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 13 | ||
| 500 gr (1 lb.) of boneless chicken breast | CHF 13 | ||
| 1 liter (1 qt.) of whole fat milk | CHF 1.68 | ||
| 12 eggs, large | CHF 7 | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of tomatoes | CHF 4.01 | ||
| 500 gr (16 oz.) of local cheese | CHF 11 | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of apples | CHF 3.87 | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of potatoes | CHF 3.00 | ||
| 0.5 l (16 oz) domestic beer in the supermarket | CHF 2.23 | ||
| 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality | CHF 15 | ||
| 2 liters of Coca-Cola | CHF 2.47 | ||
| Bread for 2 people for 1 day | CHF 2.44 | ||
| Housing | |||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 Sqft) furnished accommodation in EXPENSIVE area | CHF 2,894 | ||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 Sqft) furnished accommodation in NORMAL area | CHF 2,232 | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 2 people in 85m2 flat | CHF 199 | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 Sqft) furnished studio in EXPENSIVE area | CHF 1,860 | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 Sqft) furnished studio in NORMAL area | CHF 1,300 | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 1 person in 45 m2 (480 Sqft) studio | CHF 152 | ||
| Internet 8 Mbps (1 month) | CHF 46 | ||
| 40” flat screen TV | CHF 534 | ||
| Microwave 800/900 Watt (Bosch, Panasonic, LG, Sharp, or equivalent brands) | CHF 166 | ||
| 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 114 | ||
| 1 summer dress in a High Street Store (Zara, H&M or similar retailers) | CHF 48 | ||
| 1 pair of sport shoes (Nike, Adidas, or equivalent brands) | CHF 135 | ||
| 1 pair of men’s leather business shoes | CHF 185 | ||
| Transportation | |||
| Volkswagen Golf 1.4 TSI 150 CV (or equivalent), with no extras, new | CHF 27,425 | ||
| 1 liter (1/4 gallon) of gas | CHF 1.88 | ||
| Monthly ticket public transport | CHF 88 | ||
| Personal Care | |||
| Cold medicine for 6 days (Tylenol, Frenadol, Coldrex, or equivalent brands) | CHF 13 | ||
| 1 box of antibiotics (12 doses) | CHF 33 | ||
| Short visit to private Doctor (15 minutes) | CHF 115 | ||
| 1 box of 32 tampons (Tampax, OB, ...) | CHF 5.98 | ||
| Deodorant, roll-on (50ml ~ 1.5 oz.) | CHF 4.61 | ||
| Hair shampoo 2-in-1 (400 ml ~ 12 oz.) | CHF 4.25 | ||
| 4 rolls of toilet paper | CHF 3.13 | ||
| Tube of toothpaste | CHF 3.34 | ||
| Standard men's haircut in expat area of the city | CHF 44 | ||
| Entertainment | |||
| Basic dinner out for two in neighborhood pub | CHF 70 | ||
| 2 tickets to the movies | CHF 38 | ||
| 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats) | CHF 149 | ||
| Dinner for two at an Italian restaurant in the expat area including appetisers, main course, wine and dessert | CHF 106 | ||
| 1 cocktail drink in downtown club | CHF 17 | ||
| Cappuccino in expat area of the city | CHF 5.05 | ||
| 1 beer in neighbourhood pub (500ml or 1pt.) | CHF 7 | ||
| iPad Wi-Fi 128GB | CHF 497 | ||
| 1 min. of prepaid mobile tariff (no discounts or plans) | CHF 0.36 | ||
| 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 | Zurich | 245 |
| 2nd | Geneva | 236 |
| 3rd | Basel | 231 |
| 4th | Lausanne | 222 |
| 5th | Lugano | 213 |
| 6th | Bern | 211 |
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 9% more expensive than in London
- Cost of living in Zurich is 165% more expensive than in Warsaw
- Cost of living in Zurich is about the same as in San Francisco, California
- Cost of living in Geneva is 5% more expensive than in London
- Cost of living in Zurich is 81% more expensive than in Madrid
- Cost of living in Zurich is 27% more expensive than in Singapore
- Cost of living in Geneva is 21% more expensive than in Boston, Massachusetts
- Cost of living in Zurich is 14% more expensive than in Oslo
- Cost of living in Zurich is 9% more expensive than in Hong Kong
- Cost of living in Zurich is about the same as in New York City
- Cost of living in Zurich is 226% more expensive than in Istanbul
- Cost of living in Zurich is 64% more expensive than in Milan
- Cost of living in Zurich is 195% more expensive than in Kraków
- Cost of living in Zurich is 53% more expensive than in Munich
- Cost of living in Zurich is 42% more expensive than in Toronto
- Cost of living in Zurich is 33% more expensive than in Amsterdam
- Cost of living in Zurich is 82% more expensive than in Barcelona
- Cost of living in Zurich is 30% more expensive than in Paris
- Cost of living in Zurich is 43% more expensive than in Stockholm
- Cost of living in Zurich is 34% more expensive than in Denver, Colorado
Compare other countries
Prices recently added
- Monthly rent - 85 m2 furnished accommodation in expensive area in Zurich costs CHF 5,000 (about 16 hours ago)
- 2 liters of coca-cola in Zurich costs CHF 1.80 (about 16 hours ago)
- 500 ml domestic beer in the supermarket in Zurich costs CHF 1.20 (about 16 hours ago)
- 250 g of local cheese in Zurich costs CHF 24 (about 16 hours ago)
- 1 kg of tomatoes in Zurich costs CHF 3.50 (about 16 hours ago)
- 6 eggs, large in Zurich costs CHF 9 (about 16 hours ago)
- 1 liter of whole fat milk in Zurich costs CHF 2.00 (about 16 hours ago)
- 500 g of boneless chicken breast in Zurich costs CHF 10 (about 16 hours ago)
- Combo meal in fast food restaurant (big mac meal or similar) in Zurich costs CHF 14 (about 16 hours ago)
- Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district in Zurich costs CHF 20 (about 16 hours ago)