A conversion tells you what it costs. Not whether it is fair.

The number that actually costs travellers money is not the exchange rate. It is the gap between the local price and the price you were quoted.

Here is the limit of every currency converter, including ours. You are quoted 1,500 baht. The app says $45. Now what?

$45 is a fine dinner and an outrageous taxi ride. Without knowing which, the conversion has not actually helped you decide anything — it has translated the question, not answered it.

The gap the exchange rate cannot close

Tourist pricing is not usually fraud. It is a reasonable response to someone who visibly does not know what things cost and is unlikely to be back. The defence has never been a better exchange rate. It is knowing the local number.

That knowledge normally takes a week of getting mildly overcharged to acquire, by which time you are going home.

What the Local Price Index does

It puts everyday reference prices next to your conversion — what a coffee, a beer, a short taxi ride or a night in a mid-range hotel typically costs in the place you are standing. Not a budget planner and not a cost-of-living database: just enough anchors that a quoted price has something to be measured against.

The useful output is rarely a precise figure. It is the instant reaction of that is roughly right or that is four times what it should be, which is the judgement you actually needed.

How to use it well

• Anchor before you ask. Check the reference price before starting a negotiation, not after you have been quoted. It is difficult to un-hear a number.
• Expect a tourist premium and decide what is acceptable. A modest markup in a tourist area is normal. Several times the local price is a different conversation.
• Treat it as an order of magnitude. Prices vary by neighbourhood, season and venue. The index tells you whether you are in the right range, not what any specific vendor should charge.

Where it fits

A preview is included in the free tier so you can see whether it is useful to you before paying. The complete index is part of the $4.99 unlock, along with all 150+ currencies — one payment, not a yearly one.