Mapped: Home Prices vs. Incomes Around the World
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Key Takeaways
- Home price-to-income ratios range from 3.0 in the most affordable markets to 86.7 in the least affordable.
- The U.S. ranks seventh-lowest globally, placing it ahead of many other advanced economies by this measure.
- Affordability depends on how closely home prices track local incomes, not simply on a country’s overall wealth.
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 the UN Habitat World Cities Report 2026, this map compares median home prices with annual household incomes across more than 180 countries, revealing where buying a home is relatively attainable—and where it remains far out of reach.
The World’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 | Saudi Arabia | 3.0 |
| 2 | UAE | 3.0 |
| 3 | South Africa | 3.4 |
| 4 | North Korea | 3.5 |
| 5 | Oman | 3.6 |
| 6 | Nauru | 4.0 |
| 7 | U.S. | 4.5 |
| 8 | Tuvalu | 5.0 |
| 9 | Namibia | 5.2 |
| 10 | Timor-Leste | 5.2 |
| 11 | Saint Pierre and Miquelon | 5.2 |
| 12 | Qatar | 5.3 |
| 13 | Bhutan | 5.5 |
| 14 | Belize | 5.5 |
| 15 | Solomon Islands | 5.5 |
| 16 | Palau | 5.5 |
| 17 | Tonga | 5.5 |
| 18 | State of Palestine | 5.6 |
| 19 | Laos | 5.7 |
| 20 | Dominica | 5.7 |
| 21 | Nicaragua | 5.8 |
| 22 | Vanuatu | 5.8 |
| 23 | Grenada | 5.9 |
| 24 | Fiji | 6.0 |
| 25 | Papua New Guinea | 6.0 |
| 26 | Samoa | 6.0 |
| 27 | Trinidad and Tobago | 6.1 |
| 28 | Mauritius | 6.2 |
| 29 | Réunion | 6.2 |
| 30 | Jamaica | 6.2 |
| 31 | Saint Lucia | 6.2 |
| 32 | Mayotte | 6.5 |
| 33 | Saint Helena | 6.5 |
| 34 | Belgium | 6.5 |
| 35 | Kiribati | 6.5 |
| 36 | Seychelles | 6.6 |
| 37 | Denmark | 6.6 |
| 38 | Paraguay | 6.7 |
| 39 | Micronesia | 6.7 |
| 40 | Cabo Verde | 6.8 |
| 41 | Cyprus | 6.8 |
| 42 | Iceland | 7.0 |
| 43 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 7.0 |
| 44 | Marshall Islands | 7.0 |
| 45 | Libya | 7.2 |
| 46 | Eswatini | 7.2 |
| 47 | Maldives | 7.2 |
| 48 | Netherlands | 7.2 |
| 49 | Barbados | 7.2 |
| 50 | Ireland | 7.3 |
| 51 | Lesotho | 7.4 |
| 52 | Jordan | 7.4 |
| 53 | Australia | 7.5 |
| 54 | Comoros | 7.6 |
| 55 | Djibouti | 7.8 |
| 56 | Finland | 7.8 |
| 57 | Spain | 7.8 |
| 58 | Côte d'Ivoire | 8.0 |
| 59 | Senegal | 8.0 |
| 60 | Myanmar | 8.0 |
| 61 | Benin | 8.1 |
| 62 | Togo | 8.1 |
| 63 | Malaysia | 8.1 |
| 64 | Iraq | 8.1 |
| 65 | Latvia | 8.1 |
| 66 | Norway | 8.1 |
| 67 | Rwanda | 8.2 |
| 68 | Gabon | 8.2 |
| 69 | Sao Tome and Principe | 8.2 |
| 70 | Madagascar | 8.3 |
| 71 | Cameroon | 8.3 |
| 72 | Congo | 8.3 |
| 73 | Gambia | 8.3 |
| 74 | UK | 8.3 |
| 75 | Zambia | 8.4 |
| 76 | Mexico | 8.4 |
| 77 | San Marino | 8.5 |
| 78 | Western Sahara | 8.6 |
| 79 | Burkina Faso | 8.6 |
| 80 | Mauritania | 8.6 |
| 81 | Bahrain | 8.6 |
| 82 | Malawi | 8.8 |
| 83 | Mali | 8.9 |
| 84 | Bahamas | 8.9 |
| 85 | Honduras | 8.9 |
| 86 | Sierra Leone | 9.0 |
| 87 | New Zealand | 9.0 |
| 88 | Eritrea | 9.1 |
| 89 | Sudan | 9.2 |
| 90 | Guinea-Bissau | 9.2 |
| 91 | Liberia | 9.2 |
