Germany vs Switzerland - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Germany Switzerland
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1755
$3186
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4140
$7750
🏠 One person rent
$924
$1830
🏘️ Family rent
$1569
$3162
🍽️ Food expenses
$552
$946
🚐 Transport expenses
$129
$137
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$3290
$7360
💸 GDP per capita
$55800
$104K
😃 Human freedom index
8.67
9.14
❤️ Life expectancy
80.5
84.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
75
81
🌐 English speaking %
56.3%
61.3%
🎓 Higher education
94
99
😀 Quality of life
91
100
🏙️ Population
83.5M
9.03M

The average cost of living in Germany ($1755) is 45% less expensive than in Switzerland ($3186). Germany ranked 24th vs 4th for Switzerland in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.9 months in Germany compared to 2.3 months in Switzerland. Ranked 12th and 1st best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Germany vs Switzerland infographic

Share this infographic!

Prices in Germany vs Switzerland

We calculate prices for Germany and Switzerland as a population-weighted mean of 662 and 50 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Germany Switzerland
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$16.3
$30.3
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$72.8
$114
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$12.1
$19
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$5.11
$9.09
 Cappuccino
$4.03
$6.4
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$3.32
$5.42
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$867
$1889
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$667
$1540
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1714
$3598
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1346
$2878
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$171
$162
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$263
$249
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$46.3
$58.1
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.89%
2.45%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5862
$18825
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4371
$8948
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.75
$4.33
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$63.7
$102
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$27.1
$40.8
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.99
$2.22
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.3
$2.25
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.19
$3.62
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.32
$4.19
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.85
$7.96
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.8
$24.4
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.6
$26.8
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$20.8
$47.1
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.31
$3.9
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2
$2.41
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.33
$3.05
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.66
$5.81
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.64
$2.74
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.45
$2.41
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.71
$0.92
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.17
$3.55
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$6.71
$15.3
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.08
$2.61
🚬 Cigarette pack
$9.79
$11.2
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$10.4
$18.9
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.05
$5.88
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.75
$4.67
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.88
$4.41
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$40.7
$90.9
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$14.6
$23.9
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$70.8
$144
💇 Haircut, simple
$18.4
$46.7
👖 Brand Jeans
$93.5
$134
👟 Brand Sneakers
$103
$160
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$482
$2481
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$15339
$22968

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Germany vs Switzerland

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Germany

City Cost of living Population
Berlin
$2222
3.78M
Hamburg City
$2172
1.91M
Munich
$2463
1.51M
Frankfurt
$2182
776K
Cologne
$1968
1.09M
Dusseldorf
$1979
631K
Stuttgart
$2207
633K
Essen
$1516
587K
Dortmund
$1632
595K
Nuremberg
$1767
526K
Bremen City
$1785
577K
Leipzig
$1690
620K
Dresden
$1555
566K
Hanover
$1828
548K
Mannheim
$1825
317K
Bonn
$1957
336K
Duisburg
$1340
504K
Bielefeld
$1611
338K
Augsburg
$1954
303K
Wiesbaden
$1922
286K
Munster
$1887
323K
Wuppertal
$1488
359K
Braunschweig
$1534
252K
Bochum
$1560
366K
Karlsruhe
$1891
310K
Freiburg im Breisgau
$1738
237K
Aachen
$1668
253K
Monchengladbach
$1651
269K
Halle
$1388
242K
Mainz
$1736
223K

In Switzerland

City Cost of living Population
Zurich
$3691
449K
Geneva
$3577
207K
Basel
$2964
176K
Lausanne
$3069
144K
Bern
$2945
137K
Winterthur
$3207
119K
Lucerne
$3231
85.5K
St. Gallen
$2694
78.2K
Lugano
$2673
63.5K
Biel/Bienne
$2576
55.9K
Koniz
$2956
43K
Thun
$2725
43.9K
Schaffhausen
$2699
38.7K
Altstetten
$3392
36.3K
Zug
$3836
31.5K
Uster
$3249
36.8K
Bellinzona
$3158
43.8K
Chur
$2846
35.4K
Fribourg
$2755
38.7K
Vernier
$3358
34.8K
Neuchatel
$2732
33.5K
Lancy
$3317
31.9K
Sion
$2397
34.7K
Montreux
$3399
26K
Yverdon-les-Bains
$3123
30.2K
Emmen
$3197
29.3K
Dubendorf
$3276
28K
La Chaux-de-Fonds
$2567
37.2K
Kriens
$3175
27K
Rapperswil-Jona
$3169
27K