Issue 8 | 06 Jan. 2007

B'lore is cheapest!

Question: Which is the cheapest city in Asia? If you are a longtime citizen of Bangalore, your answer will be: Any city but for Bangalore. But for expatriates, the answer is None but Bangalore!

A survey conducted by ECA International, a leading Hong Kong based HR organization revealed that Bangalore is the cheapest major city in Asia and the one of the 20 least expensive cities in the world. The survey covered 250 cities across the world in terms of cost of living as seen by expats. Bangalore was among the bottom 38 from among the surveyed cities of Asia, and the cheapest among seven Indian cities. New Delhi is the most expensive city in India, followed by Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Pune.

The survey uses a basket of 125 consumer goods and services commonly purchased by expats such as vegetables, fruits, grocery items, meat and fish, tobacco, drinks and miscellaneous goods, clothing, electrical goods, motoring, dining expenses. However it does not include living costs such as accommodation, cost of electricity, gas, water, purchase of cars, school fees, etc.