Expat rent prices
2026 Worldwide city ranking
Ranking
EuroCost International publishes its new worldwide ranking of rents paid by expats.
Although expat housing conditions can vary a lot from one country to another, EuroCost International publishes a yearly worldwide ranking based on a specific type of housing.
This ranking is based on a panel of two- and three-bedroom flats (average prices converted into euros, reference date December 2025).
Key points
- In 2025, with the exception of North America, global rental housing markets remained under significant pressure. As a result, in many countries, demand far exceeded supply, leading to rising rents, although with marked variations from one city to another.
- Istanbul now ranks among the Top 20 cities worldwide. As a result, its rents have risen sharply in recent years.
- AirBnB continues to disrupt the rental market in any cities by transferring housing from the traditional rental market to the short-term tourist rental market.
- Moscow has risen to 4th place in the global rankings, suffering the consequences of a sharp decline in home ownership in favor of renting. Furthermore, the return of many Russian expatriates is fueling demand, thus exacerbating the pressure on the rental market.
The most expensive cities in the world
With a few exceptions, such as the United States and Canada, the rental market remained very tight globally. Overall, some constants emerged. On the one hand, construction costs continued to rise, an increase exacerbated by persistently high interest rates, despite a slight correction in the first half of 2025. On the other hand, migration flows to major cities showed no signs of slowing down. In some cases, these flows were even amplified by geopolitical tensions. Of course, AirBnB contributed to this pressure on the rental market by gradually removing housing from the traditional market.
In the end, despite a certain homogeneity, our world ranking remained less static than last year.
New York remains in the lead, followed by London and then Hong Kong.
Moscow jumped to fourth place under pressure from a sharp decline in the number of homeowners, as many residents turned to the rental market. The imbalance between supply and demand in Moscow's rental market was also exacerbated by the return of many Russian expatriates seeking housing.
Geneva gained two places to reach 5th, followed by Singapore and Tokyo, which each lost two places. Miami fell to 8th place, while Zurich gained three places to reach 9th position.
In 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th place respectively, we find 4 major American cities: San Francisco, Washington, Boston and Chicago.
Amsterdam has continued to progress in our ranking over the past 5 years and therefore occupies 14th place this year.
Los Angeles loses 5 places and ends up in 15th position followed by Dubai in 16th place which gains 3 places.
Tel Aviv climbs to 17th place, followed by Sydney which falls to 18th place, while Istanbul, in 19th place, makes a historic entry into our Top 20, followed by Bangui which closes this ranking.
It is highly likely that rents will continue to rise in 2026, and it seems very difficult for public authorities to significantly revers this trend. Consequently, it is unfortunately feared that in many cities, a growing proportion of the population will struggle to find suitable and affordable housing.
Regional highlights
Africa
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Africa remains underrepresented in the world ranking of the most expensive cities but it should be remembered that in many African countries, expats prefer to opt for a villa rather than a flat. That is why several countries do not appear in this "Apartments" ranking whereas housing costs may be very high for expats. This year, Bangui maintains its first place, followed, as last year, by Luanda. Kinshasa moves up another place to claim third position. Accra loses one place and sits in 4th position while Juba closes out this African Top 5 as it did last year.
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The Americas
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This American ranking rents did not undergo significant variation during the year 2025. But despite the steady rise of some cities, the Top 20 of the overall ranking still includes 7 North-American cities. In our regional ranking, there are few changes compared to last year. However, it is worth noting the return of Mexico City to this ranking. New York, Miami and San Francisco remain the Top three, followed by Washington and Boston. Chicago and Los Angeles, in 6th and 7th place respectively, precede Vancouver, which climbs one spot to 8th, followed by Mexico City in 9th. Philadelphia, as last year, rounds out the North American Top 10.
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Asia-Oceania
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There are few changes in this regional ranking, which retained eight of the Top ten cities from last year. Hong Kong, still the most expensive city in the region, leads Singapore and Tokyo, followed by Sydney, Shanghai, Beijing and Seoul. All these cities maintained their positions. Mumbai held onto its 8th place ranking, ahead of Bangkok and Taipei, which entered the regional ranking in 9th and 10th place, respectively, replacing Jakarta and Manila, which dropped out of the Top ten.
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Europe
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This European regional ranking is virtually identical to last year's, with only a few changes in position. London remains firmly in first place, followed by Moscow, Geneva and Zurich. Next comes Amsterdam, maintaining its 5th place, followed by Lausanne in 6th and Dublin in 7th. Paris remains in 8th place. The Hague and Milan have swapped positions, with The Hague now in 9th place and Milan rounding out the Top 10 in Europe.
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Middle East
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The Top five cities in this regional Middle Eastern ranking remain the same, but some differences. Dubai, thanks to its dynamism, remains at the Top of the ranking, followed by Tel Aviv in second place. Istanbul and Doha have reversed their positions and are now in 3rd and 4th place respectively. Riyadh closes out this year's Top 5 of the Middle East.
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Our methodology: specific expat surveys
This ranking is only a particular angle of view on the rental market for expatriates. Our housing surveys, for their part, provide a much more precise view of the rental market for each city surveyed.
EuroCost International data reflect the local rental market for expats, and therefore differ from the local rental market, in terms of price levels as well as movements.
Areas selected for our surveys are residential areas frequented by expats.
We collect prices for different types of housing, from studios to large detached houses, but these can be adapted to the specific features of each country. In a country where all expats live in houses, our survey will only report house prices.
All dwellings considered range from good to very good quality to ensure that expats benefit from comfortable living conditions.
Prices are collected in the currency used for the payment of rent (very often US dollars or euros, rather than the local currency).
Housing is a crucial element for expatriation; therefore many companies seriously consider their expats' living conditions.
Our rent surveys are usually provided separately from the cost of living index, in order to fully meet the needs of our customers, although rent prices can be included in our indices.