Anticipate Your Next Destination’s Expenses With Numbeo

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When you’re traveling to a different country (or even a different city!) it’s easy to be blindsided by steep prices!

That’s why it’s helpful to look at a cost of living calculator, rather than just the currency conversion rate when you travel.  Things like restaurant and transportation prices vary depending on the place you’re visiting.  That’s where Numbeo comes in!

I’ll show you how to use Numbeo.  And tell you why it can be helpful when planning your next trip!

Use Numbeo to Estimate the Cost of Your Next Vacation!

Link:   Numbeo

Numbeo will help you get an idea of the prices for everyday expenses in other parts of the world.  It’s a website that crowd-sources information, so if you have knowledge of the prices in a certain city, you can add your 2 cents! 😉

There are multiple ways to search locations on the website homepage.  If you know what you’re looking for, type in the city or country in the “Select Location” box.  Or, you can select a country from the drop-down menu on the left.

You can also browse locations with the interactive map.

You can check things like traffic, crime rate, and the pollution of each city.

Million Mile Secrets team member Scott said he remembers Krakow, Poland, to be noticeably more polluted than Warsaw.  And that’s reflected in Numbeo’s data.

This Cost of Living Calculator Helps You Budget for Your Trip

You can use Numbeo to help you find areas that are cost-effective.

For example, Million Mile Secrets team member Joseph recently traveled to Johannesburg, South Africa, and says he has never experienced such low prices!  The currency conversion rate was 13:1.  But prices on many items, like eggs and bread, were even cheaper than what he experienced in the Philippines, where the currency conversion rate is 50:1!

When you want to visit another country, you can search it on Numbeo to view the local prices of things like restaurants, produce, etc.

You can even compare your destination with any other city in the world.  But by default, all cities are compared to New York City.  The value for New York City is 100.  So for example:

• If the city you search for has a cost of living index number of 80, that means it is 20% cheaper than New York City
• If the city you search for has a grocery index of 60, that means groceries are 40% less expensive than in New York City
• If the city you seasrch for has a restaurants index of 115, that means restaurants are 15% more expensive than in New York City

Here are some ways you can use Numbeo to help budget for your next trip!

1.   Compare Your Destination to Your Home City

To help you better understand what you’ll be spending on your trip, you can compare your destination with your home city.

The website gives you prices in your home currency, as well as in your destination’s currency.  And shows how much you should expect to pay during your visit!

Note:   These prices likely do NOT include tips.  Read the tipping customs of the country you’re going to so you’ll have a full picture of what you will be paying!

2.   Compare Multiple Destinations

Just because countries use the same currency doesn’t mean everything will be priced the same!  If you’re looking for a cheap vacation, you can use the “Compare” tool to examine multiple cities and decide which best fits your budget.

For example, typing “Barcelona” into the “Compare Helsinki With” box, shows even though these 2 cities both use the Euro, the cost of living is much different!

Use Numbeo Data to Help Relocate

Numbeo is helpful to folks who are looking to move to another city or country.  The website is full of tools and calculators to help you make educated decisions.

For example, if you’re interested in moving to Helsinki, here’s what to do!

Step 1.   Click “Cost of Living Calculator“

In the “Cost of Living“ drop-down menu you’ll find a “Cost of Living Calculator“.  Just enter your current city and your desired city into Numbeo.  Then enter how much money you usually spend each month.

Step 2.   Click “Calculate“

Press the “Calculate” button at the bottom of the screen.  Numbeo will then show how much purchasing power you’ll have in Helsinki with the same flow of income.  Pretty handy!

Note:   Wherever you decide to go, make sure you bring along a credit card that has NO foreign transaction fees, like The Business Platinum® Card from American Express, Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, or Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite Mastercard!

Are There Other Sites Similar to Numbeo?

There are other websites that offer similar information Numbeo provides.  And depending on your situation, they could be better or worse.

1.   Expatistan

Expatistan shows the cost of living in countries around the world, but it’s more geared towards folks who want to relocate.  It has information like:

• International Schools
• Expat Insurance and Taxes
• Suggestions for Language Learning Services

2.   Eardex

Eardex is more customizable than Numbeo.  You can create a cart of goods to see how much a shopping trip would cost you.  And you can save your preferred currencies and units of measurement for when you revisit the site.

I like how Eardex displays information.  But I find their data is not as complete as Numbeo.

Bottom Line

Numbeo is an effective tool to help you decide on the perfect destination for your preferences and budget.

You can quickly view the prices of things like groceries, transportation, and rent in nearly any country.  And you can compare destinations with your home city, so you can more easily decide if visiting a country is in your price range!

Do you use Numbeo as part of your travel preparation?