Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Solothurn and Lausanne

For one person, living is cheaper in Solothurn: $2,753 a month against $3,837 in Lausanne, rent and utilities included – about $13,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

132

Cost of Living Index in Solothurn
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Solothurn Living Index
183

Cost of Living Index in Lausanne
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Lausanne Living Index

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Solothurn

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$2,753

/mo nomad

Lausanne

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,753 in Solothurn versus $3,837 in Lausanne.

Solothurn $2,753
Lausanne $3,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,410 in Solothurn versus $5,789 in Lausanne.

Solothurn $4,410
Lausanne $5,789

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,067 in Solothurn versus $7,741 in Lausanne.

Solothurn $6,067
Lausanne $7,741

Living in Solothurn costs roughly 28% less than in Lausanne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Solothurn 102% above, Lausanne 182% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.77 CHF 25.48

$30.81 CHF 25.51

-0.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$147 CHF 122

$116 CHF 95.8

27.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.33 CHF 15.17

$17.81 CHF 14.74

2.92%

Cappuccino

$6.67 CHF 5.52

$6.13 CHF 5.07

8.81%

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

$5.31 CHF 4.40

$5.17 CHF 4.28

2.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.33 CHF 4.41

$4.15 CHF 3.44

28.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.59 CHF 5.46

$10.14 CHF 8.40

-35.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.89 CHF 4.88

$9.59 CHF 7.94

-38.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.19 CHF 1.81

$2.22 CHF 1.83

-1.35%

White Bread (500g)

$3.76 CHF 3.12

$3.81 CHF 3.16

-1.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.40 CHF 2.82

$3.28 CHF 2.71

3.66%

Eggs

$8.42 CHF 6.97

$7.24 CHF 5.99

16.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$22.43 CHF 18.57

$24.40 CHF 20.20

-8.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$26.36 CHF 21.83

$27.51 CHF 22.77

-4.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$60.1 CHF 49.74

$39.81 CHF 32.96

50.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 CHF 2.41

$3.54 CHF 2.93

-17.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 CHF 1.23

$2.15 CHF 1.78

-30.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.52 CHF 2.92

$2.49 CHF 2.07

41.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.26 CHF 3.52

$4.49 CHF 3.72

-5.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.65 CHF 1.36

$1.86 CHF 1.54

-11.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 CHF 1.52

$1.94 CHF 1.60

-5.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 CHF 1.29

$1.99 CHF 1.65

-22.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 CHF 0.84

$1.69 CHF 1.40

-40.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.81 CHF 8.95

$10.99 CHF 9.10

-1.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.12 CHF 11.69

$14.96 CHF 12.39

-5.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.91 CHF 2.41

$2.64 CHF 2.18

10.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 CHF 2.58

$3.13 CHF 2.59

-0.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.68 CHF 3.87

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.1 CHF 79.5

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.96 CHF 6.59

$7.94 CHF 6.57

0.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.47 CHF 3.70

$4.45 CHF 3.69

0.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$88.1 CHF 72.9

$83.5 CHF 69.1

5.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.23 CHF 1.84

$2.31 CHF 1.91

-3.46%

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

$30.4K CHF 25.2K

$39.4K CHF 32.6K

-22.74%

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

$35.0K CHF 29.0K

$39.6K CHF 32.8K

-11.59%

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

$97.8 CHF 81.0

$299 CHF 247

-67.28%

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

$30.67 CHF 25.39

$37.02 CHF 30.65

-17.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.3 CHF 44.99

$52.2 CHF 43.17

4.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$89.4 CHF 74.0

$70.6 CHF 58.5

26.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.05 CHF 14.11

$48.90 CHF 40.48

-65.13%

Cinema Ticket

$17.87 CHF 14.79

$24.49 CHF 20.28

-27.03%

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

$3,421 CHF 2,832

$2,960 CHF 2,451

15.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.5K CHF 16.1K

$36.8K CHF 30.4K

-46.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$138 CHF 114

$143 CHF 119

-3.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.96 CHF 34.74

$78.8 CHF 65.2

-46.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$159 CHF 132

$139 CHF 115

14.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$246 CHF 203

$213 CHF 176

15.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,154 CHF 955

$2,369 CHF 1,962

-51.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,043 CHF 864

$1,863 CHF 1,542

-43.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,803 CHF 1,493

$4,244 CHF 3,513

-57.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,718 CHF 1,422

$3,230 CHF 2,675

-46.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,576 CHF 7,929

$18.4K CHF 15.2K

-47.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,801 CHF 3,975

$13.6K CHF 11.2K

-64.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,805 CHF 5,634

$6,587 CHF 5,454

3.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.03

1.95

4.10%

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

Last update for Solothurn: October 26, 2026

Last update for Lausanne: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Solothurn

$1K 37.9%

Lausanne

$1.9K 48.6% 78.5% $819

Groceries & Markets

Solothurn

$621 22.6%

Lausanne

$583 15.2% 6.2% $39

Eating Out

Solothurn

$468 17%

Lausanne

$481 12.5% 2.6% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Solothurn

$263 9.6%

Lausanne

$259 6.7% 1.8% $4.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Solothurn

$183 6.6%

Lausanne

$388 10.1% 112% $205

Sport & Entertainment

Solothurn

$125 4.6%

Lausanne

$120 3.1% 4.4% $5.5

Getting Around

Solothurn

$49 * 1.8%

Lausanne

$145 3.8% 196% $96

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 $1,154 in Solothurn and $2,369 in Lausanne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Solothurn pays 3% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $147 in Solothurn vs $116 in Lausanne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $621 vs $583 per month, with Lausanne cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Solothurn

🇨🇭 Lausanne

🕒 Local time

05:02 5:02 AM

Same time as Solothurn

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

16,599

133,521

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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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

Solothurn vs Lausanne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,753 in Solothurn and $3,837 in Lausanne, so Solothurn is about 28% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 3% higher in Solothurn, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,154 in Solothurn versus $2,369 in Lausanne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Lausanne pay roughly 6% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $2,753 per month in Solothurn versus $3,837 in Lausanne – Solothurn is about 28% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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, Solothurn and Lausanne are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.