Turner & Townsend’s 2024 international construction market survey shows New York City is the most expensive place in which to build in the world, according to CNBC. The city was No. 1 in 2023.
San Francisco remained at No. 2 this year. Four other U.S. cities—Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and Seattle—made the list.
Following is the full list of the top 10 most expensive cities in which to build, according to the survey.
- New York City
- San Francisco
- Zurich
- Geneva
- Los Angeles
- Boston
- Seattle
- Chicago
- Hong Kong
- London
The report found New York City had an average build cost of $5,723 per square meter, followed by San Francisco at $5,489 per square meter, Zurich at $5,035 per square meter and Geneva at $5,022 per square meter; these were the only four markets where the average cost to build exceeded $5,000 per square meter.
