Cost of living comparison

Switzerland

compared to

United States

Washington vs. Aarau Cost of Living Summary

Washington is 9.0% more expensive than Aarau.

Restaurants: pay 30.3% less in Washington
Groceries: pay 28.3% more in Washington
Transportation: pay 33.2% less in Washington
Housing: pay 87.2% more in Washington
Childcare: pay 15.7% more in Washington
Entertainment and Sports: pay 17.2% more in Washington
Clothing: pay 22.0% less in Washington

The cost of housing, groceries, entertainment and sports, and childcare in Washington are more expensive than in Aarau. Expenses including transportation, restaurants, and clothing are lower in Washington. Notably, housing is significantly more expensive in Washington.

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Washington vs. Aarau Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Washington instead of Aarau, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 30.3% less for restaurants

	Aarau	Washington
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$29.40 CHF24.35	$28.00	-4.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$18.00 CHF14.91	$12.00	-33.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$5.10 CHF4.22	$3.17	-37.9%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$4.80 CHF3.98	$2.64	-45.1%
Average			-30.3%

Aarau vs. Washington - Cost of restaurants

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pay 28.3% more for groceries

	Aarau	Washington
Bread 1 loaf	$3.71 CHF3.07	$4.11	+10.8%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$15.40 CHF12.76	$8.53	-44.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.89 CHF6.54	$4.95	-37.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$7.30 CHF6.05	$5.64	-22.7%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$13.30 CHF11.01	$7.63	-42.6%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.32 CHF1.09	$3.17	+140.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.79 CHF0.65	$1.06	+34.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.09 CHF0.90	$2.27	+108.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$2.57 CHF2.13	$2.64	+2.6%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.76 CHF0.63	$1.29	+69.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.90 CHF0.74	$1.73	+92.3%
Average			+28.3%

Aarau vs. Washington - Cost of groceries

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pay 33.2% less for transportation

	Aarau	Washington
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$8.52 CHF7.06	$4.19	-50.9%
Monthly public transit pass	$144.00 CHF119.28	$120.00	-16.7%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$42,598.89 CHF35,287.30	$36,375.00	-14.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$33.84 CHF28.03	$16.73	-50.6%
Average			-33.2%

Aarau vs. Washington - Cost of transportation

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pay 87.2% more for housing

	Aarau	Washington
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$56.00 CHF46.39	$77.77	+38.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,259.97 CHF1,043.71	$2,717.33	+115.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,019.97 CHF844.91	$2,228.89	+118.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$91.76 CHF76.01	$161.22	+75.7%
Average			+87.2%

Aarau vs. Washington - Cost of housing

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pay 15.7% more for childcare

	Aarau	Washington
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$3,119.92 CHF2,584.42	$3,221.33	+3.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$32,399.16 CHF26,838.23	$41,506.00	+28.1%
Average			+15.7%

Aarau vs. Washington - Cost of childcare

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pay 17.2% more for entertainment and sports

	Aarau	Washington
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$6.00 CHF4.97	$9.00	+50.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$5.79 CHF4.80	$6.15	+6.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$10.80 CHF8.95	$13.94	+29.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$97.33 CHF80.63	$114.30	+17.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$21.60 CHF17.89	$18.00	-16.7%
Average			+17.2%

Aarau vs. Washington - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 22.0% less for clothing

	Aarau	Washington
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$90.00 CHF74.55	$71.42	-20.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$72.00 CHF59.64	$44.11	-38.7%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$108.00 CHF89.46	$104.50	-3.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$168.00 CHF139.16	$125.16	-25.5%
Average			-22.0%

Aarau vs. Washington - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: October 2026

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