Wage Cost
Australia94.70Country A Custom IndexInteractive tool
Custom Price Mix
Create your own spending mix and compare relative price levels across two economies.
No sign-up required · Results update instantly
Country Settings
Total Weight: 100%
Category Weights
Custom Results
Custom Price Index = Σ（Category Price Index × Category Weight）÷ 100
Australia94.70Country A Custom Index
Germany82.75Country B Custom IndexCategory Contributions
Result Explanation
Your mix leans most heavily on Housing (25%) and Food (20%), so those categories shape the result the most. Health widens the gap between the two economies the most (36.20 points apart), while Recreation is the closest (8.60 points). This result is not a real household budget, an official cost-of-living index, or relocation advice.
Supporting Content
How the Custom Index Works
Custom Price Index = Σ(Category Price Index × Category Weight) ÷ 100. Overall is intentionally excluded from a custom mix.
- Results update immediately when an input changes.
- Wages use PPP-adjusted average annual wage values.
- Price indices use United States = 100 as the reference.
- Missing data is shown as –; the tool never fills zero, interpolates, or falls back to another year.
Worked Example
With Housing at 95 in Country A and 120 in Country B and a 25% weight, Housing contributes 23.75 points to A and 30 points to B. Repeating this for every category and summing the weighted contributions gives each custom index.
Price Index Explained
Every category index is relative to United States = 100 for the selected year. A value of 120 means the category is about 20% above the U.S. reference; 80 means about 20% below.
Data Limitations
Category indices come from 2022–2024 observations. The custom index is a transparent personal comparison, not a real household budget, an official cost-of-living index, or relocation advice.
FAQ & Related Tools
Why must weights total 100?
A mix only has a clear interpretation when all category weights sum to 100%.
Is this an official cost-of-living index?
No. It is a transparent personal comparison based on your selected category weights.
Data reviewed: August 2026