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My biggest problem with numbeo & expatistan is that they do not reflect the true cost of living. They are heavily biased towards data from travellers & expats.

by fouc 13y ago

My biggest problem with numbeo & expatistan is that they do not reflect the true cost of living. They are heavily biased towards data from travellers & expats. In particular these expats don't seem to speak the local language and refuse to live like a local - they seem to insist on western values of living. Example, http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/city_result.jsp?country=Thailand&city=Bangkok http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/city_result.jsp?country... Says "Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre" ranges from 15,000 to 25,000. I had a fairly westernized place for 8,000 baht. If I had gone for a more thai place, I could have had a place for between 3,000-5,000.

cantrevealname 13y ago
> heavily biased towards data from travellers & expats That's funny because I was about to say exactly the opposite -- that the data is biased towards data from and for residents. Using Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro as examples, Numbeo's figures make them seem quite inexpensive. The problem is that as a tourist or as a business visitor, you are paying hotel prices, not rent. Hotels in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro are surprisingly expensive (approaching New York City prices). For reasons I can't understand, the ratio of hotel room price to annual rental price of an unfurnished apartment in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro is much worse than in other cities around the world I'm familiar with. Renting a furnished flat on a monthly basis is also very expensive. This distorts the picture hugely. As a tourist or business visitor, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro end up being very expensive cities to visit, whereas as a resident, it wouldn't be so bad.
- fouc 13y ago
  I see what you mean, actually in my experience even supposedly cheap countries turn out to be expensive, there isn't really many truly cheap places, and hotels tend to be surprisingly expensive, especially the ones that cater to westerners, that are found easily online (i.e. in english). By the way, when I think of "Cost Of Living" I am thinking of long-term stay of 6+ months, especially since many landlords insist on 6-12+ months leases.
BerislavLopac 13y ago
Why don't you enter the numbers you've experienced yourself? That's the whole point of the site -- collecting values from a number of sources and calculating indexes out of them.
- fouc 13y ago
  I did, but haven't noticed any impact. I'm in the minority :)

by fouc 13y ago

cantrevealname 13y ago

> heavily biased towards data from travellers & expats That's funny because I was about to say exactly the opposite -- that the data is biased towards data from and for residents. Using Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro as examples, Numbeo's figures make them seem quite inexpensive. The problem is that as a tourist or as a business visitor, you are paying hotel prices, not rent. Hotels in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro are surprisingly expensive (approaching New York City prices). For reasons I can't understand, the ratio of hotel room price to annual rental price of an unfurnished apartment in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro is much worse than in other cities around the world I'm familiar with. Renting a furnished flat on a monthly basis is also very expensive. This distorts the picture hugely. As a tourist or business visitor, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro end up being very expensive cities to visit, whereas as a resident, it wouldn't be so bad.

fouc 13y ago
I see what you mean, actually in my experience even supposedly cheap countries turn out to be expensive, there isn't really many truly cheap places, and hotels tend to be surprisingly expensive, especially the ones that cater to westerners, that are found easily online (i.e. in english). By the way, when I think of "Cost Of Living" I am thinking of long-term stay of 6+ months, especially since many landlords insist on 6-12+ months leases.

BerislavLopac 13y ago

Why don't you enter the numbers you've experienced yourself? That's the whole point of the site -- collecting values from a number of sources and calculating indexes out of them.

fouc 13y ago
I did, but haven't noticed any impact. I'm in the minority :)