Cost of living comparison
compared to
Zurich vs. Ottawa Cost of Living Summary
Zurich is 2.1 times more expensive than Ottawa.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.5 times more in Zurich
- Groceries
-
pay 52.1% more in Zurich
- Transportation
-
pay 79.9% more in Zurich
- Housing
-
pay 64.5% more in Zurich
- Childcare
-
pay 3.7 times more in Zurich
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 75.3% more in Zurich
- Clothing
-
pay 2.1 times more in Zurich
The cost of childcare, restaurants, clothing, transportation, entertainment and sports, and housing in Zurich are more expensive than in Ottawa. Notably, childcare, restaurants, and clothing are significantly more expensive in Zurich.
Zurich vs. Ottawa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Zurich instead of Ottawa, you would:
pay 2.5 times more for restaurants
|
Ottawa
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.99
CA$25.16
|
$31.30
CHF25.12
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.01
CA$15.40
|
$21.28
CHF17.08
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
CA$2.80
|
$6.01
CHF4.83
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.56
CA$2.18
|
$5.24
CHF4.20
|
|
Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of restaurants
pay 52.1% more for groceries
|
Ottawa
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.73
CA$3.82
|
$3.30
CHF2.65
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.85
CA$8.18
|
$14.81
CHF11.89
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.65
CA$12.10
|
$8.35
CHF6.71
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.52
CA$4.92
|
$7.29
CHF5.85
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.74
CA$8.03
|
$14.64
CHF11.75
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.91
CA$2.67
|
$1.87
CHF1.50
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.60
CA$0.84
|
$1.34
CHF1.08
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.63
CA$2.28
|
$1.46
CHF1.18
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.67
CA$2.33
|
$2.46
CHF1.98
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.11
CA$1.55
|
$1.22
CHF0.98
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.46
CA$2.04
|
$1.04
CHF0.83
|
|
Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of groceries
pay 79.9% more for transportation
|
Ottawa
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.05
CA$5.66
|
$8.63
CHF6.93
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$97.12
CA$135.85
|
$108.91
CHF87.43
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,444.83
CA$34,192.21
|
$41,061.59
CHF32,963.30
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.82
CA$20.73
|
$33.55
CHF26.93
|
|
Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of transportation
pay 64.5% more for housing
|
Ottawa
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$49.93
CA$69.84
|
$59.74
CHF47.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,452.55
CA$2,031.76
|
$2,666.50
CHF2,140.60
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,228.71
CA$1,718.66
|
$2,285.53
CHF1,834.77
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$118.93
CA$166.35
|
$200.77
CHF161.17
|
|
Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of housing
pay 3.7 times more for childcare
|
Ottawa
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$788.18
CA$1,102.46
|
$3,558.15
CHF2,856.40
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,753.32
CA$22,034.96
|
$44,295.61
CHF35,559.50
|
|
Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of childcare
pay 75.3% more for entertainment and sports
|
Ottawa
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.76
CA$8.05
|
$10.02
CHF8.04
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.74
CA$5.24
|
$6.91
CHF5.55
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.95
CA$18.11
|
$11.27
CHF9.04
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.60
CA$62.39
|
$88.77
CHF71.27
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.79
CA$15.09
|
$25.04
CHF20.10
|
|
Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 2.1 times more for clothing
|
Ottawa
|
Zurich
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$52.82
CA$73.89
|
$137.88
CHF110.68
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$38.91
CA$54.43
|
$59.35
CHF47.64
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.10
CA$121.83
|
$159.90
CHF128.36
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$92.91
CA$129.96
|
$210.59
CHF169.05
|
|
Ottawa 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: November 2025
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