Open the Big Mac Index Currency Comparator
Pick two countries to see the real published Big Mac price in each, the implied purchasing-power-parity exchange rate, and whether the currency is genuinely.
- Free to use
- No signup
- Nothing to install
- Runs in your browser
Illustration. Open the tool for the real thing.
See it in action
Shown running with its default sample values
What is the Big Mac Index Currency Comparator?
The Economist's Big Mac Index is a real, published measure of purchasing power parity: since a Big Mac is a near-identical product sold in the same way in dozens of countries, comparing its local price (converted to US dollars at the real market exchange rate) reveals whether a currency is trading cheaper or more expensive than its actual local purchasing power would predict. This tool embeds a representative snapshot of that real published dataset (local Big Mac price, USD-converted price and the implied PPP exchange rate for a wide set of countries) and lets you compare any two.
The result shows the real market exchange rate, the implied purchasing-power-parity rate the Big Mac prices suggest, and the percentage by which the second country's currency is over- or under-valued relative to the US dollar by this measure — a real, simple way to compare relative cost of living and currency valuation, not a live financial forecast.
3 steps to your result
Open the tool and follow along. Nothing to install.
What you get
Uses a representative snapshot of The Economist's actual published Big Mac Index prices, clearly dated.
Calculates the real purchasing-power-parity rate the local Big Mac prices imply, not just a raw price difference.
Shows exactly how far a currency's market rate diverges from its Big Mac-implied purchasing power.
Pick any pair from the dataset to compare their currencies' relative purchasing power.
AZRS tools are free to open and use.
It opens in your browser, so there is nothing to download.
Used for
Pick one to see how it fits.
Travelers comparing real cost of living between countries
Get a quick, real sense of relative purchasing power beyond just the raw exchange rate.
Try it freeStudents and readers learning about purchasing power parity
See a concrete, well-known real-world example of the PPP concept in action.
Try it freeAnyone curious why a currency is called 'overvalued' or 'undervalued' in the news
Understand the real, simple logic behind one commonly cited measure.
Try it freeHow it compares
A plain look at this tool next to the usual alternative.
| This calculator | Desktop software | |
|---|---|---|
| Install | Nothing to install | Usually an app or program to install |
| Account | No signup | Depends on the product |
| Cost | Free to use | Free or paid, depends on the product |
| Where it runs | In your browser tab | On your computer |
Questions people ask
What exactly is the Big Mac Index?
A real index published periodically by The Economist since 1986 that uses the price of a Big Mac in different countries (a near-identical product everywhere) to gauge whether currencies are trading cheap or expensive relative to their real local purchasing power — a widely cited, simplified illustration of purchasing power parity.
How is 'undervalued' calculated here?
By comparing the real market USD exchange rate to the implied purchasing-power-parity rate suggested by the two countries' local Big Mac prices — if a currency buys more Big Mac (adjusted to USD) locally than the market rate would suggest, it's shown as undervalued by this measure.
Is this data live and current to today?
No — it's a real, representative snapshot of published Big Mac Index data, clearly dated in the tool; The Economist publishes updated figures periodically, so check their official site for the current exact numbers.
Why use a Big Mac instead of a more 'serious' product basket?
That's exactly the index's original point — a Big Mac is unusually standardized across countries in ingredients, production and retail format, making it an easy, consistent real-world product to compare, unlike most goods which vary a lot between markets.
Can I compare any two countries?
Any two countries included in the embedded dataset, which covers a wide, representative set of the countries The Economist's index tracks.
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