Cost of living in Switzerland
Are you moving to Switzerland? Do you know how much money you will need there to maintain your current standard of living?
Find out what is the real equivalent in Switzerl. of your current salary and improve your chances of a happy relocation.
Get a salary calculation for:
| Food | ||
|---|---|---|
| Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district | CHF 25 | |
| Combo meal in fast food restaurant (Big Mac Meal or similar) | CHF 14 | |
| 500 gr (1 lb.) of boneless chicken breast | CHF 13 | |
| 1 liter (1 qt.) of whole fat milk | CHF 1.76 | |
| 12 eggs, large | CHF 7 | |
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of tomatoes | CHF 4.59 | |
| 500 gr (16 oz.) of local cheese | CHF 11 | |
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of apples | CHF 3.80 | |
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of potatoes | CHF 2.83 | |
| 0.5 l (16 oz) domestic beer in the supermarket | CHF 2.08 | |
| 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality | CHF 16 | |
| 2 liters of Coca-Cola | CHF 2.72 | |
| Bread for 2 people for 1 day | CHF 2.40 | |
| Housing | ||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 Sqft) furnished accommodation in EXPENSIVE area | CHF 3,022 | |
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 Sqft) furnished accommodation in NORMAL area | CHF 2,295 | |
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 2 people in 85m2 flat | CHF 175 | |
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 Sqft) furnished studio in EXPENSIVE area | CHF 2,035 | |
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 Sqft) furnished studio in NORMAL area | CHF 1,531 | |
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 1 person in 45 m2 (480 Sqft) studio | CHF 146 | |
| Internet 8 Mbps (1 month) | CHF 49 | |
| 40” flat screen TV | CHF 716 | |
| Microwave 800/900 Watt (Bosch, Panasonic, LG, Sharp, or equivalent brands) | CHF 177 | |
| Laundry detergent (3 l. ~ 100 oz.) | CHF 17 | |
| Hourly rate for cleaning help | CHF 29 | |
| Clothes | ||
| 1 pair of jeans (Levis 501 or similar) | CHF 105 | |
| 1 summer dress in a High Street Store (Zara, H&M or similar retailers) | CHF 57 | |
| 1 pair of sport shoes (Nike, Adidas, or equivalent brands) | CHF 123 | |
| 1 pair of men’s leather business shoes | CHF 184 | |
| Transportation | ||
| Volkswagen Golf 1.4 TSI 150 CV (or equivalent), with no extras, new | CHF 26,511 | |
| 1 liter (1/4 gallon) of gas | CHF 1.52 | |
| Monthly ticket public transport | CHF 87 | |
| Personal Care | ||
| Cold medicine for 6 days (Tylenol, Frenadol, Coldrex, or equivalent brands) | CHF 12 | |
| 1 box of antibiotics (12 doses) | CHF 33 | |
| Short visit to private Doctor (15 minutes) | CHF 123 | |
| 1 box of 32 tampons (Tampax, OB, ...) | CHF 7 | |
| Deodorant, roll-on (50ml ~ 1.5 oz.) | CHF 5.19 | |
| Hair shampoo 2-in-1 (400 ml ~ 12 oz.) | CHF 5.20 | |
| 4 rolls of toilet paper | CHF 3.24 | |
| Tube of toothpaste | CHF 3.57 | |
| Standard men's haircut in expat area of the city | CHF 44 | |
| Entertainment | ||
| Basic dinner out for two in neighborhood pub | CHF 69 | |
| 2 tickets to the movies | CHF 37 | |
| 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats) | CHF 179 | |
| Dinner for two at an Italian restaurant in the expat area including appetisers, main course, wine and dessert | CHF 116 | |
| 1 cocktail drink in downtown club | CHF 17 | |
| Cappuccino in expat area of the city | CHF 5.24 | |
| 1 beer in neighbourhood pub (500ml or 1pt.) | CHF 7 | |
| iPad Air 2, 64GB | CHF 487 | |
| 1 min. of prepaid mobile tariff (no discounts or plans) | CHF 0.34 | |
| 1 month of gym membership in business district | CHF 112 | |
| 1 package of Marlboro cigarettes | CHF 8 | |
Map of Cost of Living in Switzerland
This map shows only the top cities in Switzerland. We also have on this page a list of all the cities available in Expatistan.
