Free tools
What living abroad actually costs each month
Three calculators for the recurring number: a category budget, a savings runway and a two-city comparison.
Three calculators for the monthly number
Living costs
Monthly Cost of Living Calculator
Category budget with annual total, daily average and the fixed-cost share.
Open tool →Savings Runway Calculator
How many months your savings last after setup costs, with a safe-runway view.
Open tool →Two-City Cost Comparison
Compare two cities on rent, food, transport and other, with the annual difference.
Open tool →What it will do
This site builds a monthly cost of living from your own category inputs, converts savings into a runway, and compares two cities on identical categories so the difference is visible instead of guessed.
- Rent, utilities, groceries, transport and the way you actually eat
- Savings, one-time setup costs and expected income
- The same category totals for a second city
Why the answer is not obvious
Cost-of-living articles give a single average that rarely matches how a newcomer lives. The first months carry setup costs, the rent is often above the local average, and income may start later than spending. A budget built from categories and a runway built from cash answer the questions an average cannot.
Who it is for
Remote workers, students and people planning a first year abroad who need a monthly number they can defend and a runway they can measure.
Frequently asked questions
Is this a cost-of-living index?
No. It does not publish city averages. You enter the local prices and costs that apply to you, and the calculator turns them into a monthly total, an annual total and a runway.
Why does the runway use a reduced savings figure?
Because the last months of a runway are the most expensive: deposits, flights home and visa renewals tend to cluster at the end. The safe runway keeps twenty percent of savings out of the calculation.
Should I include one-time setup costs in the monthly budget?
No. Setup costs belong in a separate relocation budget. Include only the instalments that recur, such as a phone plan or insurance premium.
How accurate is a two-city comparison?
It is as accurate as the category totals you enter. The value is that both cities use the same categories and the same lifestyle assumptions, which removes most of the apples-to-oranges problem in published averages.