Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Honolulu, HI and Buchs

For one person, living is cheaper in Buchs: $3,009 a month against $3,963 in Honolulu, HI, rent and utilities included – about $11,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

190

Cost of Living Index in Honolulu, HI
Learn more

Honolulu, HI Living Index
146

Cost of Living Index in Buchs
Learn more

Buchs Living Index

Jump to prices

Honolulu, HI

🇺🇸 United States

$3,963

/mo nomad

Buchs

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,009

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Honolulu, HI and in Buchs

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Honolulu, HI and in Buchs actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,963 in Honolulu, HI versus $3,009 in Buchs.

Honolulu, HI $3,963
Buchs $3,009

Estimated couple costs with rent: $6,161 in Honolulu, HI versus $4,535 in Buchs.

Honolulu, HI $6,161
Buchs $4,535

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $8,359 in Honolulu, HI versus $6,062 in Buchs.

Honolulu, HI $8,359
Buchs $6,062

Living in Honolulu, HI is roughly 32% more expensive than in Buchs, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Honolulu, HI 193% above, Buchs 122% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$28.50 $28.50

$23.43 CHF 19.30

21.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$143 $143

$84.3 CHF 69.4

69.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.25 $15.25

$15.36 CHF 12.65

-0.72%

Cappuccino

$10.44 $10.44

$4.71 CHF 3.88

121.66%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.06 $5.06

$3.77 CHF 3.10

34.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.50 $3.50

$3.20 CHF 2.63

9.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$10.40 $10.40

$6.13 CHF 5.04

69.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$11.66 $11.66

$5.39 CHF 4.44

116.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.19 $2.19

$2.01 CHF 1.66

8.96%

White Bread (500g)

$7.54 $7.54

$3.94 CHF 3.24

91.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$10.02 $10.02

$4.64 CHF 3.82

115.95%

Eggs

$8.50 $8.50

$7.32 CHF 6.03

16.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$28.23 $28.23

$32.21 CHF 26.53

-12.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$20.21 $20.21

$18.51 CHF 15.24

9.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.80 $21.80

$32.47 CHF 26.74

-32.86%

Apples (1kg)

$8.28 $8.28

$3.53 CHF 2.91

134.56%

Banana (1kg)

$5.36 $5.36

$2.14 CHF 1.76

150.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.04 $7.04

$3.14 CHF 2.59

124.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$9.80 $9.80

$6.70 CHF 5.52

46.27%

Potato (1kg)

$4.84 $4.84

$1.78 CHF 1.46

171.91%

Onion (1kg)

$4.87 $4.87

$2.54 CHF 2.10

91.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$5.30 $5.30

$2.44 CHF 2.01

117.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.04 $3.04

$1.21 CHF 1.00

151.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.26 $13.26

$10.84 CHF 8.92

22.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.77 $17.77

$12.70 CHF 10.46

39.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 $2.68

$3.28 CHF 2.70

-18.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.68 $5.68

$3.91 CHF 3.22

45.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.94 $2.94

$5.17 CHF 4.25

-43.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.7 $90.7

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.56 $3.56

$5.36 CHF 4.42

-33.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.56 $2.56

$3.46 CHF 2.85

-26.01%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$45.20 $45.20

$61.2 CHF 50.4

-26.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.38 $1.38

$2.23 CHF 1.83

-38.12%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$36.1K $36.1K

$42.5K CHF 35.0K

-15.05%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$26.2K $26.2K

$39.6K CHF 32.6K

-33.71%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$256 $256

$184 CHF 152

38.58%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$67.4 $67.4

$31.24 CHF 25.73

115.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$66.5 $66.5

$67.2 CHF 55.4

-1.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 $64.9

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.37 $31.37

Cinema Ticket

$20.22 $20.22

$15.20 CHF 12.52

33.03%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$2,123 $2,123

$611 CHF 503

247.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.7K $26.7K

$20.7K CHF 17.0K

29.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.8 $62.8

$107 CHF 88.0

-41.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.82 $45.82

$23.70 CHF 19.52

93.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 $101

$95.2 CHF 78.4

5.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 $133

$170 CHF 140

-21.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,941 $2,941

$1,828 CHF 1,505

60.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,972 $1,972

$1,561 CHF 1,285

26.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,026 $5,026

$2,690 CHF 2,216

86.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,687 $3,687

$2,746 CHF 2,261

34.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,589 $8,589

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,339 $7,339

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,099 $4,099

$8,480 CHF 6,984

-51.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.7

1.93

247.15%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Honolulu, HI: October 17, 2026

Last update for Buchs: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Honolulu, HI

$2K 49.7%

Buchs

$1.6K 51.9% 20.8% $411

Groceries & Markets

Honolulu, HI

$716 18.1%

Buchs

$555 18.4% 22.5% $161

Eating Out

Honolulu, HI

$509 12.8%

Buchs

$359 11.9% 29.4% $149

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Honolulu, HI

$389 9.8%

Buchs

$283 9.4% 27.4% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Honolulu, HI

$154 3.9%

Buchs

$178 5.9% 15.4% $24

Getting Around

Honolulu, HI

$119 3%

Buchs

$43 * 1.4% 63.6% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Honolulu, HI

$105 2.7%

Buchs

$30 * 1% 71.2% $75

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,941 in Honolulu, HI and $1,828 in Buchs. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buchs pays 107% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $143 in Honolulu, HI vs $84.0 in Buchs for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $716 vs $555 per month, with Buchs cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Honolulu, HI

🇨🇭 Buchs

🕒 Local time

03:56 3:56 AM

15:56 3:56 PM

12 h ahead of Honolulu, HI

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

350,964

12,187

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

CHF to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Honolulu, HI Buchs 12,300 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Honolulu, HI
Buchs

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Honolulu, HI vs Buchs: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Honolulu, HI and Buchs differ by about 32% in total monthly costs ($3,963 vs $3,009 including rent). Buchs is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 107% lower in Buchs. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,941 in Honolulu, HI versus $1,828 in Buchs. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,123 in Honolulu, HI versus $611 in Buchs. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Buchs – a meal for two runs $84.0 versus $143 in Honolulu, HI. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Buchs is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Honolulu, HI and Buchs are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Buchs gentler on the wallet – expenses run 32% less than in Honolulu, HI. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.