Cost of Living in Zurich, 🇨🇭 Switzerland - For Locals, Nomads, and Tourists

Researched Updated Oct 25, 2026 Last changed Oct 31, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost

Housing 1 2 $3,760 $2,735 $5,021 $2,037 $218

Utilities 22 1 — $220 $272 $178 —

Internet & Mobile 4 5 12 $28 $105 $150 $98 $2

Groceries 1 15 16 17 23 24 31 $190 $782 $1,465 $615 $8

Transportation 1 6 7 $168 $130 $290 $107 $38

Dining Out 1 20 $1,383 $760 $1,150 $191 $125

Leisure Activities 1 11 13 18 19 $320 $268 $5,850 $66 $35

Health Insurance 9 10 $67 $750 $1,962 $604 —

Visa & Legal Fees 14 — $25 $40 — —

Total $5,916 $5,775 $16,200 $3,896 $426

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Housing

Apartment (1 bedroom) 1 2 $2,734.55 $2,037 – $3,315 per month

Coworking Space 8 $636.36 per month

Airbnb (1 month) 1 2 $3,760.00 $3,380 – $4,150 per month

Coliving Space 2 $1,636.00 per month

Food & Dining

Coffee 32 1 $8.00 per cup

Beer 1 25 $10.06 per pint

Meal (Inexpensive) 1 28 $30.17 per meal

Fast Food Combo 20 $16.12 per meal

Apples 24 $2.36 per kg

Bread 17 $3.19 per loaf

Milk 15 $2.30 per liter

Rice 23 $1.64 per kg

Chicken Fillets 16 $27.27 per kg

Beef 31 $38.67 per kg

Wine (Mid-range) 1 $17.75 per bottle

Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) 1 $79.30 per meal

Water (1.5L bottle) 1 $1.43 per bottle

Transportation

Taxi Start 1 7 $7.27 per trip

Taxi per km 1 7 $4.61 per km

Monthly Transport Pass 6 $106.67 per month

Gasoline 3 $2.61 per liter

Ride-hailing (5km) 7 $27.91 per trip

Scooter Rental 21 $121.21 per month

Services

Mobile Plan 4 $16.91 per month

Internet (60 Mbps+) 5 $80.97 per month

Gym Membership 18 $149.09 per month

Tennis Court (Weekend) 13 $30.30 per hour

SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) 12 $6.06 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket 19 $26.55 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans 1 $136.12 per pair

Summer Dress 1 $90.91 per dress

Running Shoes 1 $154.37 per pair

Personal Care

Haircut 1 $55.39 per visit

Laundry 30 $14.55 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) 26 1 $148.88 per visit

Pharmacy (basic meds) 1 $12.12 per purchase

About these costs

Method: Researched
Last updated: Oct 25, 2026
Last changed: Oct 31, 2026
Exchange rate: 1 USD = 0.825 CHF on Oct 19, 2026

Checked against the sources below and compared with similar cities. Numbers in the list point to these sources.

Compared with Geneva, Munich, Vienna, Hanoi, London

Change history

Oct 31, 2026
- Method Generated Researched
- Airbnb (1 month) 3527.99 3760
- Apartment (1 bedroom) 2708.99 2734.55
- Apples 5.04 2.36
- Beef 44.1 38.67
- Beer 9.45 10.06
40 more changes
- Bread 4.41 3.19
- Chicken Fillets 35.28 27.27
- Cinema Ticket 25.2 26.55
- Coffee 6.93 8
- Coliving Space 1764 1636
- Coworking Space 441 636.36
- Dining Out local 189, nomad 1889.99, expat 756, family 756, tourist 126 local 191, nomad 1383, expat 760, family 1150, tourist 125
- Doctor Visit (GP) 189 148.88
- Fast Food Combo 18.9 16.12
- Gasoline 2.33 2.61
- Groceries local 630, nomad 252, expat 1008, family 1889.99, tourist 0 local 615, nomad 190, expat 782, family 1465, tourist 8
- Gym Membership 88.2 149.09
- Haircut 56.7 55.39
- Health Insurance local 441, nomad 100.8, expat 567, family 1512, tourist 0 local 604, nomad 67, expat 750, family 1962, tourist 0
- Housing local 1638, nomad 3149.99, expat 2519.99, family 4409.99, tourist 252 local 2037, nomad 3760, expat 2735, family 5021, tourist 218
- Internet & Mobile local 75.6, nomad 378, expat 100.8, family 126, tourist 0 local 98, nomad 28, expat 105, family 150, tourist 2
- Internet (60 Mbps+) 69.3 80.97
- Jeans 126 136.12
- Laundry 12.6 14.55
- Leisure Activities local 63, nomad 252, expat 189, family 378 local 66, nomad 320, expat 268, family 5850, tourist 35
- Meal (Inexpensive) 31.5 30.17
- Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) 138.6 79.3
- Milk 2.27 2.3
- Mobile Plan 44.1 16.91
- Monthly Transport Pass 151.2 106.67
- Pharmacy (basic meds) 15.12 12.12
- Rice 3.78 1.64
- Ride-hailing (5km) 22.68 27.91
- Running Shoes 163.8 154.37
- SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) 25.2 6.06
- Scooter Rental 31.5 121.21
- Summer Dress 75.6 90.91
- Taxi Start 8.19 7.27
- Taxi per km 4.79 4.61
- Tennis Court (Weekend) 44.1 30.3
- Transportation local 126, nomad 189, expat 151.2, family 378, tourist 37.8 local 107, nomad 168, expat 130, family 290, tourist 38
- Utilities local 252, nomad 126, family 504, tourist 0 local 178, nomad 0, expat 220, family 272, tourist 0
- Visa & Legal Fees local 25.2, expat 37.8, family 63, tourist 0 local 0, expat 25, family 40
- Water (1.5L bottle) 1.89 1.43
- Wine (Mid-range) 22.68 17.75
Coffee (local) moved from 6.93 to 8 (Starbucks medium cappuccino CHF 6.60, nau.ch).

Zurich cost of living