| 92 | India | 9.2 |
| 93 | Bulgaria | 9.2 |
| 94 | Canada | 9.4 |
| 95 | Burundi | 9.5 |
| 96 | Andorra | 9.5 |
| 97 | Liechtenstein | 9.5 |
| 98 | Costa Rica | 9.5 |
| 99 | Bermuda | 9.5 |
| 100 | South Sudan | 9.6 |
| 101 | Niger | 9.6 |
| 102 | Italy | 9.7 |
| 103 | Switzerland | 9.7 |
| 104 | Guinea | 9.8 |
| 105 | Sweden | 9.9 |
| 106 | Somalia | 10.2 |
| 107 | Equatorial Guinea | 10.2 |
| 108 | Panama | 10.2 |
| 109 | Japan | 10.3 |
| 110 | Austria | 10.3 |
| 111 | Chad | 10.4 |
| 112 | Bolivia | 10.5 |
| 113 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 10.6 |
| 114 | Germany | 10.7 |
| 115 | Kazakhstan | 10.9 |
| 116 | Romania | 10.9 |
| 117 | Central African Republic | 11.1 |
| 118 | Ecuador | 11.1 |
| 119 | Angola | 11.2 |
| 120 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 11.4 |
| 121 | Kuwait | 11.5 |
| 122 | Greece | 11.5 |
| 123 | Luxembourg | 11.5 |
| 124 | Estonia | 11.8 |
| 125 | France | 11.8 |
| 126 | Tunisia | 11.9 |
| 127 | Guatemala | 11.9 |
| 128 | Egypt | 12.0 |
| 129 | Moldova | 12.1 |
| 130 | Malta | 12.1 |
| 131 | Slovenia | 12.1 |
| 132 | Ukraine | 12.2 |
| 133 | Bangladesh | 12.6 |
| 134 | Türkiye | 12.6 |
| 135 | Portugal | 12.6 |
| 136 | Lithuania | 12.7 |
| 137 | Montenegro | 13.1 |
| 138 | Slovakia | 13.2 |
| 139 | Croatia | 13.2 |
| 140 | Georgia | 13.3 |
| 141 | Poland | 13.3 |
| 142 | North Macedonia | 13.3 |
| 143 | Uruguay | 13.7 |
| 144 | Belarus | 13.8 |
| 145 | Pakistan | 13.9 |
| 146 | Afghanistan | 14.1 |
| 147 | Israel | 14.1 |
| 148 | Morocco | 14.2 |
| 149 | Kyrgyzstan | 14.3 |
| 150 | Azerbaijan | 14.5 |
| 151 | Hungary | 14.6 |
| 152 | Czechia | 14.9 |
| 153 | Uzbekistan | 15.3 |
| 154 | Singapore | 15.5 |
| 155 | Chile | 15.6 |
| 156 | Albania | 15.7 |
| 157 | Dominican Republic | 15.8 |
| 158 | Serbia | 15.9 |
| 159 | Kenya | 16.0 |
| 160 | Algeria | 16.0 |
| 161 | Armenia | 17.2 |
| 162 | Colombia | 17.5 |
| 163 | Mongolia | 17.6 |
| 164 | Lebanon | 18.3 |
| 165 | Brazil | 18.3 |
| 166 | Indonesia | 18.5 |
| 167 | Venezuela | 18.9 |
| 168 | Peru | 19.0 |
| 169 | Argentina | 22.7 |
| 170 | Vietnam | 23.5 |
| 171 | Thailand | 24.0 |
| 172 | Monaco | 25.0 |
| 173 | Iran | 25.1 |
| 174 | South Korea | 26.0 |
| 175 | Nigeria | 28.2 |
| 176 | Philippines | 30.1 |
| 177 | Cambodia | 32.5 |
| 178 | Nepal | 32.8 |
| 179 | China | 34.6 |
| 180 | Sri Lanka | 40.8 |
| 181 | Syrian Arab Republic | 86.7 |
| -- | 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.
Around three billion people worldwide 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 world’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 world’s least affordable housing markets.
Although China’s housing market has 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 generally higher incomes.
Why Housing Affordability Is a Global Challenge
The data shows that housing affordability depends less on a country’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 App
To learn more about this topic, check out this graphic on home price-to-income ratios by state.