Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lausanne and Buchs

For one person, living is cheaper in Buchs: $3,009 a month against $3,769 in Lausanne, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

182

Cost of Living Index in Lausanne
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Lausanne Living Index
146

Cost of Living Index in Buchs
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Buchs Living Index

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Lausanne

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,769

/mo nomad

Buchs

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,009

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lausanne 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 Lausanne and in Buchs actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,769 in Lausanne versus $3,009 in Buchs.

Lausanne $3,769
Buchs $3,009

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,735 in Lausanne versus $4,535 in Buchs.

Lausanne $5,735
Buchs $4,535

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,701 in Lausanne versus $6,062 in Buchs.

Lausanne $7,701
Buchs $6,062

Living in Lausanne is roughly 25% more expensive than in Buchs, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lausanne 178% above, Buchs 122% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$29.80 CHF 24.54

$23.43 CHF 19.30

27.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$113 CHF 93.1

$84.3 CHF 69.4

34.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$17.81 CHF 14.67

$15.36 CHF 12.65

15.95%

Cappuccino

$6.01 CHF 4.95

$4.71 CHF 3.88

27.60%

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

$5.16 CHF 4.25

$3.77 CHF 3.10

36.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.25 CHF 3.50

$3.20 CHF 2.63

32.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$10.19 CHF 8.39

$6.13 CHF 5.04

66.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.58 CHF 7.89

$5.39 CHF 4.44

77.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.21 CHF 1.82

$2.01 CHF 1.66

9.95%

White Bread (500g)

$4.03 CHF 3.32

$3.94 CHF 3.24

2.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.35 CHF 2.76

$4.64 CHF 3.82

-27.80%

Eggs

$7.33 CHF 6.04

$7.32 CHF 6.03

0.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$24.14 CHF 19.89

$32.21 CHF 26.53

-25.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$27.97 CHF 23.04

$18.51 CHF 15.24

51.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.69 CHF 32.69

$32.47 CHF 26.74

22.24%

Apples (1kg)

$3.61 CHF 2.97

$3.53 CHF 2.91

2.27%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 CHF 1.68

$2.14 CHF 1.76

-4.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.46 CHF 2.03

$3.14 CHF 2.59

-21.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.50 CHF 3.70

$6.70 CHF 5.52

-32.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 CHF 1.47

$1.78 CHF 1.46

0.56%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 CHF 1.64

$2.54 CHF 2.10

-21.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.04 CHF 1.68

$2.44 CHF 2.01

-16.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 CHF 1.46

$1.21 CHF 1.00

46.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.06 CHF 9.11

$10.84 CHF 8.92

2.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.26 CHF 12.57

$12.70 CHF 10.46

20.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 CHF 2.19

$3.28 CHF 2.70

-18.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.16 CHF 2.60

$3.91 CHF 3.22

-19.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.33 CHF 3.57

$5.17 CHF 4.25

-16.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$95.1 CHF 78.3

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.89 CHF 6.50

$5.36 CHF 4.42

47.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.62 CHF 3.81

$3.46 CHF 2.85

33.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$85.1 CHF 70.1

$61.2 CHF 50.4

39.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.40 CHF 1.97

$2.23 CHF 1.83

7.62%

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

$39.7K CHF 32.7K

$42.5K CHF 35.0K

-6.80%

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

$39.6K CHF 32.6K

0.19%

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

$299 CHF 246

$184 CHF 152

61.97%

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

$37.20 CHF 30.64

$31.24 CHF 25.73

19.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.4 CHF 42.34

$67.2 CHF 55.4

-23.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.3 CHF 59.5

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$49.35 CHF 40.65

Cinema Ticket

$24.67 CHF 20.31

$15.20 CHF 12.52

62.30%

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

$2,962 CHF 2,440

$611 CHF 503

384.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.8K CHF 30.3K

$20.7K CHF 17.0K

78.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$141 CHF 116

$107 CHF 88.0

31.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$77.1 CHF 63.5

$23.70 CHF 19.52

225.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 CHF 115

$95.2 CHF 78.4

46.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$215 CHF 177

$170 CHF 140

26.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,297 CHF 1,892

$1,828 CHF 1,505

25.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,800 CHF 1,482

$1,561 CHF 1,285

15.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,259 CHF 3,507

$2,690 CHF 2,216

58.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,215 CHF 2,648

$2,746 CHF 2,261

17.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.0K CHF 14.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$14.0K CHF 11.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,544 CHF 5,389

$8,480 CHF 6,984

-22.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.95

1.93

1.04%

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

Last update for Lausanne: October 18, 2026

Last update for Buchs: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lausanne

$1.8K 47.8%

Buchs

$1.6K 51.9% 13.3% $239

Groceries & Markets

Lausanne

$588 15.6%

Buchs

$555 18.4% 5.7% $33

Eating Out

Lausanne

$472 12.5%

Buchs

$359 11.9% 23.8% $112

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lausanne

$387 10.3%

Buchs

$283 9.4% 27% $104

Clothing & Footwear

Lausanne

$257 6.8%

Buchs

$178 5.9% 30.9% $79

Getting Around

Lausanne

$143 3.8%

Buchs

$43 * 1.4% 69.8% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Lausanne

$122 3.2%

Buchs

$30 * 1% 75% $91

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 $2,297 in Lausanne and $1,828 in Buchs. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buchs pays 30% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $113 in Lausanne vs $84.0 in Buchs for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $588 vs $555 per month, with Buchs cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Lausanne

🇨🇭 Buchs

🕒 Local time

12:16 12:16 PM

Same time as Lausanne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

133,521

12,187

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Lausanne Buchs 230 km

From you

Lausanne
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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

Lausanne vs Buchs: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lausanne and Buchs differ by about 25% in total monthly costs ($3,769 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 30% 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: $2,297 in Lausanne versus $1,828 in Buchs. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,962 in Lausanne 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 $113 in Lausanne. 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, Lausanne 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 25% less than in Lausanne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.