Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Gallen and Geneva

For one person, living is cheaper in St. Gallen: $3,451 a month against $4,079 in Geneva, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

167

Cost of Living Index in St. Gallen
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St. Gallen Living Index
198

Cost of Living Index in Geneva
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Geneva Living Index

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St. Gallen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,451

/mo nomad

Geneva

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$4,079

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $3,451 per month in St. Gallen vs $4,079 in Geneva, rent included.

St. Gallen $3,451
Geneva $4,079

A couple spends around $5,120 per month in St. Gallen vs $6,308 in Geneva, rent included.

St. Gallen $5,120
Geneva $6,308

A family of three spends $6,789 per month in St. Gallen vs $8,538 in Geneva, rent included.

St. Gallen $6,789
Geneva $8,538

St. Gallen is about 15% cheaper than Geneva, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both St. Gallen and Geneva sit above the global median – St. Gallen by 154%, Geneva by 200%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$28.78 CHF 23.74

$30.31 CHF 25.00

-5.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$144 CHF 119

$129 CHF 107

11.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.04 CHF 14.88

$19.47 CHF 16.06

-7.34%

Cappuccino

$6.03 CHF 4.97

$6.40 CHF 5.28

-5.78%

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

$5.95 CHF 4.91

$4.66 CHF 3.85

27.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.10 CHF 4.21

$4.13 CHF 3.41

23.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.80 CHF 7.26

$9.82 CHF 8.10

-10.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.38 CHF 5.26

$9.87 CHF 8.14

-35.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.25 CHF 1.86

$2.35 CHF 1.94

-4.26%

White Bread (500g)

$3.16 CHF 2.61

$3.26 CHF 2.69

-3.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.77 CHF 3.11

$3.39 CHF 2.79

11.21%

Eggs

$7.72 CHF 6.36

$8.18 CHF 6.74

-5.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$24.91 CHF 20.55

$25.05 CHF 20.66

-0.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$29.02 CHF 23.94

$29.22 CHF 24.11

-0.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.94 CHF 32.95

$42.51 CHF 35.07

-6.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3.06 CHF 2.52

$3.53 CHF 2.92

-13.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 CHF 1.28

$1.63 CHF 1.35

-4.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.40 CHF 1.98

$2.85 CHF 2.35

-15.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.17 CHF 5.09

$4.90 CHF 4.04

25.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.71 CHF 1.41

$1.64 CHF 1.35

4.27%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 CHF 1.76

$2.29 CHF 1.89

-6.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.20 CHF 1.82

$2.19 CHF 1.81

0.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 CHF 0.97

$1.66 CHF 1.37

-28.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.98 CHF 9.06

$10.97 CHF 9.05

0.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.23 CHF 9.27

$12.16 CHF 10.03

-7.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 CHF 1.73

$3.21 CHF 2.65

-34.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 CHF 1.88

$3.30 CHF 2.72

-30.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.08 CHF 3.37

$3.55 CHF 2.93

14.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.4 CHF 71.3

$85.8 CHF 70.8

0.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.62 CHF 5.46

$7.61 CHF 6.28

-13.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.76 CHF 3.93

$3.76 CHF 3.10

26.60%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$79.2 CHF 65.3

$64.2 CHF 52.9

23.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.23 CHF 1.84

$2.35 CHF 1.94

-5.11%

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

$38.4K CHF 31.7K

$39.5K CHF 32.6K

-2.96%

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

$38.6K CHF 31.8K

$38.8K CHF 32.0K

-0.64%

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

$312 CHF 257

$280 CHF 231

11.51%

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

$37.60 CHF 31.01

$37.96 CHF 31.31

-0.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.0 CHF 44.50

$57.6 CHF 47.47

-6.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$79.6 CHF 65.6

$77.0 CHF 63.5

3.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$43.34 CHF 35.75

Cinema Ticket

$28.27 CHF 23.32

$23.96 CHF 19.77

17.99%

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

$2,308 CHF 1,904

$2,484 CHF 2,049

-7.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.2K CHF 26.6K

$35.2K CHF 29.0K

-8.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$144 CHF 119

$133 CHF 110

8.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$64.0 CHF 52.8

$79.1 CHF 65.2

-19.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$146 CHF 120

$169 CHF 139

-13.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$183 CHF 151

$188 CHF 155

-2.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,895 CHF 1,563

$2,825 CHF 2,331

-32.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,504 CHF 1,240

$2,115 CHF 1,744

-28.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,868 CHF 2,366

$5,088 CHF 4,197

-43.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,256 CHF 1,861

$3,963 CHF 3,269

-43.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$11.3K CHF 9,285

$22.5K CHF 18.5K

-49.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,285 CHF 6,834

$16.3K CHF 13.5K

-49.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,694 CHF 5,522

$7,271 CHF 5,998

-7.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.1

1.98

6.06%

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

Last update for St. Gallen: October 26, 2026

Last update for Geneva: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

St. Gallen

$1.5K 43.6%

Geneva

$2.1K 51.9% 40.6% $611

Groceries & Markets

St. Gallen

$575 16.7%

Geneva

$600 14.7% 4.3% $25

Eating Out

St. Gallen

$458 13.3%

Geneva

$482 11.8% 5.2% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St. Gallen

$404 11.7%

Geneva

$375 9.2% 7% $28

Clothing & Footwear

St. Gallen

$242 7%

Geneva

$256 6.3% 5.8% $14

Sport & Entertainment

St. Gallen

$136 3.9%

Geneva

$125 3.1% 8.3% $11

Getting Around

St. Gallen

$133 3.9%

Geneva

$126 3.1% 5.1% $6.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,895 in St. Gallen versus $2,825 in Geneva. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 9% higher in Geneva, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $144 in St. Gallen versus $129 in Geneva. Groceries tell a different story – $575 in St. Gallen vs $600 in Geneva – so St. Gallen wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇭 St. Gallen

🇨🇭 Geneva

🕒 Local time

20:32 8:32 PM

Same time as St. Gallen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

78,213

191,557

💱 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

St. Gallen vs Geneva: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Geneva is pricier by about 18%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,177 per month in St. Gallen and $6,118 in Geneva. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in St. Gallen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,895 there versus $2,825 in Geneva.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,451 in St. Gallen and $4,079 in Geneva. That makes St. Gallen about 15% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $2,308 per month in St. Gallen and $2,484 in Geneva. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,500 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,451 in St. Gallen and $4,079 in Geneva. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward St. Gallen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with St. Gallen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Geneva makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.