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Housing Affordability Is A Global Issue

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survivalnomics
Housing Affordability Is A Global Issue

Housing affordability has become a defining economic issue across much of the world, but the relationship between home prices and incomes differs more than many people realize.

Using data from theĀ UN Habitat World Cities Report 2026, Visual Capitalist’s Dorothy Neufeld created this map comparing median home prices with annual household incomes across more than 180 countries, revealing where buying a home is relatively attainableā€”and where it remains far out of reach.

The Worldā€™s Most Affordable Housing Markets

Saudi Arabia and the UAE have the lowest home price-to-income ratios in the dataset at 3.0. The U.S. ranks seventh-lowest at 4.5, below Canada (9.4), Australia (7.5), and the UK (8.3).

The ratio shows how many years of median household income would be needed to match the median home price. A lower figure indicates greater affordability, though the measure does not account for mortgage rates or other homeownership costs.

Rank Country Home Price-to-Income Ratio
1 šŸ‡øšŸ‡¦ Saudi Arabia 3.0
2 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡Ŗ UAE 3.0
3 šŸ‡æšŸ‡¦ South Africa 3.4
4 šŸ‡°šŸ‡µ North Korea 3.5
5 šŸ‡“šŸ‡² Oman 3.6
6 šŸ‡³šŸ‡· Nauru 4.0
7 šŸ‡ŗšŸ‡ø U.S. 4.5
8 šŸ‡¹šŸ‡» Tuvalu 5.0
9 šŸ‡³šŸ‡¦ Namibia 5.2
10 šŸ‡¹šŸ‡± Timor-Leste 5.2
11 šŸ‡µšŸ‡² Saint Pierre and Miquelon 5.2
12 šŸ‡¶šŸ‡¦ Qatar 5.3
13 šŸ‡§šŸ‡¹ Bhutan 5.5
14 šŸ‡§šŸ‡æ Belize 5.5
15 šŸ‡øšŸ‡§ Solomon Islands 5.5
16 šŸ‡µšŸ‡¼ Palau 5.5
17 šŸ‡¹šŸ‡“ Tonga 5.5
18 šŸ‡µšŸ‡ø State of Palestine 5.6
19 šŸ‡±šŸ‡¦ Laos 5.7
20 šŸ‡©šŸ‡² Dominica 5.7
21 šŸ‡³šŸ‡® Nicaragua 5.8
22 šŸ‡»šŸ‡ŗ Vanuatu 5.8
23 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡© Grenada 5.9
24 šŸ‡«šŸ‡Æ Fiji 6.0
25 šŸ‡µšŸ‡¬ Papua New Guinea 6.0
26 šŸ‡¼šŸ‡ø Samoa 6.0
27 šŸ‡¹šŸ‡¹ Trinidad and Tobago 6.1
28 šŸ‡²šŸ‡ŗ Mauritius 6.2
29 šŸ‡·šŸ‡Ŗ RĆ©union 6.2
30 šŸ‡ÆšŸ‡² Jamaica 6.2
31 šŸ‡±šŸ‡Ø Saint Lucia 6.2
32 šŸ‡¾šŸ‡¹ Mayotte 6.5
33 šŸ‡øšŸ‡­ Saint Helena 6.5
34 šŸ‡§šŸ‡Ŗ Belgium 6.5
35 šŸ‡°šŸ‡® Kiribati 6.5
36 šŸ‡øšŸ‡Ø Seychelles 6.6
37 šŸ‡©šŸ‡° Denmark 6.6
38 šŸ‡µšŸ‡¾ Paraguay 6.7
39 šŸ‡«šŸ‡² Micronesia 6.7
40 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡» Cabo Verde 6.8
41 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡¾ Cyprus 6.8
42 šŸ‡®šŸ‡ø Iceland 7.0
43 šŸ‡°šŸ‡³ Saint Kitts and Nevis 7.0
44 šŸ‡²šŸ‡­ Marshall Islands 7.0
45 šŸ‡±šŸ‡¾ Libya 7.2
46 šŸ‡øšŸ‡æ Eswatini 7.2
47 šŸ‡²šŸ‡» Maldives 7.2
48 šŸ‡³šŸ‡± Netherlands 7.2
49 šŸ‡§šŸ‡§ Barbados 7.2
50 šŸ‡®šŸ‡Ŗ Ireland 7.3
51 šŸ‡±šŸ‡ø Lesotho 7.4
52 šŸ‡ÆšŸ‡“ Jordan 7.4
53 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡ŗ Australia 7.5
54 šŸ‡°šŸ‡² Comoros 7.6
55 šŸ‡©šŸ‡Æ Djibouti 7.8
56 šŸ‡«šŸ‡® Finland 7.8
57 šŸ‡ŖšŸ‡ø Spain 7.8
58 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡® CĆ“te d’Ivoire 8.0
59 šŸ‡øšŸ‡³ Senegal 8.0
60 šŸ‡²šŸ‡² Myanmar 8.0
61 šŸ‡§šŸ‡Æ Benin 8.1
62 šŸ‡¹šŸ‡¬ Togo 8.1
63 šŸ‡²šŸ‡¾ Malaysia 8.1
64 šŸ‡®šŸ‡¶ Iraq 8.1
65 šŸ‡±šŸ‡» Latvia 8.1
66 šŸ‡³šŸ‡“ Norway 8.1
67 šŸ‡·šŸ‡¼ Rwanda 8.2
68 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡¦ Gabon 8.2
69 šŸ‡øšŸ‡¹ Sao Tome and Principe 8.2
70 šŸ‡²šŸ‡¬ Madagascar 8.3
71 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡² Cameroon 8.3
72 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡¬ Congo 8.3
73 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡² Gambia 8.3
74 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡§ UK 8.3
75 šŸ‡æšŸ‡² Zambia 8.4
76 šŸ‡²šŸ‡½ Mexico 8.4
77 šŸ‡øšŸ‡² San Marino 8.5
78 šŸ‡ŖšŸ‡­ Western Sahara 8.6
79 šŸ‡§šŸ‡« Burkina Faso 8.6
