Guides & data studies
Clear, no-nonsense explainers and original data studies from the team behind YouCalc’s calculators — so you understand the numbers before you run them.
How-to guides
How much house can I afford?
Work out an affordable home price from income, debts and down payment using the 28/36 rule, DTI and full PITI.
Read the guide → GuideShould I rent or buy a home?
The price-to-rent ratio, your break-even horizon, and the costs people forget — how to actually decide whether to rent or buy.
Read the guide → GuideHow to Pay Off Your Mortgage Early
The realistic ways to clear a mortgage early — extra principal, biweekly, lump sums, recasting vs refinancing — and what each saves.
Read the guide → GuideHow grading systems work around the world
Letter grades, percentages, honours classes and 1.0-best scales — how grading differs worldwide, and why converting a grade takes more than math.
Read the guide →Data studies
Where tourists actually get the most VAT back
We ran a representative purchase through 38 countries’ tax-free schemes to rank what tourists ACTUALLY pocket after operator fees — not the headline VAT rate. Australia, China and the UK hold the surprises.
Read the data study → Data studyGlobal Mortgage Affordability Index
Where is a home loan most affordable? We rank 41 countries by how much of a median income a typical mortgage payment takes — computed with YouCalc’s mortgage engine from 2026 data.
Read the data study → Data studyAI Footprint Index
How much energy, water and CO₂ does one AI task cost? We rank 6 common AI tasks and three usage personas using YouCalc’s source-backed footprint engine — 2024 data, estimates.
Read the data study → Data studyRent vs Buy Crossover Index
In how many years does buying a home beat renting? We rank 41 countries by the break-even year — computed with YouCalc’s rent-vs-buy engine from 2026 Numbeo data.
Read the data study → Data studyGlobal GPA Equivalence Table
One reproducible table for converting grades across borders: US GPA, German, French, Italian, Indian, percentage, UK honours and ECTS — with an interactive converter. The German column uses the official KMK formula; the rest are clearly marked indicative.
Read the data study →