Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lausanne and Staefa

For one person, living is cheaper in Staefa: $3,402 a month against $3,832 in Lausanne, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lausanne outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

184

Cost of Living Index in Lausanne
Learn more

Lausanne Living Index
171

Cost of Living Index in Staefa
Learn more

Staefa Living Index

Jump to prices

Lausanne

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,832

/mo nomad

Staefa

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,402

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lausanne and in Staefa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,832 in Lausanne versus $3,402 in Staefa.

Lausanne $3,832
Staefa $3,402

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,808 in Lausanne versus $5,480 in Staefa.

Lausanne $5,808
Staefa $5,480

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,784 in Lausanne versus $7,558 in Staefa.

Lausanne $7,784
Staefa $7,558

Living in Lausanne is roughly 13% more expensive than in Staefa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lausanne 183% above, Staefa 152% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.02 CHF 24.51

$33.35 CHF 27.23

-9.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$116 CHF 94.9

$124 CHF 101

-5.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.37 CHF 15.00

$16.32 CHF 13.32

12.56%

Cappuccino

$6.17 CHF 5.04

$6.22 CHF 5.08

-0.80%

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

$4.94 CHF 4.03

$5.89 CHF 4.81

-16.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.04 CHF 3.30

$5.17 CHF 4.22

-21.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$10.43 CHF 8.52

$8.68 CHF 7.09

20.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.92 CHF 8.10

$8.54 CHF 6.97

16.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.22 CHF 1.81

$2.17 CHF 1.78

2.30%

White Bread (500g)

$3.93 CHF 3.21

$3.49 CHF 2.85

12.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.28 CHF 2.67

$3.83 CHF 3.12

-14.36%

Eggs

$7.35 CHF 6.00

$8.50 CHF 6.94

-13.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$25.00 CHF 20.41

$26.34 CHF 21.51

-5.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.00 CHF 22.86

$26.66 CHF 21.76

5.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.86 CHF 32.54

$55.2 CHF 45.08

-27.80%

Apples (1kg)

$3.69 CHF 3.02

$3.52 CHF 2.87

4.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 CHF 1.75

$2.78 CHF 2.27

-23.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.48 CHF 2.02

$3.48 CHF 2.84

-28.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.58 CHF 3.74

$4.73 CHF 3.86

-3.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 CHF 1.49

$2.62 CHF 2.14

-30.53%

Onion (1kg)

$2.04 CHF 1.67

$2.27 CHF 1.85

-10.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.02 CHF 1.65

$2.43 CHF 1.99

-16.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 CHF 1.44

$1.32 CHF 1.08

33.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.10 CHF 9.06

$11.09 CHF 9.05

0.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.26 CHF 12.46

$14.14 CHF 11.54

7.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 CHF 2.19

$2.76 CHF 2.25

-2.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.29 CHF 2.69

$3.22 CHF 2.63

2.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.83 CHF 3.94

$4.57 CHF 3.73

5.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$97.1 CHF 79.3

$99.1 CHF 80.9

-1.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.08 CHF 6.60

$8.13 CHF 6.64

-0.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.67 CHF 3.81

$4.75 CHF 3.88

-1.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$85.7 CHF 69.9

$88.4 CHF 72.2

-3.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.32 CHF 1.90

$2.35 CHF 1.92

-1.28%

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

$38.7K CHF 31.6K

$40.2K CHF 32.8K

-3.77%

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

$39.0K CHF 31.9K

$39.4K CHF 32.1K

-0.81%

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

$294 CHF 240

$239 CHF 195

22.70%

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

$37.95 CHF 30.98

$32.40 CHF 26.46

17.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.1 CHF 43.39

$56.0 CHF 45.68

-5.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.8 CHF 60.3

$79.7 CHF 65.1

-7.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$48.25 CHF 39.40

$48.63 CHF 39.70

-0.78%

Cinema Ticket

$24.47 CHF 19.98

$24.73 CHF 20.19

-1.05%

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

$2,912 CHF 2,378

$3,024 CHF 2,469

-3.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$43.3K CHF 35.3K

$36.9K CHF 30.2K

17.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$144 CHF 118

$140 CHF 114

3.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$79.2 CHF 64.7

$56.0 CHF 45.71

41.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$140 CHF 114

$149 CHF 122

-5.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$221 CHF 180

$171 CHF 140

29.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,445 CHF 1,996

$1,988 CHF 1,623

23.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,844 CHF 1,506

$1,426 CHF 1,164

29.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,324 CHF 3,530

$2,860 CHF 2,335

51.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,239 CHF 2,644

$2,909 CHF 2,375

11.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.6K CHF 15.2K

$17.0K CHF 13.9K

9.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$13.8K CHF 11.3K

$11.9K CHF 9,714

15.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,545 CHF 5,343

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.95

1.72

13.37%

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

Last update for Lausanne: November 2, 2026

Last update for Staefa: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lausanne

$1.8K 48.1%

Staefa

$1.4K 41.9% 22.7% $418

Groceries & Markets

Lausanne

$592 15.5%

Staefa

$642 18.9% 8.5% $50

Eating Out

Lausanne

$477 12.5%

Staefa

$495 14.6% 3.8% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lausanne

$385 10%

Staefa

$328 9.6% 14.8% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Lausanne

$263 6.9%

Staefa

$232 6.8% 11.8% $31

Getting Around

Lausanne

$148 3.9%

Staefa

$149 4.4% 0.9% $1.4

Sport & Entertainment

Lausanne

$123 3.2%

Staefa

$129 3.8% 5.2% $6.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,445 in Lausanne and $1,988 in Staefa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $116 in Lausanne vs $123 in Staefa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $592 vs $642 per month, with Lausanne cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Lausanne

🇨🇭 Staefa

🕒 Local time

09:47 9:47 AM

Same time as Lausanne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

133,521

11,567

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.22 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

1 CHF = 1.22 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lausanne Staefa 180 km

From you

Lausanne
Staefa

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 Staefa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $3,832 in Lausanne and $3,402 in Staefa, so Staefa is about 11% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $5,748 in Lausanne and $5,102 in Staefa 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: $2,445 in Lausanne versus $1,988 in Staefa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Lausanne pay roughly 8% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $3,832 per month in Lausanne versus $3,402 in Staefa – Staefa is about 11% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Staefa 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 Staefa are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.