80 šŸ‡²šŸ‡· Mauritania 8.6
81 šŸ‡§šŸ‡­ Bahrain 8.6
82 šŸ‡²šŸ‡¼ Malawi 8.8
83 šŸ‡²šŸ‡± Mali 8.9
84 šŸ‡§šŸ‡ø Bahamas 8.9
85 šŸ‡­šŸ‡³ Honduras 8.9
86 šŸ‡øšŸ‡± Sierra Leone 9.0
87 šŸ‡³šŸ‡æ New Zealand 9.0
88 šŸ‡ŖšŸ‡· Eritrea 9.1
89 šŸ‡øšŸ‡© Sudan 9.2
90 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡¼ Guinea-Bissau 9.2
91 šŸ‡±šŸ‡· Liberia 9.2
92 šŸ‡®šŸ‡³ India 9.2
93 šŸ‡§šŸ‡¬ Bulgaria 9.2
94 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡¦ Canada 9.4
95 šŸ‡§šŸ‡® Burundi 9.5
96 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡© Andorra 9.5
97 šŸ‡±šŸ‡® Liechtenstein 9.5
98 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡· Costa Rica 9.5
99 šŸ‡§šŸ‡² Bermuda 9.5
100 šŸ‡øšŸ‡ø South Sudan 9.6
101 šŸ‡³šŸ‡Ŗ Niger 9.6
102 šŸ‡®šŸ‡¹ Italy 9.7
103 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡­ Switzerland 9.7
104 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡³ Guinea 9.8
105 šŸ‡øšŸ‡Ŗ Sweden 9.9
106 šŸ‡øšŸ‡“ Somalia 10.2
107 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡¶ Equatorial Guinea 10.2
108 šŸ‡µšŸ‡¦ Panama 10.2
109 šŸ‡ÆšŸ‡µ Japan 10.3
110 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡¹ Austria 10.3
111 šŸ‡¹šŸ‡© Chad 10.4
112 šŸ‡§šŸ‡“ Bolivia 10.5
113 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡© Democratic Republic of the Congo 10.6
114 šŸ‡©šŸ‡Ŗ Germany 10.7
115 šŸ‡°šŸ‡æ Kazakhstan 10.9
116 šŸ‡·šŸ‡“ Romania 10.9
117 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡« Central African Republic 11.1
118 šŸ‡ŖšŸ‡Ø Ecuador 11.1
119 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡“ Angola 11.2
120 šŸ‡§šŸ‡¦ Bosnia and Herzegovina 11.4
121 šŸ‡°šŸ‡¼ Kuwait 11.5
122 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡· Greece 11.5
123 šŸ‡±šŸ‡ŗ Luxembourg 11.5
124 šŸ‡ŖšŸ‡Ŗ Estonia 11.8
125 šŸ‡«šŸ‡· France 11.8
126 šŸ‡¹šŸ‡³ Tunisia 11.9
127 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡¹ Guatemala 11.9
128 šŸ‡ŖšŸ‡¬ Egypt 12.0
129 šŸ‡²šŸ‡© Moldova 12.1
130 šŸ‡²šŸ‡¹ Malta 12.1
131 šŸ‡øšŸ‡® Slovenia 12.1
132 šŸ‡ŗšŸ‡¦ Ukraine 12.2
133 šŸ‡§šŸ‡© Bangladesh 12.6
134 šŸ‡¹šŸ‡· TĆ¼rkiye 12.6
135 šŸ‡µšŸ‡¹ Portugal 12.6
136 šŸ‡±šŸ‡¹ Lithuania 12.7
137 šŸ‡²šŸ‡Ŗ Montenegro 13.1
138 šŸ‡øšŸ‡° Slovakia 13.2
139 šŸ‡­šŸ‡· Croatia 13.2
140 šŸ‡¬šŸ‡Ŗ Georgia 13.3
141 šŸ‡µšŸ‡± Poland 13.3
142 šŸ‡²šŸ‡° North Macedonia 13.3
143 šŸ‡ŗšŸ‡¾ Uruguay 13.7
144 šŸ‡§šŸ‡¾ Belarus 13.8
145 šŸ‡µšŸ‡° Pakistan 13.9
146 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡« Afghanistan 14.1
147 šŸ‡®šŸ‡± Israel 14.1
148 šŸ‡²šŸ‡¦ Morocco 14.2
149 šŸ‡°šŸ‡¬ Kyrgyzstan 14.3
150 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡æ Azerbaijan 14.5
151 šŸ‡­šŸ‡ŗ Hungary 14.6
152 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡æ Czechia 14.9
153 šŸ‡ŗšŸ‡æ Uzbekistan 15.3
154 šŸ‡øšŸ‡¬ Singapore 15.5
155 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡± Chile 15.6
156 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡± Albania 15.7
157 šŸ‡©šŸ‡“ Dominican Republic 15.8
158 šŸ‡·šŸ‡ø Serbia 15.9
159 šŸ‡°šŸ‡Ŗ Kenya 16.0
160 šŸ‡©šŸ‡æ Algeria 16.0
161 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡² Armenia 17.2
162 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡“ Colombia 17.5
163 šŸ‡²šŸ‡³ Mongolia 17.6
164 šŸ‡±šŸ‡§ Lebanon 18.3
165 šŸ‡§šŸ‡· Brazil 18.3
166 šŸ‡®šŸ‡© Indonesia 18.5
167 šŸ‡»šŸ‡Ŗ Venezuela 18.9
168 šŸ‡µšŸ‡Ŗ Peru 19.0
169 šŸ‡¦šŸ‡· Argentina 22.7
170 šŸ‡»šŸ‡³ Vietnam 23.5
171 šŸ‡¹šŸ‡­ Thailand 24.0
172 šŸ‡²šŸ‡Ø Monaco 25.0
173 šŸ‡®šŸ‡· Iran 25.1
174 šŸ‡°šŸ‡· South Korea 26.0
175 šŸ‡³šŸ‡¬ Nigeria 28.2
176 šŸ‡µšŸ‡­ Philippines 30.1
177 šŸ‡°šŸ‡­ Cambodia 32.5
178 šŸ‡³šŸ‡µ Nepal 32.8
179 šŸ‡ØšŸ‡³ China 34.6
180 šŸ‡±šŸ‡° Sri Lanka 40.8
181 šŸ‡øšŸ‡¾ Syrian Arab Republic 86.7
— šŸŒ World Average 11.2

