Moving to Nassau

In our series of short blogs on moving between different international locations, we highlight cost of living and other major differences likely to be experienced.
Today we look at moving to Nassau in Bahamas from Saint John's in Antigua and Barbuda.
In both Saint John's and in Nassau people speak English.
St John's is the capital and largest city of Antigua and Barbuda. St John's is the commercial centre of the nation and the chief port of the island of Antigua.
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas.

St. John's is one of the most developed and cosmopolitan municipalities in the Lesser Antilles. The city is famous for its various shopping malls as well as boutiques throughout the city, selling designer jewelry and haute-couture clothing. There are also many independent, locally-run establishments, selling a variety of fashions. The investment banking industry has a strong presence in the city. Many major world financial institutions have offices in St. John's.
Nassau has nearly 80 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas. The city is located on the island of New Providence, which functions much like a federal district. While there is no local government, it is governed directly as an administrative division of the national government .

The overall cost of living rank in Saint John's is 227 out of 300 global locations, which equates it with low cost of living locations. An expatriate moving from Saint John's to Nassau which has an overall cost of living rank of 63, which equates it with high cost of living locations, will experience a change in cost of living of 38.1%.
In terms of the hardship people are likely to experience, assessed in global terms, Nassau is ranked as a some hardship location with a hardship index of 20% compared to Saint John's with a hardship index of 20% which is a some hardship location.

Source: http://www.xpatulator.com as at July 2011.

Bahamas, Nassau - Cost of Living

The economy of The Bahamas is that of a stable, developing nation heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking.
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. Nassau has nearly 80 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas. The city is located on the island of New Providence, which functions much like a federal district. While there is no local government, it is governed directly as an administrative division of the national government.


Nassau has an overall cost of living index which equates it with high cost of living locations. The overall cost of living index is comprised of the prices for defined quantities of the same goods and services across all 13 Basket Groups.


The latest cost of living rank for each of the 13 Basket Groups is now available.
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Bahamas, Nassau Cost of Living January 2010

LOCATION: The Bahamas is in the Caribbean, it is a chain of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Florida, northeast of Cuba.

CAPITAL CITY: Nassau

LARGEST CITY: Nassau

CURRENCY: Bahamian Dollar (BSD)

ECONOMY: The Bahamas' economy is dependent on tourism (which is dependent on growth in the US) and off-shore banking, it is a stable, developing nation.
Nassau has an overall cost of living index which equates it with high cost of living locations. The overall cost of living index is comprised of the prices for defined quantities of the same goods and services across all 13 Basket Groups. Nassau is currently ranked 49 overall, most expensive place in the world for expatriates to live, out of 276 international locations. The cost of living overview for each of the 13 Basket Groups is as follows:

Alcohol & Tobacco costs for alcoholic beverages such as alcohol at bar, beer, locally produced spirit, whiskey, and wine as well as tobacco products such as cigarettes is equally expensive on average compared to other cities with a rank of 119 out of 276.

Clothing costs for clothing and footwear products such as business suits, casual clothing, childrens clothing and footwear, coats and hats, evening wear, shoe repairs, and underwear is equally expensive on average compared to other cities with a rank of 174 out of 276.

Communication costs for various communication costs such as home telephone rental and call charges, internet connection and service provider fees, mobile / cellular phone contract and calls is relatively more expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 48 out of 276.

Education costs such as creche / pre-school fees, high school / college fees, primary school fees, and tertiary study fees is relatively more expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 10 out of 276.

Furniture & Appliance costs for furniture, household equipment and household appliances such as dvd player, fridge freezer, iron, kettle, toaster, microwave, light bulbs, television, vacuum cleaner, and washing machine is relatively more expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 40 out of 276.

Grocery costs for food, non-alcoholic beverages and cleaning material items such as baby consumables, baked goods, baking, canned foods, cheese, cleaning products, dairy, fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, fruit juices, meat, oil & vinegars, pet food, pre-prepared meals, sauces, seafood, snacks, soft drinks, spices & herbs is relatively more expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 76 out of 276.

Healthcare costs for general healthcare, medical and medical insurance such as general practitioner consultation rates, hospital private ward daily rate, non-prescription medicine, and private medical insurance / medical aid contributions is relatively more expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 23 out of 276.

Household costs for housing, water, electricity, household gas, household fuels, local rates and residential taxes such as house / flat mortgage, house / flat rental, household electricity consumption, household gas / fuel consumption, household water consumption, and local property rates / taxes / levies is relatively more expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 17 out of 276.

Miscellaneous costs related to stationary, linen and general goods and services such as domestic help, dry cleaning, linen, office supplies, newspapers and magazines, and postage stamps is relatively more expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 53 out of 276.

Personal Care costs for personal care products and services such as cosmetics, hair care, moisturizer / sun block, nappies, pain relief tablets, toilet paper, toothpaste, and soap / shampoo / conditioner is relatively more expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 38 out of 276.

Recreation and Culture costs such as books, camera film, cinema ticket, DVD and CDs, sports goods, and theatre tickets is relatively more expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 61 out of 276.

Restaurants, Meals Out and Hotel costs such as business dinner, dinner at a restaurant (non fast food), hotel rates, take away drinks and snacks (fast food) is equally expensive on average compared to other cities with a rank of 178 out of 276.

Transport costs for public transport, vehicle costs, vehicle fuel, vehicle insurance and vehicle maintenance such as hire purchase / lease of vehicle, petrol / diesel, public transport service maintenance, tires, vehicle Insurance, and vehicle purchase is relatively less expensive compared to other cities with a rank of 227 out of 276.

Your exact customized cost of living index for Nassau is based on which of the above basket groups as well as the comparison location you select in the Calculators.

In terms of the hardship people are likely to experience, assessed in global terms, Nassau is ranked as a some hardship location with a hardship index of 20%.

Your exact customized hardship index premium for Nassau is based on the comparison location that you select in the Calculators.