Comments
By binarysolo 2026-02-2319:498 reply Practically speaking, in 2026, are there any big ticket items an American could buy abroad and have the travel economics work out to their favor?
The big one I do is medical tourism, though I have family in Taiwan. I've done a bit of dental works where the cost in the US is $3k-$5k after insurance, and at Taiwan is maybe $300-$500 (10x diff) cash pay. I've also done scan-all-the-things health spas in a Taiwan hospital for $300-$500, where American equivalents are again 10x.
By OkayPhysicist 2026-02-2320:076 reply Labor-intensive products. Custom suits, leather jackets, etc., are so, so much cheaper in places with lower costs of living. For individual items, flights might make it a toss-up, but on the scale of an entire wardrobe, flying to Turkey, having a bunch of tailored clothes made up, and then flying home would definitely work out.
That certainly used to be the case. My dad used to get his suits made in Hong Kong all the time although that became less economical relative to other locations. I don't really wear any of that type of clothing any longer.
Akihabara in Tokyo also used to be a bargain for electronics but I'm not sure that's really true any longer that I've noticed.
I was in Akihabara in Tokyo and other places end of 2024. Prices were nearly US priced but in Yen more or less. No real bargins. Only thing they had going was unique stuff you can't find at all in the mass market garbage we got going on in the US
By rustyhancock 2026-02-2322:121 reply Much of the "cheap retro games" from Japan are just the games that were more popular there like Paper Mario 64.
It's hard to really properly track these things but over the three trips I've made to Japan over about 12 years. Id say the price rises have been entirely in line with currency and retrogaming inflation.
I.e. I'm not sure it was every as good value as people thought.
I did buy quite a bit over a decade ago but again those were Japan only carts (that wouldn't even run in PAL without a mod chip but would run NTSC-U).
That said it is so much more touristy now I'm sure any arbitrage opertunity would be sweeped away same evening.
Japan is now also making domestic only console versions (at least for switch 2 and I think with PS5 on the cards).
Again this might lead to people thinking consoles are cheap in Japan but these are Japanese only consoles designed to revive the economic doldrum they are in.
Japan is certainly the place to go for second-hand synthesizers and other music equipment, though. The gear is well taken care of, and usually a fair bit cheaper than local rates.
By rustyhancock 2026-02-2413:011 reply Fair point! I did see an extraordinary amount of music gear in akihabara and never really processed that information.
And the love and care they treat possessions with as well as the way they package second hand devices is inspiring.
It's kind of odd in a way in contrast to Kintsugi (where repair is highlighted). Almost aiming to keep things in perfect condition but then in a way celebrating repair?
By MisterTea 2026-02-2417:23 Some things are more costly in the USA. I have a soft spot for the aesthetics of the Fuji Electric Command Switches AR16, AF16. They're like $19+ each in the USA from automationdirect.com. However, in 2024 I found a stall in Akihabara selling Industrial automation stuff including the Fuji switches for 5-10 bucks each. Bought a bunch and made a little demo panel for about 60 bucks. The same items in the USA would have set me back over $150. When I go back I am buying a lot more.
By a_t48 2026-02-2322:02 A certain version of JP Zelda Link to the Past is needed for speedrunning and “legally” running randomizers. It was far easier and cheaper to find in Tokyo than online.
As late as 2012-2015 it was still extremely cheap to get suits in HK, but I'm sure that's no longer the case.
The last time I did it, I bought fabric for $60 USD at Joann's, flew to HK, and gave a guy the fabric for a suit. The suit cost $45 USD to make.
By ghaff 2026-02-2321:34 I think, latterly, my dad was getting them made in Seoul and I had some clothing made there and Singapore as well. But I had admittedly not been in HK for years and years and didn't really need suits in any case.
By whynotmaybe 2026-02-2320:40 I used this but inverted, the tailor flew to a few European cities and we met him in a hotel room.
He then flew back to Thailand and send the suits.
By bobthepanda 2026-02-2320:431 reply Luxury fashion also tends to have large price differences based on exchange rates and tax.
Before the Great Recession, Europeans, particularly Brits, were flying into NYC with empty suitcases. It helps that NYC has a sales tax exemption for clothes items under a certain amount specifically to facilitate this.
By JasonADrury 2026-02-2321:16 A lot of it is tax fraud, with the new clothes in that suitcase not being properly declared when imported.
By JasonADrury 2026-02-2412:37 > Custom suits, leather jackets, etc., are so, so much cheaper in places with lower costs of living
Even in places like Bangkok a basic bespoke suit with decent construction is going to be starting at $1000, with the slightly better places charging significantly more.
The actually cheap custom suits are cheap because the quality is laughably bad, you're basically getting H&M/Zara quality for higher prices. The reason these products don't really exist in the west is primarily a lack of demand.
By pseudohadamard 2026-02-255:40 Anything where a single importer for an overseas product has been granted a monopoly and can charge whatever they want for it. In the late 1980s/early 1990s the cheapest way to buy an Apple Mac in this country (some way from the US) was to fly to the US, buy it there, and bring it back.
India, too! The suit I got for my wedding was custom, way cheaper there than here. I need to go back and get a second jacket some day.
By ryandrake 2026-02-242:56 Yea, same here. I was already in India for other reasons, and I thought--hmm let's see what a tailored suit costs. I ended up decking myself out with a sweet wardrobe for what what so cheap I thought it was an English language mistake.
Weirdly for me: IKEA. I’m within ~240 miles of an IKEA in Canada and an IKEA in the US.
While they’ve started to inflate some items to meet currency conversion rates, some items are still cheaper for me to purchase in Canada directly and bring back to the US.
