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 14 | |
| 1 liter (1 qt.) of whole fat milk | CHF 1.69 | |
| 12 eggs, large | CHF 7 | |
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of tomatoes | CHF 4.19 | |
| 500 gr (16 oz.) of local cheese | CHF 12 | |
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of apples | CHF 3.82 | |
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of potatoes | CHF 2.92 | |
| 0.5 l (16 oz) domestic beer in the supermarket | CHF 2.48 | |
| 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality | CHF 16 | |
| 2 liters of Coca-Cola | CHF 2.51 | |
| Bread for 2 people for 1 day | CHF 2.44 | |
| Housing | ||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 Sqft) furnished accommodation in EXPENSIVE area | CHF 2,865 | |
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 Sqft) furnished accommodation in NORMAL area | CHF 2,348 | |
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 2 people in 85m2 flat | CHF 178 | |
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 Sqft) furnished studio in EXPENSIVE area | CHF 1,922 | |
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 Sqft) furnished studio in NORMAL area | CHF 1,470 | |
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 1 person in 45 m2 (480 Sqft) studio | CHF 137 | |
| Internet 8 Mbps (1 month) | CHF 45 | |
| 40” flat screen TV | CHF 550 | |
| Microwave 800/900 Watt (Bosch, Panasonic, LG, Sharp, or equivalent brands) | CHF 184 | |
| Laundry detergent (3 l. ~ 100 oz.) | CHF 18 | |
| Hourly rate for cleaning help | CHF 29 | |
| Clothes | ||
| 1 pair of jeans (Levis 501 or similar) | CHF 116 | |
| 1 summer dress in a High Street Store (Zara, H&M or similar retailers) | CHF 52 | |
| 1 pair of sport shoes (Nike, Adidas, or equivalent brands) | CHF 130 | |
| 1 pair of men’s leather business shoes | CHF 174 | |
| Transportation | ||
| Volkswagen Golf 1.4 TSI 150 CV (or equivalent), with no extras, new | CHF 28,020 | |
| 1 liter (1/4 gallon) of gas | CHF 1.84 | |
| Monthly ticket public transport | CHF 87 | |
| Personal Care | ||
| Cold medicine for 6 days (Tylenol, Frenadol, Coldrex, or equivalent brands) | CHF 13 | |
| 1 box of antibiotics (12 doses) | CHF 34 | |
| Short visit to private Doctor (15 minutes) | CHF 124 | |
| 1 box of 32 tampons (Tampax, OB, ...) | CHF 7 | |
| Deodorant, roll-on (50ml ~ 1.5 oz.) | CHF 4.67 | |
| Hair shampoo 2-in-1 (400 ml ~ 12 oz.) | CHF 4.28 | |
| 4 rolls of toilet paper | CHF 2.97 | |
| Tube of toothpaste | CHF 3.33 | |
| Standard men's haircut in expat area of the city | CHF 46 | |
| Entertainment | ||
| Basic dinner out for two in neighborhood pub | CHF 70 | |
| 2 tickets to the movies | CHF 37 | |
| 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats) | CHF 124 | |
| Dinner for two at an Italian restaurant in the expat area including appetisers, main course, wine and dessert | CHF 112 | |
| 1 cocktail drink in downtown club | CHF 17 | |
| Cappuccino in expat area of the city | CHF 5.27 | |
| 1 beer in neighbourhood pub (500ml or 1pt.) | CHF 7 | |
| iPad Wi-Fi 128GB | CHF 532 | |
| 1 min. of prepaid mobile tariff (no discounts or plans) | CHF 0.37 | |
| 1 month of gym membership in business district | CHF 91 | |
| 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 | Geneva | 247 |
| 2nd | Zurich | 247 |
| 3rd | Basel | 224 |
| 4th | Lausanne | 222 |
| 5th | Bern | 214 |
| 6th | Lugano | 213 |
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:
Recent Comparisons
- Cost of living in Zurich is 24% more expensive than in Boston, Massachusetts
- Cost of living in Zurich is 10% more expensive than in London
- Cost of living in Basel is 63% more expensive than in Madrid
- Cost of living in Zurich is 5% more expensive than in New York City
- Cost of living in Zurich is about the same as in San Francisco, California
- Cost of living in Zurich is 138% more expensive than in Moscow
- Cost of living in Zurich is 67% more expensive than in Brussels
- Cost of living in Zurich is 162% more expensive than in Budapest
- Cost of living in Geneva is 10% more expensive than in London
- Cost of living in Zurich is 29% more expensive than in Boulder, Colorado
- Cost of living in Geneva is 119% more expensive than in São Paulo
- Cost of living in Zurich is 91% more expensive than in Shanghai
- Cost of living in Zurich is 77% more expensive than in Barcelona
- Cost of living in Geneva is 99% more expensive than in Lisbon
- Cost of living in Zurich is 26% more expensive than in Paris
- Cost of living in Zurich is 23% more expensive than in Copenhagen
- Cost of living in Geneva is 12% more expensive than in Washington D.C.
- Cost of living in Zurich is 11% more expensive than in Washington D.C.
- Cost of living in Basel is 66% more expensive than in Barcelona
- Cost of living in Zurich is 42% more expensive than in Denver, Colorado
Compare other countries
Recent Prices Added
- Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district in Lausanne costs CHF 17 (about 13 hours ago)
- Volkswagen golf 1.4 tsi 150 cv (or equivalent), with no extras, new in Aarau costs CHF 23,000 (5 days ago)
- Monthly rent - 85 m2 furnished accommodation in expensive area in Lausanne costs CHF 1,500 (7 days ago)
- Ipad wi-fi 128gb in Bern costs CHF 489 (7 days ago)
- Sport shoes (nike, adidas, or equivalent brands) in Zurich costs CHF 150 (8 days ago)