The Economist Intelligence Unit has analyzed the prices of more than 160 products and services in each city. The survey has been done considering the base city as New York, which has an index set at 100. Based on the survey^[1] of the Economist Intelligence Unit there are slight changes in the ranking of the cheapest cities in the world as compared to last year's report. One city from Pakistan and three major cities from India all are in the top ten cheapest cities in 2020. The main reason behind this is the low wages and high levels of income inequality, which restrict household expenses, as well as market competition.^[2]

The ten cheapest cities in the world 2020.

1. Damascus, Syria
2. Tashkent, Uzbekistan
3. Almaty, Kazakhstan
4. Buenos Aires, Argentina
5. Karachi Orangi Town, Pakistan
6. Caracas, Venezuela
7. Lusaka, Zambia
8. Chennai, India
9. Bangalore, India
10. New Delhi, India

According to TripIndex by TripAdvisor, five of ten cheapest cities in the world are located in Asia, with four of them located in ASEAN/South Asian countries. The research is based on costs of a one-night stay in a four-star hotel, cocktails, a two-course dinner with a bottle of wine, and a taxi transport (two return journeys of about 3.2 kilometres each). First is Hanoi with $141.12, second is Beijing with $159.05, third is Bangkok with $161.90, fifth is Kuala Lumpur with $194.43 and eighth is Jakarta with $204.59.^[3][4]

• List of most expensive cities for expatriate employees
• Poverty threshold
• South-East Asian Tourism Organisation