The color of each marker corresponds with the Cost of Living in the city. Red markers show more expensive cities, green ones show cheaper cities.
Moving the mouse on top of a city will show its name and the Cost of Living Index of that city.
What is the Cost of Living Index? To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of 100 to a
central reference city (that happens to be Prague).
Once the reference point has been established, the Price Index value of every other city in the
database is calculated by comparing their cost of living to the cost of living in Prague.
Therefore, if a city has a Price Index of 134, that means that living there is 34% more expensive than living in Prague.
Cost of Living Ranking in Switzerland
(top cities by data quality)
| Ranking | City | Price Index * |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Zurich | 255 |
| 2nd | Geneva | 253 |
| 3rd | Lausanne | 223 |
| 4th | Basel | 222 |
| 5th | Bern | 221 |
| 6th | Lugano | 214 |
Price Index:
To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of 100 to a central reference city (that happens to be Prague). Once the reference point has been established, the Price Index value of every other city in the database is calculated by comparing their cost of living to the cost of living in Prague.Therefore, if a city has a Price Index of 134, that means that living there is 34% more expensive than living in Prague.
Are you moving to Switzerland? Do you know how much money you will need there to maintain your current standard of living?
Find out what is the real equivalent in Switzerl. of your current salary and improve your chances of a happy relocation.
Get a salary calculation for:
What do you think about the cost of living in Switzerland?
Recent Comparisons
- Cost of living in Lausanne is 87% more expensive than in Athens
- Cost of living in Zurich is 20% more expensive than in London
- Cost of living in Geneva is 20% more expensive than in London
- Cost of living in Geneva is 30% more expensive than in Paris
- Cost of living in Zurich is 74% more expensive than in Belfast
- Cost of living in Zurich is 32% more expensive than in Paris
- Cost of living in Geneva is 41% more expensive than in Chicago, Illinois
- Cost of living in Zurich is 74% more expensive than in Berlin
- Cost of living in Zurich is 7% more expensive than in New York City
- Cost of living in Zurich is 71% more expensive than in Milan
- Cost of living in Lausanne is 20% more expensive than in Amsterdam
- Cost of living in Zurich is 150% more expensive than in Istanbul
- Cost of living in Zurich is 19% more expensive than in Sydney
- Cost of living in Zurich is 141% more expensive than in Zagreb
- Cost of living in Zurich is 47% more expensive than in Munich
- Cost of living in Zurich is 75% more expensive than in Vienna
- Cost of living in Geneva is 6% more expensive than in New York City
- Cost of living in Zurich is 37% more expensive than in Los Angeles, California
- Cost of living in Zurich is 389% more expensive than in Cairo
- Cost of living in Lugano is 43% more expensive than in Rome
Compare other countries
Recent Prices Added
- Ipad air 2, 64gb in Lausanne costs CHF 510 (1 day ago)
- 1 month of gym membership in business district in Zurich costs CHF 80 (1 day ago)
- Cocktail drink in downtown club in Zurich costs CHF 15 (1 day ago)
- 1 liter of whole fat milk in Zurich costs CHF 1.90 (1 day ago)
- Monthly rent - 85 m2 furnished accommodation in expensive area in Zurich costs CHF 3,500 (1 day ago)
- Utilities, monthly for 2 people in 85 m2 in Neuchatel costs CHF 9,000 (2 days ago)
- One-way ticket in public transport in Zurich costs CHF 0.00 (2 days ago)
- Per hour of waiting of taxi fare per waiting time, weekday at noon in Zurich costs CHF 100,000,000,000 (2 days ago)
- Taxi fare per distance, weekday at noon, per 1 km. in Zurich costs CHF 0.00 (2 days ago)
- Taxi, initial meter charge, weekday at noon in Zurich costs CHF 0.00 (2 days ago)