In Gulf countries, relatively high incomes and government-backed housing initiatives help keep homeownership within reach for many citizens.

In the U.S., rising mortgage rates and constrained housing supply have weakened affordability in recent years. Even so, home values remain relatively low compared with household incomes on an international basis.

AroundĀ three billion people worldwideĀ remain underserved by the housing market as home prices continue to outpace incomes in many countries.

Where Buying a Home Is Most Difficult

At the other end of the ranking, Syria records the worldā€™s highest home price-to-income ratio at 86.7, followed by Sri Lanka (40.8) and China (34.6). South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines also rank among the worldā€™s least affordable housing markets.

Although Chinaā€™s housing market hasĀ cooled in recent years, home prices remain high relative to household incomes after decades of rapid appreciation fueled by urbanization and investment demand.

Several European countries also post relatively high ratios. Portugal (12.6), France (11.8), Luxembourg (11.5), and Germany (10.7) all rank well above the U.S. (4.5), reflecting affordability pressures across many advanced economies despite generallyĀ higher incomes.

Why Housing Affordability Is a Global Challenge

The data shows that housing affordability depends less on a countryā€™s overall wealth than on how closely home prices track local incomes.

Even wealthy economies can become difficult places to buy a home when prices rise faster than wages, while some emerging markets remain comparatively affordable despite lower incomes.

Learn More on the Voronoi AppĀ 

To learn more about this topic, check out thisĀ graphicĀ on home price-to-income ratios by state.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 07/30/2026 – 05:45

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