As per the survey, the cost of living in 172 of theworld’s major cities rocketedan average 8.1 percent over the past year, driven byfactors including the war in Ukraine and supply-chain snarls.
New York toped the rankings for the first time, tying with frequent leader Singapore, which is back in pole position for the eighth time in ten years, the report showed. In addition to New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco moved into the top ten.
Both the cities have bumped Tel Aviv, which topped last year, down into third place. Hong Kongand Los Angeles rounded out the top five priciest places.
As per the report, Asian cities tended to escape the steep price rises seen elsewhere, with the average increase in the cost of living at 4.5%, although individual country performance varied due to government policies and currency moves.
The report also showed the ranking of Russian cities of Moscow and St Petersburg shot up by 88 and 70 places respectively as Western sanctions lead to higher prices, and buoyant energy markets and financial restrictions support the rouble.
The survey, which was carried out in August and September this year, compares more than 400 individual prices across over 200 products and services in 172 cities globally.
Upasana Dutt, who headed the research said, "The war in Ukraine, Western sanctions on Russia and China's zero-covid policies have caused supply-chain problems that, combined with rising interest rates and exchange-rate shifts, have resulted in a cost-of-living crisis across the world."
"We can clearly see the impact in this year's index, with the average price rise across the 172 cities in our survey being the strongest we've seen in the 20 years for which we have digital data," she added.
Other key findings from the study included:
- Tokyo and Osaka tumbled down the rankings, dropping 24 and 33 places respectively, as interest rates stayed low
- The Syrian capital Damascus and Libya’s Tripoli are the world’s cheapest places
- Sydney jumped into the top 10 as strong exports buoyed the Aussie dollar
- San Francisco leaped into eighth place, from 24 last year.
- The six most expensive Chinese cities all rose up the ranks, with Shanghai entering the top 20.
- The cheapest cities in the rankings are Damascus, Tripoli and Tehran, reflecting these countries’ weak economies and currencies. "Damascus and Tripoli, which are often at the bottom of the WCOL rankings, have seen only moderate local-currency inflation over the past year, the report showed.
- Three Indian cities too are on the list - Bengaluru, Chennai and Ahmedabad ranked at number 161, 164, 165 respectively.
Here are the top 10 most expensive cities in the world, with their 2022 ranking. Some cities are tied.
| City | Rank |
| Singapore | 1 |
| New York | 1 |
| Tel Aviv | 3 |
| Hong Kong | 4 |
| Los Angeles | 4 |
| Zurich | 6 |
| Geneva | 7 |
| San Francisco | 8 |
| Paris | 9 |
| Copenhagen | 10 |
| Sydney | 10 |