For instance, even at small scale: one BILLY bookcase, article number 205.220.46, is $90 CAD (~$65.70 US) at IKEA CA and $79 USD at IKEA US.
YMMV coming back across the border but in my experience I just got waived through the border every time I told them I was “just coming back with some cheap crap from IKEA”.
By BizarroLand 2026-02-2321:091 reply Travelling to a no sales tax state for large purchases. Sales tax is roughly 10%, state with no sales tax is 150 miles away for me.
Doing the math, 300 miles round trip, 30 miles per gallon, $4/gallon for gas, if I'm buying something that costs more than $400 I get a free trip to other state.
Downside is that you're only breaking even for the time, but if you're making a $1,000+ purchase then it's definitely worth the time for me to make the trip.
By shagie 2026-02-2322:43 Some states have that as a "you should/need to declare that as a use tax."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Use_tax
It's likely poorly enforced, but it's on the books and it's a complicated one to track. It was more of a concern when internet sales didn't collect state sales.
There's also Simplified Sellers Use Tax lawsuit that was recently in the courts.
Is your time and car free or do you want to make the trip anyways?
By kotaKat 2026-02-2323:46 Car's 11 cents a mile, that's less than twenty bucks in gas, me spending ~5 to 6 hours total back and forth retrieving it is still worth so much more than waiting days on end for freight shipment (and the hundreds that can cost, combined with the messy scheduling commitment if you buy any large goods -- I just checked, it's $289! for that Billy to be shipped to my doorstep).
I have in fact brought a rolled up full size mattress home in the back seat of a Fusion Hybrid (it fit! with room for other things!) and it was a great cost savings. As a bonus at the time there was an additional sale in IKEA CA on the mattress that US didn't have, so I saved even more.
By m463 2026-02-2322:10 I remember decades ago hearing stories of motorcycle racers going to japan to get a honda RS125, put it in their luggage and bringing it back to the US.
They are small race-only 2-stroke motorcycles, not sold in the US at all.
By m4rtink 2026-02-2320:16 Japanese stationary - and I am not kidding.
Inside the European Union, traveling to other places to buy things from there would only seldom be profitable, when considering the travel expenses.
On the other hand, I frequently buy things from online shops located in many of the EU countries, because very often for various kinds of things that I want to buy I find the best deals in different countries. There are no extra expenses but shipping, so it is frequent to order things from far away, because at a local shop near me they would be more expensive than buying from another country, even with the added shipping.
By yurishimo 2026-02-2322:38 I bought a custom couch from Lithuania and got it shipped to the Netherlands after trying a certain brand in a local showroom. The brand is based in Belgium and does some manufacturing in Poland. They even shipped it for free because I met a minimum spend threshold.
The NL dealer wanted €5k but Lithuania wanted €2800 for the same exact couch so I then convinced myself it was worth it to pay for a fabric upgrade. Since its made by the same Belgian company, the warranty is identical and valid across the EU.
I guess you could say I’ve successfully assimilated to my new adopted home in NL and now I hate to pay full price for almost anything!
By profdevloper 2026-02-243:01 A wife
By NedF 2026-02-242:44 [dead]
Oh this brings back memories. Back in 2007 my dad needed a new Thinkpad which was like 2.5k EUR in NL vs 1k USD in the USA. He also wanted to push his kids to do something adventurous.
So he bought me (19) and little brother (16) tickets to fly from Amsterdam to New York (2x350) and get a cheap hotel for 2 nights (2x100). All to get a Thinkpad W500(?).
We had a great time. Got chased by a wild homeless person on Staten Island who followed us onto the ferry and we were scared stiff. Also walked all over Manhattan. Went to the Bronx but got stared at a lot so quickly went back to the subway. I can still hear the iconic "Stand clear of the Closing Doors" in my head.
Too bad the America from those days is gone.
By netbioserror 2026-02-2321:49 New York City has been a running sine wave of sketchy stories and memories for the past century!
By jtwaleson 2026-02-244:15 Hah, indeed, the story could have happened yesterday. Except maybe thinkpad prices in europe have normalized a bit ;)
What I didn't write is that my feelings towards the USA were 95% positive back then. A bit less after the chase and the Bronx visit, but still. Obama made everything feel hopeful. The current situation is just depressing.
The fun one one, where a Dutch parent feels it's safe to send 2 teenagers unaccompanied to the US for a brief visit.
By dpc050505 2026-02-2415:30 Apart from safety, the rhetoric of the US government regarding the invasion of former allies has led a lot of people to try really hard to boycott as many American products as they can.
I was going to say,
pretty sure this story could have happened last week.
By IncreasePosts 2026-02-2516:48 What? Not at all. I guarantee you I can find you a homeless man in NY to chase you.
By rock_artist 2026-02-2318:182 reply Nothing fancy here, just difference of prices/taxes in markets. Same as any YouTube video showing "I flew to Korea and got iPhone 17 Pro Max for cheaper".
So there are individuals who do that and it makes sense (if you enjoy the flying / traveling) and it's not considered "time is money"
There are also common parallel importing in many countries who find a dealer at some country that has the same product in lower local currency, buy bulk and get some discount, then resell it in the country where the official distribution is expensive.
That's why it is possible to find no eSIM/NFC iPhones in some stores (imported from China) or eSIM only ones in regions where you'd expect them to have also physical sim tray.
By bobthepanda 2026-02-2320:40 People have been doing this forever.
What’s more interesting was when people were doing this with software sold physically; IIRC Adobe creative suite was so expensive in Australia that it was cheaper to fly to the US and buy it
