Data study
Retirement Affordability Index 2026
How far does a fixed retirement income go abroad? We tested 84 cities across 14 countries against three net monthly budgets.
Updated: August 2026 · Next update: 2027-08
Headline findings
For each of the 84 cities we compare one person's monthly cost of living against three income levels. The band is what matters: if the budget covers the whole band the city is comfortable; if it covers only the low end, it gets tight.
€1,000
net per month
35 / 84
cities where it is enough
- comfortable
- 5
- tight
- 30
- not enough
- 49
€1,500
net per month
65 / 84
cities where it is enough
- comfortable
- 23
- tight
- 42
- not enough
- 19
€2,000
net per month
80 / 84
cities where it is enough
- comfortable
- 49
- tight
- 31
- not enough
- 4
Comfortable on €1,000 already
Kampot, Battambang, Kep, Siem Reap, Yogyakarta
Out of reach even on €2,000
Cascais, Madrid, Nice, Paris
All 84 cities compared
Sorted from cheapest to most expensive. The cost band is the total monthly figure for one person including rent. Every city name links to its full profile.
| City | Country | Cost of living per month | €1,000 | €1,500 | €2,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kampot | Cambodia | $500–$900 | comfortable | comfortable | comfortable |
| Battambang | Cambodia | $600–$1,000 | comfortable | comfortable | comfortable |
| Kep | Cambodia | $600–$1,000 | comfortable | comfortable | comfortable |
| Siem Reap | Cambodia | $600–$1,100 | comfortable | comfortable | comfortable |
| Yogyakarta | Indonesia | $600–$1,100 | comfortable | comfortable | comfortable |
| Baguio | Philippines | $700–$1,200 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Bohol | Philippines | $700–$1,200 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Dumaguete | Philippines | $700–$1,200 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Ipoh | Malaysia | $700–$1,200 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Bandung | Indonesia | $700–$1,300 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Da Lat | Vietnam | $700–$1,300 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Da Nang | Vietnam | $700–$1,300 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Davao | Philippines | $750–$1,300 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Hoi An | Vietnam | $750–$1,300 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Lombok | Indonesia | $750–$1,300 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Chiang Rai | Thailand | $800–$1,200 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Cameron Highlands | Malaysia | $800–$1,400 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Nha Trang | Vietnam | $800–$1,400 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Phnom Penh | Cambodia | $800–$1,400 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Hanoi | Vietnam | $800–$1,500 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Melaka | Malaysia | $900–$1,500 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Cebu | Philippines | $900–$1,600 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Chiang Mai | Thailand | $900–$1,600 | tight | comfortable | comfortable |
| Ho Chi Minh City | Vietnam | $900–$1,700 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Penang | Malaysia | $1,000–$1,700 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Sanur | Indonesia | $1,000–$1,700 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Hua Hin | Thailand | $1,000–$1,800 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Merida | Mexico | $1,000–$1,800 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Ubud | Indonesia | $1,000–$1,800 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Langkawi | Malaysia | $1,000–$2,000 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Arenal | Costa Rica | $1,100–$1,800 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Kalamata | Greece | $1,100–$1,900 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Bali | Indonesia | $1,100–$2,000 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Kuala Lumpur | Malaysia | $1,100–$2,000 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Pattaya | Thailand | $1,100–$2,000 | tight | tight | comfortable |
| Boquete | Panama | $1,200–$2,000 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| David | Panama | $1,200–$2,000 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Lake Chapala | Mexico | $1,200–$2,000 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Pedasí | Panama | $1,200–$2,000 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Rhodes | Greece | $1,200–$2,000 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Sicily | Italy | $1,200–$2,000 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Crete | Greece | $1,200–$2,100 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Bangkok | Thailand | $1,200–$2,200 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Canggu | Indonesia | $1,200–$2,200 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Manila | Philippines | $1,200–$2,200 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Corfu | Greece | $1,250–$2,100 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Coimbra | Portugal | $1,300–$2,000 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| El Valle de Antón | Panama | $1,300–$2,100 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Thessaloniki | Greece | $1,400–$2,200 | not enough | tight | comfortable |
| Alicante | Spain | $1,400–$2,300 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Mazatlán | Mexico | $1,400–$2,300 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Coronado | Panama | $1,400–$2,400 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Phuket | Thailand | $1,400–$2,800 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Atenas | Costa Rica | $1,500–$2,300 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Lecce | Italy | $1,500–$2,300 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Querétaro | Mexico | $1,500–$2,400 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Tenerife | Spain | $1,500–$2,400 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Algarve | Portugal | $1,500–$2,500 | not enough | tight | tight |
| San Jose | Costa Rica | $1,500–$2,500 | not enough | tight | tight |
| San Miguel de Allende | Mexico | $1,500–$2,500 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Funchal | Portugal | $1,600–$2,500 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Athens | Greece | $1,600–$2,600 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Valencia | Spain | $1,600–$2,600 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Porto | Portugal | $1,600–$2,700 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Tamarindo | Costa Rica | $1,600–$2,800 | not enough | tight | tight |
| Malaga | Spain | $1,700–$2,700 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Turin | Italy | $1,800–$2,700 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Montpellier | France | $1,800–$2,800 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Nosara | Costa Rica | $1,800–$2,900 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Panama City | Panama | $1,800–$3,000 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Puerto Vallarta | Mexico | $1,800–$3,000 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Bologna | Italy | $1,900–$2,900 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Toulouse | France | $1,900–$2,900 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Escazú | Costa Rica | $1,900–$3,000 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Florence | Italy | $1,900–$3,000 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Bordeaux | France | $2,000–$3,200 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Lisbon | Portugal | $2,000–$3,200 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Aix-en-Provence | France | $2,200–$3,300 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Barcelona | Spain | $2,200–$3,500 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Rome | Italy | $2,200–$3,500 | not enough | not enough | tight |
| Cascais | Portugal | $2,300–$3,600 | not enough | not enough | not enough |
| Madrid | Spain | $2,400–$3,800 | not enough | not enough | not enough |
| Nice | France | $2,500–$3,800 | not enough | not enough | not enough |
| Paris | France | $3,000–$4,800 | not enough | not enough | not enough |
Methodology
The basis is the total monthly cost for one person that we publish on each city's own page. It covers rent for a one-bedroom apartment in an area retirees actually choose, groceries, utilities, local transport and routine healthcare. It excludes one-off relocation costs, international health insurance and trips home.
The Index recalculates nothing. It reads exactly the same cost bands that appear on the individual city pages, so if a band changes there, the Index moves with it. The two can never disagree.
Income tiers are defined in euros because the Index is aimed primarily at readers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The underlying cost data is authored in US dollars and converted at a pinned rate of 1 USD = 0.90 EUR. We deliberately avoid a live exchange rate: these are editorial reference figures, not a quote, and a live rate would imply a precision they do not have.
These are reference figures for a single person living modestly but comfortably. Couples generally do better per head because rent and utilities are shared. Anyone living in the centre of an expensive city, or keeping fully Western consumption habits, should expect to sit above these bands.
Where the cost data comes from and how we check it is set out in full in our methodology.
Citing this index
The data may be reused freely with attribution, including by newsrooms. A link back to the index page is appreciated so readers can check the methodology.
RetireFinder, Retirement Affordability Index 2026, August 2026, https://retirefinder.com/rentner-index/