My experience last year was the USA felt more expensive, starting with the basics like the cheapest t-shirts from Wallmart (vs kmart), beers from a local bottleshop (I was always told AU got the highest alcohol tax so I was a bit surprised) and food places with tax+tips felt more expensive as well.

I'm from Australia and spent five weeks travelling in the US earlier this year. It felt more expensive than any previous trip, and also relative to Australia. We had grocery runs where I walked away wondering how a significant portion of the population there could afford to eat decent food. Tipping is always rising as well, so to eat out you're then paying a larger premium on an already higher number.

One example I can remember, comparing a pretty default Thai place in the US to one of the more premium Thai restaurants here in Adelaide: AU: Pad Thai chicken AU$23, Kao Pad chicken AU$19. US: Pad Thai chicken + tax and tip AU$32, house fried rice AU$32.

Yes, there's cheaper and more expensive, but that was a 'special occasion' restaurant versus a place we just stopped in adjacent a Walmart carpark.

I wouldn't put too much stock in this measure. For NZ I checked the score for 2014(104) vs 2024(68). That just does not seem right.

The index is compared against NYC. So Australia as a whole must be cheaper.

uh what? what's your evidence Australia is more expensive than the US, especially large metros like LA/SF/NYC/Miami?