Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lausanne and St. Gallen

For one person, living is cheaper in St. Gallen: $3,451 a month against $3,837 in Lausanne, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

183

Cost of Living Index in Lausanne
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Lausanne Living Index
167

Cost of Living Index in St. Gallen
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St. Gallen Living Index

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Lausanne

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,837

/mo nomad

St. Gallen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,451

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lausanne and in St. Gallen

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 St. Gallen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,837 in Lausanne versus $3,451 in St. Gallen.

Lausanne $3,837
St. Gallen $3,451

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,789 in Lausanne versus $5,120 in St. Gallen.

Lausanne $5,789
St. Gallen $5,120

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,741 in Lausanne versus $6,789 in St. Gallen.

Lausanne $7,741
St. Gallen $6,789

Living in Lausanne is roughly 11% more expensive than in St. Gallen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lausanne 182% above, St. Gallen 154% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.81 CHF 25.56

$28.78 CHF 23.88

7.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$116 CHF 96.0

$144 CHF 119

-19.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$17.81 CHF 14.77

$18.04 CHF 14.97

-1.27%

Cappuccino

$6.13 CHF 5.08

$6.03 CHF 5.00

1.66%

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

$5.17 CHF 4.29

$5.95 CHF 4.94

-13.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.15 CHF 3.44

$5.10 CHF 4.23

-18.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$10.14 CHF 8.42

$8.80 CHF 7.30

15.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.59 CHF 7.95

$6.38 CHF 5.29

50.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.22 CHF 1.84

$2.25 CHF 1.87

-1.33%

White Bread (500g)

$3.81 CHF 3.16

$3.16 CHF 2.62

20.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.28 CHF 2.72

$3.77 CHF 3.13

-13.00%

Eggs

$7.24 CHF 6.00

$7.72 CHF 6.40

-6.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$24.40 CHF 20.24

$24.91 CHF 20.67

-2.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$27.51 CHF 22.82

$29.02 CHF 24.08

-5.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.81 CHF 33.02

$39.94 CHF 33.14

-0.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.54 CHF 2.93

$3.06 CHF 2.54

15.69%

Banana (1kg)

$2.15 CHF 1.78

$1.56 CHF 1.29

37.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 CHF 2.07

$2.40 CHF 1.99

3.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.49 CHF 3.73

$6.17 CHF 5.12

-27.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 CHF 1.54

$1.71 CHF 1.42

8.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 CHF 1.61

$2.14 CHF 1.77

-9.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.99 CHF 1.65

$2.20 CHF 1.83

-9.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 CHF 1.40

$1.18 CHF 0.98

43.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.99 CHF 9.12

$10.98 CHF 9.11

0.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.96 CHF 12.41

$11.23 CHF 9.32

33.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.64 CHF 2.19

$2.10 CHF 1.74

25.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.13 CHF 2.60

$2.28 CHF 1.89

37.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.68 CHF 3.88

$4.08 CHF 3.38

14.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.1 CHF 79.7

$86.4 CHF 71.7

11.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.94 CHF 6.58

$6.62 CHF 5.49

19.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.45 CHF 3.69

$4.76 CHF 3.95

-6.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$83.5 CHF 69.2

$79.2 CHF 65.7

5.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.31 CHF 1.91

$2.23 CHF 1.85

3.59%

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

$39.4K CHF 32.7K

$38.4K CHF 31.8K

2.68%

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

$39.6K CHF 32.8K

$38.6K CHF 32.0K

2.49%

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

$299 CHF 248

$312 CHF 259

-4.22%

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

$37.02 CHF 30.71

$37.60 CHF 31.19

-1.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.2 CHF 43.26

$54.0 CHF 44.76

-3.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.6 CHF 58.6

$79.6 CHF 66.0

-11.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$48.90 CHF 40.56

Cinema Ticket

$24.49 CHF 20.32

$28.27 CHF 23.45

-13.37%

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

$2,960 CHF 2,455

$2,308 CHF 1,915

28.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.8K CHF 30.5K

$32.2K CHF 26.7K

14.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$143 CHF 119

$144 CHF 120

-0.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$78.8 CHF 65.4

$64.0 CHF 53.1

23.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 CHF 116

$146 CHF 121

-4.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$213 CHF 177

$183 CHF 152

16.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,369 CHF 1,966

$1,895 CHF 1,572

25.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,863 CHF 1,545

$1,504 CHF 1,248

23.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,244 CHF 3,520

$2,868 CHF 2,379

47.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,230 CHF 2,680

$2,256 CHF 1,871

43.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.4K CHF 15.3K

$11.3K CHF 9,337

63.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$13.6K CHF 11.2K

$8,285 CHF 6,873

63.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,587 CHF 5,465

$6,694 CHF 5,553

-1.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.95

2.1

-7.14%

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

Last update for Lausanne: October 27, 2026

Last update for St. Gallen: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lausanne

$1.9K 48.6%

St. Gallen

$1.5K 43.6% 19.3% $359

Groceries & Markets

Lausanne

$583 15.2%

St. Gallen

$575 16.7% 1.3% $7.7

Eating Out

Lausanne

$481 12.5%

St. Gallen

$458 13.3% 4.8% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lausanne

$388 10.1%

St. Gallen

$404 11.7% 4% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Lausanne

$259 6.7%

St. Gallen

$242 7% 6.4% $17

Getting Around

Lausanne

$145 3.8%

St. Gallen

$133 3.9% 8.2% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Lausanne

$120 3.1%

St. Gallen

$136 3.9% 13.8% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,369 in Lausanne and $1,895 in St. Gallen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $116 in Lausanne vs $144 in St. Gallen. Groceries flip the comparison at $583 vs $575, with St. Gallen cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Lausanne

🇨🇭 St. Gallen

🕒 Local time

23:59 11:59 PM

Same time as Lausanne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

133,521

78,213

💱 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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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 St. Gallen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $3,837 in Lausanne and $3,451 in St. Gallen, so St. Gallen is about 10% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $5,756 in Lausanne and $5,177 in St. Gallen to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,369 in Lausanne versus $1,895 in St. Gallen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in St. Gallen runs roughly 10% less than in Lausanne. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

All in, you’ll spend $3,837 per month in Lausanne versus $3,451 in St. Gallen – St. Gallen is about 10% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,500. St. Gallen 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 St. Gallen are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.