Cost of living comparison
compared to
Zurich vs. Amsterdam Cost of Living Summary
Zurich is 31.0% more expensive than Amsterdam.
- Restaurants
-
pay 46.3% more in Zurich
- Groceries
-
pay 42.5% more in Zurich
- Transportation
-
pay 3.3% less in Zurich
- Housing
-
pay 4.2% more in Zurich
- Childcare
-
pay 71.5% more in Zurich
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 27.9% more in Zurich
- Clothing
-
pay 27.9% more in Zurich
The cost of childcare, restaurants, groceries, entertainment and sports, clothing, and housing in Zurich are more expensive than in Amsterdam.
Zurich vs. Amsterdam Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Zurich instead of Amsterdam, you would:
pay 46.3% more for restaurants
|
Amsterdam
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$23.36
€19.90
|
$31.30
CHF24.91
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$16.35
€13.93
|
$21.28
CHF16.94
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.72
€3.17
|
$6.01
CHF4.79
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$3.28
€2.80
|
$5.24
CHF4.17
|
|
Amsterdam vs. Zurich - Cost of restaurants
pay 42.5% more for groceries
|
Amsterdam
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.71
€2.31
|
$3.30
CHF2.62
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.72
€6.57
|
$14.81
CHF11.79
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.24
€5.32
|
$8.35
CHF6.65
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.27
€4.49
|
$7.29
CHF5.80
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.35
€5.41
|
$14.64
CHF11.65
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.42
€1.21
|
$1.87
CHF1.48
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.18
€1.00
|
$1.34
CHF1.07
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.04
€0.89
|
$1.46
CHF1.17
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.09
€1.78
|
$2.46
CHF1.96
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.94
€0.80
|
$1.22
CHF0.97
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.88
€0.75
|
$1.04
CHF0.82
|
|
Amsterdam vs. Zurich - Cost of groceries
pay 3.3% less for transportation
|
Amsterdam
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$8.77
€7.47
|
$8.63
CHF6.87
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$116.79
€99.51
|
$108.91
CHF86.69
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$44,381.38
€37,813.20
|
$41,061.59
CHF32,684.70
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$32.69
€27.85
|
$33.55
CHF26.71
|
|
Amsterdam vs. Zurich - Cost of transportation
pay 4.2% more for housing
|
Amsterdam
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$52.20
€44.47
|
$59.74
CHF47.55
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,488.65
€2,120.34
|
$2,666.50
CHF2,122.51
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,040.62
€1,738.62
|
$2,285.53
CHF1,819.26
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$241.43
€205.70
|
$200.77
CHF159.81
|
|
Amsterdam vs. Zurich - Cost of housing
pay 71.5% more for childcare
|
Amsterdam
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,924.24
€2,491.47
|
$3,558.15
CHF2,832.26
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$20,029.43
€17,065.20
|
$44,295.61
CHF35,258.95
|
|
Amsterdam vs. Zurich - Cost of childcare
pay 27.9% more for entertainment and sports
|
Amsterdam
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$7.59
€6.47
|
$10.02
CHF7.97
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.05
€4.30
|
$6.91
CHF5.50
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$14.60
€12.44
|
$11.27
CHF8.97
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$58.91
€50.19
|
$88.77
CHF70.66
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$17.52
€14.93
|
$25.04
CHF19.93
|
|
Amsterdam vs. Zurich - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 27.9% more for clothing
|
Amsterdam
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$98.80
€84.18
|
$137.88
CHF109.75
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$53.66
€45.72
|
$59.35
CHF47.24
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$127.18
€108.36
|
$159.90
CHF127.28
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$154.92
€131.99
|
$210.59
CHF167.63
|
|
Amsterdam vs. Zurich - Cost of clothing
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: December 2025
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