Big Mac Index 2026: Where a Burger Is Cheapest and Priciest
Nearly forty years on, the Big Mac Index is still one of the most intuitive ways to feel whether a currency is cheap or dear. Here’s the shape of it in 2026.
The priciest burgers
Switzerland remains the reigning champion of expensive burgers — a Big Mac there costs well over $7 in dollar terms, a reflection of high Swiss wages and a strong franc. Norway and parts of the Eurozone aren’t far behind.
The best-value burgers
At the other end, a Big Mac in India, Indonesia or South Africa costs the equivalent of under $3. By the index’s logic, that hints these currencies are “undervalued” against the dollar — your dollar buys noticeably more burger there.
What it really tells you
The index isn’t a trading signal. A burger bundles local rent, wages and beef prices, none of which move with exchange rates alone. But as a quick gut-check on whether your money will stretch further somewhere, it’s brilliant — and it’s the seed of our fuller Burgernomics comparison, which does the same trick across a whole basket of everyday goods.
Curious how your country stacks up? Pick two and see for yourself.