Solomon Islands, Turkmenistan Among World’s Costliest Places

Numbeo’s mid‑2026 Cost of Living Index, which uses New York as a baseline of 100, lists the Solomon Islands and Turkmenistan among the eight jurisdictions with the highest overall living costs. Both score above 120, meaning everyday expenses are at least 20 % higher than in Manhattan. The index aggregates prices for housing, food, transport and services, and the rise is driven by geographic isolation in the Solomon Islands and strict currency controls in Turkmenistan, which inflate the cost of imported goods. Traditional high‑cost locations such as Switzerland, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands remain on the list, but the inclusion of these two unexpected economies reshapes investors’ perception of where wealth is most expensive to maintain.

The report does not disclose exact scores for each country, but sources confirm several jurisdictions exceed the 120‑point threshold, with some capital cities approaching 130 points. The findings highlight how logistics, limited local markets and exchange‑rate policies can push living costs in remote or closed economies to levels comparable with major global cities.