Germany vs Switzerland - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Germany Switzerland
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1764
$3270
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4178
$7945
🏠 One person rent
$927
$1915
🏘️ Family rent
$1579
$3289
🍽️ Food expenses
$551
$936
🚐 Transport expenses
$133
$144
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$3363
$7446
💸 GDP per capita
$56104
$104K
😃 Human freedom index
8.67
9.15
❤️ Life expectancy
80.5
84.1
👮 Corruption perceptions index
77
80
🌐 English speaking %
55.7%
38.7%
🎓 Higher education
94
99
😀 Quality of life
93
100
🏙️ Population
83.5M
9.01M

The average cost of living in Germany ($1764) is 46% less expensive than in Switzerland ($3270). Germany ranked 26th vs 3rd 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

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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
$30.6
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$73.6
$109
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$12.7
$18.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$5.25
$9.37
 Cappuccino
$4.13
$6.55
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$3.48
$5.33
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$869
$2006
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$672
$1610
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1728
$3775
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1351
$2961
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$175
$169
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$269
$259
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$45.3
$58.9
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.89%
2.03%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$6140
$16647
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4063
$8785
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.84
$4.53
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$67.9
$98.6
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$27.5
$44.1
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$2.09
$2.26
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.36
$2.27
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.2
$3.58
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.45
$3.66
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.89
$8.25
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15
$24.9
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$11.6
$27.7
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$22.6
$43.2
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.3
$3.95
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.14
$2.25
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.35
$3.01
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.12
$5
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.54
$2.28
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.41
$2.23
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.73
$0.96
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.21
$3.42
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$6.41
$14.7
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.16
$2.66
🚬 Cigarette pack
$9.93
$11.4
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$10.3
$18.9
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$2.97
$5.9
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.77
$4.78
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.93
$4.45
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$42.3
$90.4
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$14.6
$24.2
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$70.4
$146
💇 Haircut, simple
$19.4
$46.9
👖 Brand Jeans
$94.8
$137
👟 Brand Sneakers
$105
$160
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$538
$2583
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$16025
$27660

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
$2371
3.78M
Hamburg City
$2189
1.91M
Munich
$2525
1.51M
Cologne
$1941
1.09M
Frankfurt
$2251
776K
Stuttgart
$2011
633K
Dusseldorf
$1913
631K
Nuremberg
$1753
526K
Dortmund
$1482
595K
Bremen City
$1765
577K
Essen
$1519
587K
Leipzig
$1659
620K
Dresden
$1448
566K
Hanover
$1829
548K
Wuppertal
$1547
359K
Duisburg
$1507
504K
Mannheim
$1758
317K
Bonn
$1948
336K
Munster
$1803
323K
Karlsruhe
$1962
310K
Bochum
$1548
366K
Bielefeld
$1638
338K
Braunschweig
$1538
252K
Augsburg
$1938
303K
Wiesbaden
$1996
286K
Aachen
$1618
253K
Solingen
$1698
162K
Monchengladbach
$1657
269K
Kiel
$1557
249K
Chemnitz
$1530
251K

In Switzerland

City Cost of living Population
Zurich
$3857
452K
Geneva
$3658
209K
Basel
$3034
176K
Lausanne
$3134
145K
Bern
$2857
137K
Winterthur
$3267
120K
Lucerne
$3321
86.2K
St. Gallen
$3120
78.9K
Lugano
$2763
63.5K
Biel/Bienne
$2543
55.9K
Schaffhausen
$2611
39K
Neuchatel
$2868
45.3K
Koniz
$2907
43K
Bellinzona
$3160
45.3K
Altstetten
$3514
36.9K
Fribourg
$2891
39.2K
Chur
$2850
39.2K
Lancy
$3344
37.3K
Thun
$2711
43.9K
Uster
$3239
36.8K
Vernier
$3400
34.8K
Zug
$4491
32.1K
Montreux
$3393
27K
Sion
$2468
37.2K
Yverdon-les-Bains
$3126
30.3K
Baden
$3312
23.9K
Emmen
$3288
29.3K
Dietikon
$3348
26.9K
Riehen
$3587
22.5K
La Chaux-de-Fonds
$2554
37.6K