Cost of living comparison
compared to
Zurich vs. Melbourne Cost of Living Summary
Zurich is 66.7% more expensive than Melbourne.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.0 times more in Zurich
- Groceries
-
pay 55.8% more in Zurich
- Transportation
-
pay 63.8% more in Zurich
- Housing
-
pay 59.4% more in Zurich
- Childcare
-
pay 88.2% more in Zurich
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 36.7% more in Zurich
- Clothing
-
pay 62.3% more in Zurich
The cost of restaurants, childcare, transportation, clothing, housing, and groceries in Zurich are more expensive than in Melbourne. Notably, restaurants and childcare are significantly more expensive in Zurich.
Zurich vs. Melbourne Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Zurich instead of Melbourne, you would:
pay 2.0 times more for restaurants
|
Melbourne
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.63
A$29.55
|
$31.30
CHF25.16
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.47
A$15.76
|
$21.28
CHF17.11
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.69
A$4.05
|
$6.01
CHF4.84
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.43
A$3.66
|
$5.24
CHF4.21
|
|
Melbourne vs. Zurich - Cost of restaurants
pay 55.8% more for groceries
|
Melbourne
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.73
A$4.11
|
$3.30
CHF2.65
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.60
A$6.93
|
$14.81
CHF11.91
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.19
A$9.33
|
$8.35
CHF6.72
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.43
A$8.17
|
$7.29
CHF5.86
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.11
A$6.19
|
$14.64
CHF11.77
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.52
A$2.28
|
$1.87
CHF1.50
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.36
A$2.04
|
$1.34
CHF1.08
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.40
A$2.10
|
$1.46
CHF1.18
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.87
A$2.82
|
$2.46
CHF1.98
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.29
A$1.94
|
$1.22
CHF0.98
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.11
A$1.68
|
$1.04
CHF0.83
|
|
Melbourne vs. Zurich - Cost of groceries
pay 63.8% more for transportation
|
Melbourne
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.42
A$6.66
|
$8.63
CHF6.94
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$122.33
A$184.18
|
$108.91
CHF87.56
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$29,060.36
A$43,752.43
|
$41,061.59
CHF33,010.52
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.62
A$22.01
|
$33.55
CHF26.97
|
|
Melbourne vs. Zurich - Cost of transportation
pay 59.4% more for housing
|
Melbourne
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$51.49
A$77.52
|
$59.74
CHF48.03
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,557.21
A$2,344.49
|
$2,666.50
CHF2,143.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,186.33
A$1,786.10
|
$2,285.53
CHF1,837.40
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$127.27
A$191.62
|
$200.77
CHF161.40
|
|
Melbourne vs. Zurich - Cost of housing
pay 88.2% more for childcare
|
Melbourne
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,960.54
A$2,951.73
|
$3,558.15
CHF2,860.49
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$22,736.38
A$34,231.23
|
$44,295.61
CHF35,610.44
|
|
Melbourne vs. Zurich - Cost of childcare
pay 36.7% more for entertainment and sports
|
Melbourne
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$7.85
A$11.82
|
$10.02
CHF8.05
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.69
A$5.56
|
$6.91
CHF5.55
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$32.71
A$49.25
|
$11.27
CHF9.06
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$49.01
A$73.78
|
$88.77
CHF71.37
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.35
A$24.62
|
$25.04
CHF20.13
|
|
Melbourne vs. Zurich - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 62.3% more for clothing
|
Melbourne
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$70.24
A$105.75
|
$137.88
CHF110.84
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$53.21
A$80.12
|
$59.35
CHF47.71
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$107.56
A$161.94
|
$159.90
CHF128.55
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$109.31
A$164.57
|
$210.59
CHF169.30
|
|
Melbourne 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
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Australia vs. Switzerland.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Australia and Switzerland.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Zurich or Melbourne. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.