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Los Angeles (Knewz) — Filmmaker Quentin Tarantino put Tel Aviv, Israel, on the map for many Americans when he settled there a few years ago with his new wife and welcomed a first child, choosing the northwest neighborhood of Ramat Aviv Gimel.
On Tarantino's heels comes news that the Israeli city has topped The Economist's “Worldwide Cost of Living” index for the first time, dislodging Paris, where a certain McDonald's burger is known as a Royale with cheese. Tel Aviv was No. 5 last year.
The rankings are based on the cost of more than 200 goods and services, tabulated between Aug. 16 and Sept. 12. These costs are benchmarked against the cost of those same items in New York City, which ranks as the No. 6 most expensive city in the world and has a score of 100.
Tel Aviv has a comparative score of 106. In other words, right now in U.S. dollar terms, it's 6 percent more costly to live in Tel Aviv than it is in the Big Apple.
Another key factor in the ranking of international cities is foreign currency rates. In the case of Tel Aviv, the Israeli currency, the shekel, has appreciated, making local costs higher when translated into U.S. dollars.
Tel Aviv is the second most expensive place to buy alcohol and ranks in the top third for all ten of the major spending categories, which also include gas, transportation, personal care and recreation.
Rounding out the top five most expensive cities, after Tel Aviv and Paris, are Singapore, Zurich and Hong Kong. At the opposite end of the list, the cheapest of the 173 measured locations are led by Damascus, Syria, Tripoli, Libya and Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Los Angeles ranks this year as the No. 9 most expensive place in the world. Other U.S. cities among the Top 50 include a pair that are surprising, Minneapolis and Pittsburgh.
