How New York Property Prices Compare Around the World

What Can One Square Meter of New York Real Estate Buy?

Key Takeaways:

• Selling one square meter of property in New York City could buy 15.3 square meters in Cuenca, Ecuador, or 9.5 in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

• New York real estate is more expensive per square meter than property in London, Tokyo, Singapore, and Hong Kong.

• Copenhagen is among the few cities in the dataset where the same money buys less space, at just 0.63 square meters.

How far would the proceeds from selling a tiny piece of New York City real estate go elsewhere in the world?

This visualization, created by Valerii Emelianov, compares city-center property prices across 66 global destinations using data from Numbeo’s Property Price Index. It shows how much space buyers could theoretically purchase elsewhere for the price of one square meter (10.8 square feet) in New York.

Where Does New York Real Estate Buy the Most Space?

The table below ranks cities by how much property the equivalent of one New York square meter could purchase, based on Numbeo’s August 2026 price data. These figures compare nominal city-center prices, not local housing affordability or quality of life, and exclude taxes and transaction costs.

Rank by space gainedCityCountry or territorym² obtained per

1 m² sold in NYC

1 CuencaEcuador15.27

2 Chiang MaiThailand9.54

3 San JoseCosta Rica8.22

4 MeridaMexico7.86

5 Cape TownSouth Africa7.84

6 BaliIndonesia7.76

7 TbilisiGeorgia7.65

8 Buenos AiresArgentina7.10

9 BogotaColombia6.93

10 San Miguel de AllendeMexico6.49

11 Panama CityPanama6.07

12 GuadalajaraMexico5.73

13 MontevideoUruguay5.22

14 MedellinColombia5.19

15 Rio de JaneiroBrazil5.08

16 Mexico CityMexico4.80

17 AthensGreece4.65

18 Kuala LumpurMalaysia4.63

19 ManilaPhilippines4.27

20 SevilleSpain4.08

21 TallinnEstonia3.85

22 Ho Chi Minh CityVietnam3.85

23 ManchesterUnited Kingdom3.74

24 MalagaSpain3.67

25 MontrealCanada3.63

26 PortoPortugal3.55

27 Puerto VallartaMexico3.50

28 BudapestHungary3.18

29 OsakaJapan3.08

30 BangkokThailand3.05

31 FlorenceItaly2.90

32 WarsawPoland2.90

33 EdinburghUnited Kingdom2.80

34 DubaiUnited Arab Emirates2.69

35 MelbourneAustralia2.66

36 SplitCroatia2.58

37 NiceFrance2.49

38 BarcelonaSpain2.46

39 LisbonPortugal2.39

40 AucklandNew Zealand2.33

41 FrankfurtGermany2.25

42 TorontoCanada2.20

43 RomeItaly2.18

44 DublinIreland2.09

45 BerlinGermany2.09

46 VancouverCanada2.08

47 MadridSpain2.04

48 PragueCzechia1.94

49 TokyoJapan1.80

50 AmsterdamNetherlands1.75

51 MilanItaly1.70

52 StockholmSweden1.60

53 CopenhagenDenmark1.59

54 TaipeiTaiwan1.47

55 SydneyAustralia1.45

56 MunichGermany1.43

57 ViennaAustria1.29

58 ParisFrance1.25

59 New YorkUnited States1.00

60 LondonUnited Kingdom0.93

61 Tel AvivIsrael0.91

62 GenevaSwitzerland0.84

63 SingaporeSingapore0.81

64 SeoulSouth Korea0.69

65 ZurichSwitzerland0.68

66 Hong KongHong Kong SAR0.66

Latin America and Southeast Asia dominate the top of the ranking, with several destinations offering more than five times as much space as New York for the same money.

For perspective, the price of just 1 square meter in New York could buy roughly 15.3 square meters in Cuenca, Ecuador. At the other end of the spectrum, London offers just 0.93 square meters, while Copenhagen is even more expensive than New York on this measure.

Why Is New York Real Estate So Expensive?

New York’s high property prices reflect intense housing demand, limited developable land, and exceptionally high construction costs. According to the Citizens Budget Commission, the city’s high-rise residential construction costs are among the world’s highest, partly because of expensive labor, regulations, and insurance.

Its status as a global financial center also attracts wealthy buyers and investors. A separate 2025 luxury property ranking placed New York second globally, behind Monaco. These pressures extend beyond Manhattan, contributing to broader debates about housing costs across the United States.

Why Is Property So Much Cheaper in Parts of Asia?

The contrast is especially striking in Southeast Asia. One New York square meter buys approximately 7.8 square meters in Bali, 4.3 in Manila, or 3.0 in Bangkok.

Lower local wages, construction costs, and differences in housing demand help explain these gaps. However, Asia is far from uniformly inexpensive: Singapore, Hong Kong, and Seoul offer less space than New York for the same budget.

Lower property prices do not necessarily mean greater affordability for local residents. A home that looks inexpensive to a New York buyer may still be out of reach for households earning local wages. Exchange rates, financing conditions, and restrictions on foreign ownership can also affect the cost of buying abroad, as can differences in real estate investment returns across countries.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

For another perspective on global property values, explore The World’s Most Expensive Real Estate Markets on Voronoi.