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COST OF LIVING

Survey: Zurich STILL most expensive city in Europe

Zurich has retained the dubious honour of being the most expensive city in Europe, according to latest Worldwide Cost of Living Survey from The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

Published: 21 March 2017 12:51 CET

Survey: Zurich STILL most expensive city in Europe

Photo: Swiss Tourism

The survey, released on Tuesday, aims to help companies calculate packages for expats and business travellers by comparing more than 400 individual prices across 160 products and services including food and drink, clothing, rents, transport, utility bills and recreation costs.

This year’s survey placed Singapore in the top spot for the fourth consecutive year, with Hong Kong close behind.

The only non-Asian city in the top five, Zurich is deemed the third priciest place in the world and the most expensive in Europe.

And its compatriot Geneva isn’t far behind, placing joint seventh in the world along with the French capital Paris, making them joint second in Europe.

Placing joint ninth, Copenhagen is the only other European city in the top ten, while New York is the only North American city, though it fell two places to ninth owing to a slight weakening of the dollar, said the EIU.

The inclusion of the two Swiss cities comes as no surprise, as they regularly feature highly in cost of living surveys.

Analyzing this year’s results, the EIU pointed out that the relative cost of living in the two cities had fallen slightly this year, however they remained “cemented” among the top ten.

The Swiss cities are the most expensive places in the world for recreation and entertainment, it said, “perhaps reflecting a greater premium on discretionary spending”.

Based on the US dollar and therefore subject to currency fluctuations, the survey found that the price of bread and petrol had decreased in Zurich compared with the previous year, while the price of cigarettes had gone up.

While Zurich may be expensive, it compensates by offering a high quality of life that is regularly recognized in other surveys.

Last week Mercer once again ranked Zurich the second best place in the world for expats to live in, with Geneva placing eighth.

The high cost of living is balanced by higher earnings, a good health system, quality transport links and a safe environment.

The most expensive cities in the world

1. Singapore

2. Hong Kong

3. Zurich

4. Tokyo

5. Osaka

6. Seoul

7. Geneva

7. Paris

9. New York

9. Copenhagen

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The onset of winter will raise concerns for many in Germany about the cost of heating their homes, with memories of last year’s rocketing prices and concerns over domestic gas supply resurfacing.

But, compared to last year, the energy prices have now largely stabilised, though they are still higher than in 2021.

The stabilisation in prices is partly thanks to the government’s energy price cap which came into force earlier this year to cushion the blow of soaring energy prices by capping electricity costs at 40 cents per kilowatt-hour and natural gas at 12 cents.

The federal government plans to maintain this cap until the end of April, though this could be extended even longer, if necessary.

How high are heating costs expected to go this year?

For the current year, experts from co2online expect somewhat lower heating costs than last year.

Heating with gas, for example, is expected to be 11 percent cheaper in 2023 than in 2022, costing €1,310 per year for a flat of 70 square metres.

The cost of heating with wood pellets will drop by 17 percent to €870 per year, and heating with heating oil will cost 19 percent less and amount to €1,130.

According to co2online, the costs for heating with a heat pump will drop the most – by 20 percent to €1,1105. The reason for this, according to co2online, is a wider range of heat pump electricity tariffs.

Tax hikes in January

Starting January next year, the government will raise the value-added tax on natural gas from seven to nineteen percent.

Alongside this, the CO2 price, applicable when refuelling and heating, will also increase.

According to energy expert Thomas Engelke from the Federal Consumer Association, these increases will mean that a small single-family household with three or four people that heats with gas would then pay about €240 more per year for gas.

“That’s a lot”, he said.

Another additional cost factor to consider is that network operators also want to raise prices. However, the federal government plans to allocate €5.5 billion to cushion this increase for consumers as much as possible, so how such cost increases will ultimately affect consumers is currently hard to estimate.

Overall, it can be said that, from January, consumers will have to brace themselves for higher energy costs, even though massive increases are currently not expected.

Consumer advocate Engelke advised customers to closely examine where potential savings could be made this upcoming winter: “Those who are now signing a new gas or electricity contract should inform themselves and possibly switch. Currently, you can save a few hundred euros. It’s worth it. On the other hand, you should also try to save as much energy as possible this winter.”