Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Lausanne

For one person, living is cheaper in Lausanne: $3,790 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in London outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
182

Cost of Living Index in Lausanne
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Lausanne Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Lausanne

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,790

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Lausanne

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,086 in London versus $3,790 in Lausanne.

London $4,086
Lausanne $3,790

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,816 in London versus $5,672 in Lausanne.

London $5,816
Lausanne $5,672

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,546 in London versus $7,554 in Lausanne.

London $7,546
Lausanne $7,554

Living in London is roughly 8% more expensive than in Lausanne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 205% above, Lausanne 183% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$29.72 CHF 24.67

-10.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$117 CHF 96.9

-7.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$17.81 CHF 14.78

-41.66%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$6.03 CHF 5.00

-3.98%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$4.99 CHF 4.14

-39.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$4.10 CHF 3.40

-47.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$10.12 CHF 8.40

-7.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$9.39 CHF 7.80

-16.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$2.24 CHF 1.86

-20.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$3.96 CHF 3.29

-47.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$3.33 CHF 2.77

-30.63%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$7.05 CHF 5.85

-28.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$24.14 CHF 20.04

-47.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$27.93 CHF 23.19

-61.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$39.52 CHF 32.81

-56.65%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$3.47 CHF 2.88

-12.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$2.14 CHF 1.78

-34.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$2.56 CHF 2.12

19.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$4.65 CHF 3.86

-27.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.78 CHF 1.48

-6.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.97 CHF 1.64

-12.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.97 CHF 1.63

-28.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.73 CHF 1.44

3.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$10.68 CHF 8.86

117.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$15.21 CHF 12.63

-14.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$2.70 CHF 2.24

17.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$3.18 CHF 2.64

38.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$4.45 CHF 3.69

-13.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$94.3 CHF 78.3

165.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$7.89 CHF 6.55

-27.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$4.50 CHF 3.74

-26.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

$83.4 CHF 69.2

-30.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$2.30 CHF 1.91

-11.30%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$43.5K CHF 36.1K

-13.75%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$39.6K CHF 32.8K

3.35%

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

$376 £284

$288 CHF 239

30.53%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$37.56 CHF 31.17

-52.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$52.2 CHF 43.35

-23.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

$72.2 CHF 60.0

-15.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$48.87 CHF 40.56

-56.89%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$23.88 CHF 19.82

-24.83%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$2,913 CHF 2,418

-1.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$36.7K CHF 30.5K

-3.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$142 CHF 118

-18.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$77.0 CHF 63.9

-29.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$142 CHF 118

-10.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$212 CHF 176

-24.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

$2,280 CHF 1,892

25.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

$1,814 CHF 1,505

26.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

$4,204 CHF 3,489

23.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

$3,202 CHF 2,657

16.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$18.2K CHF 15.1K

4.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

$13.7K CHF 11.4K

-42.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

$6,565 CHF 5,449

-26.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

1.95

138.46%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Lausanne: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Lausanne

$1.8K 48.2% 21.2% $488

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Lausanne

$378 10% 12.9% $56

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Lausanne

$469 12.5% 18.3% $73

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Lausanne

$586 15.6% 67.7% $237

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Lausanne

$143 3.8% 50.5% $145

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Lausanne

$257 6.8% 25.5% $52

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Lausanne

$120 3.2% 23.6% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,853 in London and $2,280 in Lausanne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lausanne pays 36% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $108 in London vs $117 in Lausanne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $586 per month, with London cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇨🇭 Lausanne

🕒 Local time

11:29 11:29 AM

12:29 12:29 PM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

133,521

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1 CHF = 1.2 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.847 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 0.93 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

London Lausanne 740 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Lausanne

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

London vs Lausanne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

London and Lausanne differ by about 8% in total monthly costs ($4,086 vs $3,790 including rent). Lausanne is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 36% lower in Lausanne. 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: $2,853 in London versus $2,280 in Lausanne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Lausanne – a meal for two runs $117 versus $108 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $4,086 per month in London versus $3,790 in Lausanne – a 8% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Lausanne 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, London and Lausanne 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 Lausanne gentler on the wallet – expenses run 8% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.