Tirana has been ranked as the 163rd most expensive city in the world to live in, but it is considered the most expensive in the Western Balkans.
A report published by Mercer measures the cost of living in many cities around the world, ranking them from the most expensive to the cheapest. A total of 209 capitals were listed in the 2020 report, placing Tirana in the bottom quarter.
Top of the list is Hong Kong followed by the little known capital of Turkmenistan, Ashgabat. Tokyo, Zurich and Singapore were next, closely followed by New York City and Shanghai. The most expensive capitals in the EU are Copehnagen in Denmark, Dublin in Ireland, Milan in Italy, and Paris in France.
The cheapest capital cities to live in are Tunis in Tunisia, Windhoek in Namibia, and Tashkent in Uzbekistan comprised the bottom three. The North Macedonian capital of Skopje was the cheapest in the Western Balkans, followed by Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Belgrade in Serbia.
Pristina and Podgirica were not included in the report which was compiled via a questionnaire filled out by expats living in each city.
According to the cost of living site Numbeo, a single person needs around EUR 419.32 a month to live, not including rent. It lists a one bedroom apartment as costing between EUR 179 and EUR 299.
