Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zurich and Buchs

For one person, living is cheaper in Buchs: $3,009 a month against $4,502 in Zurich, rent and utilities included – about $17,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

219

Cost of Living Index in Zurich
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Zurich Living Index
146

Cost of Living Index in Buchs
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Buchs Living Index

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Zurich

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$4,502

/mo nomad

Buchs

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,009

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Zurich and in Buchs

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,502 in Zurich versus $3,009 in Buchs.

Zurich $4,502
Buchs $3,009

Estimated couple costs with rent: $6,894 in Zurich versus $4,535 in Buchs.

Zurich $6,894
Buchs $4,535

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $9,287 in Zurich versus $6,062 in Buchs.

Zurich $9,287
Buchs $6,062

Living in Zurich is roughly 50% more expensive than in Buchs, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Zurich 232% above, Buchs 122% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$34.81 CHF 28.67

$23.43 CHF 19.30

48.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$148 CHF 122

$84.3 CHF 69.4

75.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$17.95 CHF 14.78

$15.36 CHF 12.65

16.86%

Cappuccino

$6.93 CHF 5.70

$4.71 CHF 3.88

47.13%

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

$5.74 CHF 4.73

$3.77 CHF 3.10

52.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.38 CHF 4.43

$3.20 CHF 2.63

68.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.57 CHF 7.88

$6.13 CHF 5.04

56.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.23 CHF 6.78

$5.39 CHF 4.44

52.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.15 CHF 1.77

$2.01 CHF 1.66

6.97%

White Bread (500g)

$3.89 CHF 3.21

$3.94 CHF 3.24

-1.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.87 CHF 3.19

$4.64 CHF 3.82

-16.59%

Eggs

$8.35 CHF 6.88

$7.32 CHF 6.03

14.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.80 CHF 22.08

$32.21 CHF 26.53

-16.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.59 CHF 23.55

$18.51 CHF 15.24

54.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$61.2 CHF 50.4

$32.47 CHF 26.74

88.60%

Apples (1kg)

$4.25 CHF 3.50

$3.53 CHF 2.91

20.40%

Banana (1kg)

$2.76 CHF 2.27

$2.14 CHF 1.76

28.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.57 CHF 2.94

$3.14 CHF 2.59

13.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.57 CHF 3.76

$6.70 CHF 5.52

-31.79%

Potato (1kg)

$2.57 CHF 2.11

$1.78 CHF 1.46

44.38%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 CHF 1.76

$2.54 CHF 2.10

-15.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.47 CHF 2.03

$2.44 CHF 2.01

1.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 CHF 1.02

$1.21 CHF 1.00

2.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.74 CHF 8.85

$10.84 CHF 8.92

-0.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.96 CHF 11.50

$12.70 CHF 10.46

9.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.74 CHF 2.26

$3.28 CHF 2.70

-16.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 CHF 2.56

$3.91 CHF 3.22

-20.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.51 CHF 4.54

$5.17 CHF 4.25

6.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$108 CHF 88.8

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.99 CHF 6.58

$5.36 CHF 4.42

49.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.50 CHF 3.71

$3.46 CHF 2.85

30.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$88.6 CHF 73.0

$61.2 CHF 50.4

44.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.39 CHF 1.96

$2.23 CHF 1.83

7.17%

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

$38.8K CHF 32.0K

$42.5K CHF 35.0K

-8.72%

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

$40.1K CHF 33.0K

$39.6K CHF 32.6K

1.22%

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

$284 CHF 234

$184 CHF 152

54.19%

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

$38.69 CHF 31.86

$31.24 CHF 25.73

23.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 CHF 45.93

$67.2 CHF 55.4

-17.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$92.1 CHF 75.9

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$61.2 CHF 50.4

Cinema Ticket

$25.49 CHF 21.00

$15.20 CHF 12.52

67.70%

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

$3,632 CHF 2,991

$611 CHF 503

494.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$41.7K CHF 34.3K

$20.7K CHF 17.0K

101.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$142 CHF 117

$107 CHF 88.0

32.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.8 CHF 47.56

$23.70 CHF 19.52

143.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$163 CHF 134

$95.2 CHF 78.4

71.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$254 CHF 210

$170 CHF 140

49.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,953 CHF 2,432

$1,828 CHF 1,505

61.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,342 CHF 1,929

$1,561 CHF 1,285

50.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,897 CHF 4,857

$2,690 CHF 2,216

119.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,150 CHF 3,418

$2,746 CHF 2,261

51.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$27.1K CHF 22.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$16.3K CHF 13.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$8,247 CHF 6,792

$8,480 CHF 6,984

-2.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.07

1.93

7.25%

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

Last update for Zurich: October 20, 2026

Last update for Buchs: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Zurich

$2.3K 52%

Buchs

$1.6K 51.9% 33.4% $781

Groceries & Markets

Zurich

$676 15%

Buchs

$555 18.4% 17.9% $121

Eating Out

Zurich

$524 11.6%

Buchs

$359 11.9% 31.5% $165

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zurich

$379 8.4%

Buchs

$283 9.4% 25.3% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Zurich

$278 6.2%

Buchs

$178 5.9% 35.9% $100

Getting Around

Zurich

$160 3.6%

Buchs

$43 * 1.4% 73% $117

Sport & Entertainment

Zurich

$143 3.2%

Buchs

$30 * 1% 78.8% $113

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 $2,953 in Zurich and $1,828 in Buchs. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buchs 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: $148 in Zurich vs $84.0 in Buchs for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $676 vs $555 per month, with Buchs cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Zurich

🇨🇭 Buchs

🕒 Local time

12:16 12:16 PM

Same time as Zurich

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

443,037

12,187

💱 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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Zurich Buchs 74 km

From you

Zurich
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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

Zurich vs Buchs: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Zurich and Buchs differ by about 50% in total monthly costs ($4,502 vs $3,009 including rent). Buchs is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 3% lower in Buchs. 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: $2,953 in Zurich versus $1,828 in Buchs. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $3,632 in Zurich versus $611 in Buchs. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Buchs – a meal for two runs $84.0 versus $148 in Zurich. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Buchs 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, Zurich and Buchs 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 Buchs gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Zurich. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.