Tokyo | Japan | Sakura Hostel Asakusa | $23.07 |
| 88 | Ljubljana | Slovenia | Tresor Hostel | $23.40 |
| 89 | Vienna | Austria | Do Step Inn | $23.40 |
| 90 | Munich | Germany | The 4You Hostel Munich | $23.46 |
| 91 | Madrid | Spain | Mola Hostel | $23.57 |
| 92 | Montreal | Canada | The Alternative Hostel of Old Montreal | $23.63 |
| 93 | Edinburgh | Scotland | Royal Mile Backpackers | $23.71 |
| 94 | Abu Dhabi | UAE | Jennifred Homestays | $23.81 |
| 95 | Las Vegas | USA | Bungalows Hostel | $24.00 |
| 96 | Nice | France | Antares Hostel | $24.47 |
| 97 | Dubrovnik | Croatia | Anchi Guesthouse | $24.57 |
| 98 | Copenhagen | Denmark | Sleep in Heaven | $24.82 |
| 99 | San Francisco | USA | HI San Francisco - Fisherman’s Wharf | $24.99 |
| 100 | Rome | Italy | Palladini Hostel Rome | $25.32 |
| 101 | Brisbane | Australia | Bunk Brisbane | $25.88 |
| 102 | Salzburg | Austria | MEININGER Salzburg City Center | $26.53 |
| 103 | Queenstown | New Zealand | The Flaming Kiwi Backpackers | $26.75 |
| 104 | Tel Aviv | Israel | Roger’s House Tel Aviv | $27.14 |
| 105 | Milan | Italy | City Center Best Hostel Milano | $28.72 |
| 106 | Stockholm | Sweden | Generator Stockholm | $28.86 |
| 107 | Auckland | New Zealand | The Attic Backpackers | $29.30 |
| 108 | Interlaken | Switzerland | Happy Inn Lodge | $30.41 |
| 109 | Melbourne | Australia | Melbourne Central YHA | $30.45 |
| 110 | Toronto | Canada | All Days Hostel | $31.34 |
| 111 | Chicago | USA | Wrigley Hostel | $33.50 |
| 112 | Los Angeles | USA | Samesun Hollywood | $33.50 |
| 113 | Brussels | Belgium | Brussels 2go4 Quality Hostel City Center | $33.51 |
| 114 | Ibiza | Spain | Amistat Island Hostel Ibiza | $33.51 |
| 115 | Nairobi | Kenya | Wildebeest Eco Camp | $33.67 |
| 116 | Bruges | Belgium | St. Christopher’s Inn - Bauhaus Hostel | $34.44 |
| 117 | Reykjavik | Iceland | Dalur - HI Hostel | $35.10 |
| 118 | London | England | Clink261 | $35.35 |
| 119 | Singapore | Singapore | The Bohemian | $35.57 |
| 120 | New Orleans | USA | India House Backpackers Hostel | $36.00 |
| 121 | Luxembourg City | Luxembourg | Luxembourg City Hostel | $37.23 |
| 122 | Paris | France | The 3 Ducks Eiffel Tower by Hiphohostels | $39.36 |
| 123 | Honolulu | USA | Polynesian Hostel Beach Club Waikiki | $39.67 |
| 124 | Bergen | Norway | HI Bergen Hostel Montana | $41.28 |
| 125 | Hamburg | Germany | Generator Hamburg | $42.13 |
| 126 | Vancouver | Canada | Samesun Vancouver | $42.32 |
| 127 | Miami Beach | USA | The Tropics Hotel and Hostel | $42.48 |
| 128 | Dublin | Ireland | Abbey Court | $42.89 |
| 129 | Venice | Italy | Genorator Venice | $44.81 |
| 130 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Meininger Amsterdam Amstel | $46.54 |
| 131 | Oslo | Norway | Anker Apartment - Sentrum | $47.28 |
| 132 | New York City | USA | Chelsea International Hostel | $51.75 |
| 133 | Washington DC | USA | Duo Housing DC | $52.45 |
| 134 | Zurich | Switzerland | Zurich Youth Hostel | $56.69 |
| 135 | Boston | USA | Backpackers Hostel & Pub | $75.00 |
Regional Backpacker Indexes with much more information for each destination
Below are links to the individual Backpacker Indexes that are organized by region. Each link below contains much more information about each destination and the prices you can expect to find there in 2023.