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COST OF LIVING

Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Lausanne: How much does it cost to live in these Swiss cities?

How do wages and cost of living in general compare from one Swiss city to another? We crunched the numbers for Switzerland's most international cities and came up with some interesting answers.

Published: 8 February 2023 13:35 CET
Updated: 16 March 2023 11:00 CET
Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Lausanne: How much does it cost to live in these Swiss cities?
Different cities, different costs of living. Photo by Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash

Swiss cities are consistently ranked among the most expensive in the world.

But how much does it really cost to live there if we take into account median wages versus prices for various products and services, as well as fixed costs such as rent and utilities?

We looked at selected available data for Zurich, Geneva, Basel, and Lausanne — the four cities where most international residents live.

It is important to keep in mind, however, that these are current approximate averages, and can change on short notice, taking into account changing inflation rate and other factors.

Zurich

Average monthly net salary: 6,240 francs

Rent for a four-room apartment in the city centre: 3,832.92 francs; 2,737.92 francs farther from the centre

Electricity, heating, water, trash collection for a 85m2 apartment: 252.19 francs a month

Public transportation: one-way, ticket, local: 4.40 francs; Monthly Pass (regular price): 97.50 francs

Monthly childcare (full day, private): 2,772.48 francs

Fitness club, monthly fee for one adult: 84.98 francs

Three-course meal for two people at mid-range restaurant: 120 francs

Summary:

  • Estimated monthly costs for a family of four are 5,754.5 francs without rent
  • Estimated monthly costs for a single person are 1,571 francs without rent

You can see more Zurich prices here. 

READ MORE: Which Zurich municipalities have the lowest and highest tax rates?

Geneva 

Average monthly net salary: 5,446.28 francs

Rent for a four-room apartment in the city centre: 4,219.05 francs; 3,016.67 francs farther from the centre.

Electricity, heating, water, trash collection for a 85m2 apartment: 192.70 francs a month

Public transportation: one-way, ticket, local: 3 francs; Monthly Pass (regular price): 70 francs

Monthly childcare (full day, private): 2,054.62 francs

Fitness club, monthly fee for one adult: 84.98 francs

Three-course meal for two people at mid-range restaurant: 115 francs.

Summary:

  • Estimated monthly costs for a family of four are 4,981.5 francs without rent.
  • Estimated monthly costs for a  single person are 1,357.90 francs without rent

You can see more Geneva prices here. 

The city of Geneva. Photo: Pixabay

Basel

Average monthly net salary: 5,984.90 francs

Rent for a four-room apartment in the city centre: 2,718.18 francs; 2,055.56 francs farther from the centre

Electricity, heating, water, trash collection for a 85m2 apartment: 268.66 francs a month

Public transportation: one-way, ticket, local: 3.60 francs; Monthly Pass (regular price): 80 francs

Monthly childcare (full day, private): 2,487.50 francs

Fitness club, monthly fee for one adult: 72.21 francs

Three-course meal for two people at mid-range restaurant: 112.50 francs.

Summary:

  • Estimated monthly costs for a family of four  are 5,995 francs without rent
  • Estimated monthly costs for a single person are 1,636 francs without rent

You can see more Basel prices here. 

READ MORE: What we know about Basel’s international residents 

Lausanne

Average monthly net salary: 5,063.62 francs

Rent for a four-room apartment in the city centre: 3,127.27 francs; 2,570 francs farther from the centre

Electricity, heating, water, trash collection for a 85m2 apartment: 285.28 francs a month

Public transportation: one-way, ticket, local: 3.70 francs; Monthly Pass (regular price): 74 francs

Monthly childcare (full day, private): 2,511.11 francs

Fitness club, monthly fee for one adult: 78.69 francs

Three-course meal for two people at mid-range restaurant: 105 francs.

Summary:

  • Estimated monthly costs for a family of four are 5,504.3 francs without rent
  • Estimated monthly costs for a single person are1,522 francs without rent

You can see more Lausanne prices here.

READ MORE: Why the Swiss city of Lausanne is so popular among foreigners

And the conclusion is:

  • Local Purchasing Power in Zurich is 6.8 percent higher than in Geneva
  • Local Purchasing Power in Zurich is 2.8 percent lower than in Basel
  • Local Purchasing Power in Zurich is 13.8 percent higher than in Lausanne

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For members

ZURICH

Growth spurt: What Zurich needs to do to accommodate 2 million residents

Switzerland's biggest city Zurich is becoming more densely populated. With the population expected to pass the 2 million mark in the coming years authorities are devising plans to make it liveable for new residents.

Published: 29 April 2024 15:08 CEST
Growth spurt: What Zurich needs to do to accommodate 2 million residents

At the end of 2023, over 1.6 million people lived in Zurich, Switzerland’s most populous canton.

But this number is far from static.

The population is continuing to grow — so much so, that it will reach the 2-million mark in the coming years, cantonal authorities said in a press release.

This means an increase of around 450,000 people within the next two decades — a 28-percent growth rate, which is “significantly higher than the Swiss average.”

The primary reason for this hike, accounting for 49 percent of the increase, is immigration, followed by births (44 percent) and, to a lesser degree (7 percent), people moving to Zurich from other Swiss regions

On one hand, this is good news because “it is evidence of the canton’s attractiveness and economic prosperity,” authorities pointed out.

On the other, however, this demographic evolution will create a number of new problems and exacerbate the already existing ones.

That is why “strategic decisions are needed on how to handle challenges facing various areas,”  cantonal officials said.

‘Dealing with consequences’

With this ‘growth spurt,’ Zurich will experience many of the same challenges as Switzerland on the whole will, as demographers are expecting the country’s population to swell to 10 million (from the current 9 million) people in the coming years. 

Just as the federal government has started to think about the best ways to prepare the country’s infrastructure for the growing numbers, Zurich’s authorities too will be “shaping this growth” and “dealing with its consequences.”

To achieve this goal, they have launched the ‘Growth 2050” project to begin in the summer, which will  examine “which approach is most suitable for strategically addressing the challenges ahead,” according to the press release.

What exactly does this mean?

While the project’s findings will not be made public until 2027, authorities will have to ensure that Zurich’s infrastructure, such as housing, public transport, as well as school and healthcare systems, will not crumble under pressure, but be able to function optimally — from both the financial and practical perspectives — in the new context.

While all these areas are important, in Zurich’s case, housing appears to be a particular problem as more residents move into the canton.

With  tens of thousands of foreign nationals having settled in Zurich in the past few years, for instance, affordable housing had become scarcer — a situation that has continued to deteriorate and is expected to grow worse as more residents continue to arrive in the future.

READ ALSO: Zurich hit by affordable housing shortage amid record-high immigration

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