A year's budget is a daily figure times 365 plus a list of things that are not daily. People get the daily figure roughly right and forget half the list. Here is the whole list, with numbers from our destination database (editorial estimates, October 2026) and from typical market prices for the rest.
1. The daily spend
By region and tier, per person per day (ranges across our destinations):
| Region | Backpacker | Mid-range | Comfortable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southeast Asia (mainland) | $25–32 | $59–88 | $136–208 |
| Bali, Malaysia | $30–35 | $80–97 | $181–235 |
| South Asia (Nepal) | $23 | $60 | $143 |
| Japan, Korea | $52–70 | $134–168 | $295–362 |
| Mexico, Central America | $33–50 | $86–135 | $196–280 |
| South America | $38–45 | $92–117 | $208–257 |
| Caucasus, Balkans, Turkey | $38–49 | $89–117 | $189–248 |
| Central Europe | $54–57 | $128–135 | $256–270 |
| Southern and Western Europe | $62–76 | $142–189 | $271–372 |
| Southern and East Africa | $43–47 | $113–121 | $265 |
A year weighted toward the cheap regions averages about $45 a day at the backpacker tier ($16,500) and $100 at mid-range ($36,500). A year weighted toward Europe and Japan doubles that.
2. Flights between regions
Eight to ten long-haul or inter-regional flights: $3,000 to $6,000 depending on routing, booking lead time and whether you use a round-the-world fare. Budget carriers within Asia and Europe keep the short hops at $40 to $120.
3. Insurance
$700 to $2,000 for twelve months depending on age, cover level, country of residence and whether the US is included. Add dive, trekking and electronics riders where needed.
4. Gear and paperwork
$500 to $1,500 for a bag, shoes, layers, electronics and replacements; $200 to $500 for visas; $200 to $600 for vaccinations and a travel-medicine consultation.
5. The big experiences
These are not in the daily figure and they are why you went: a tea-house trek with a guide ($600 to $1,200), a Salkantay or Inca Trail trek ($300 to $800 plus Machu Picchu entry), a Tanzanian safari ($1,200 to $3,000), a dive course ($350 to $450), a Ha Long Bay cruise ($100 to $250), a Galápagos week ($2,000 plus). Choose four or five and list them.
6. Money that stays at home
Rent or mortgage if kept, storage ($50 to $150 a month), subscriptions, loan payments, phone plan, pet care, and the landing month on return. Most people under-count this by half.
7. Reserve
Ten to fifteen percent of the trip total inside the plan, plus an emergency fund outside it of one flight home and one month of living.
Putting it together
A cheap-region backpacker year: $16,500 daily + $3,500 flights + $900 insurance + $1,000 gear and papers + $2,500 experiences + $2,500 reserve = about $27,000, before anything at home. A mid-range year with Europe and Japan: $45,000 to $55,000. Run your own in the Trip Cost Calculator per destination and the money-last tool for the whole.
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