New Delhi, Sept. 14 -- In Hong Kong, one of the first things Aarushi Sharma, 26, had to recalibrate was her idea of what money should buy.

A monthly HK$15,000-25,000 (about Rs.1.8-3 lakh) gets an apartment on rent measuring around 300 sq. ft. A gym or yoga session costs upwards of HK$120 ( Rs.1,400) per visit, and imported groceries can inflate regular supermarket bills. For someone accustomed to Indian prices, Sharma initially found herself converting every expense into rupees.

"The hardest part is unlearning the instinct to measure everything against Indian prices, because by that yardstick almost nothing here feels 'worth it'," Sharma said.

The price tag shock isn't merely anecdotal. Mercer's 2024 Cost of Living City Ranking placed ...