Cost of living comparison

Iceland

compared to

Switzerland

Lugano vs. Reykjavik Cost of Living Summary

Lugano is 10.5% cheaper than Reykjavik.

Restaurants: pay 0.6% more in Lugano
Groceries: pay 9.3% less in Lugano
Transportation: pay 12.4% less in Lugano
Housing: pay 17.7% less in Lugano
Childcare: pay 99.2% more in Lugano
Entertainment and Sports: pay 20.9% less in Lugano
Clothing: pay 24.7% less in Lugano

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

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Lugano vs. Reykjavik Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Lugano instead of Reykjavik, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 0.6% more for restaurants

	Reykjavik	Lugano
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$31.06 ISK3,782	$34.20 CHF28.22	+10.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$26.97 ISK3,284	$19.20 CHF15.84	-28.8%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$3.31 ISK404	$5.40 CHF4.46	+62.9%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$3.11 ISK378	$4.30 CHF3.55	+38.4%
Average			+0.6%

Reykjavik vs. Lugano - Cost of restaurants

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pay 9.3% less for groceries

	Reykjavik	Lugano
Bread 1 loaf	$4.19 ISK511	$3.62 CHF2.99	-13.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$10.93 ISK1,331	$12.97 CHF10.70	+18.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.78 ISK947	$8.34 CHF6.88	+7.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$7.08 ISK862	$7.15 CHF5.90	+1.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$11.00 ISK1,340	$12.95 CHF10.69	+17.7%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.50 ISK183	$1.47 CHF1.21	-2.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.27 ISK154	$0.75 CHF0.62	-40.6%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.46 ISK178	$1.13 CHF0.93	-22.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$2.93 ISK357	$2.88 CHF2.38	-1.8%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.78 ISK216	$0.82 CHF0.68	-53.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.76 ISK92	$0.96 CHF0.79	+27.4%
Average			-9.3%

Reykjavik vs. Lugano - Cost of groceries

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pay 12.4% less for transportation

	Reykjavik	Lugano
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$7.76 ISK946	$8.56 CHF7.06	+10.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$94.80 ISK11,545	$61.20 CHF50.49	-35.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$50,588.43 ISK6M	$34,679.10 CHF28,612.96	-31.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$29.26 ISK3,563	$51.36 CHF42.37	+75.5%
Average			-12.4%

Reykjavik vs. Lugano - Cost of transportation

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pay 17.7% less for housing

	Reykjavik	Lugano
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$86.01 ISK10,474	$48.75 CHF40.22	-43.3%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$2,522.88 ISK307K	$1,702.62 CHF1,404.80	-32.5%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$2,032.25 ISK247K	$1,289.97 CHF1,064.32	-36.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$73.44 ISK8,943	$231.70 CHF191.17	+215.5%
Average			-17.7%

Reykjavik vs. Lugano - Cost of housing

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pay 99.2% more for childcare

	Reykjavik	Lugano
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,185.23 ISK144K	$3,199.92 CHF2,640.18	+170.0%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$25,853.51 ISK3M	$37,999.01 CHF31,352.15	+47.0%
Average			+99.2%

Reykjavik vs. Lugano - Cost of childcare

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pay 20.9% less for entertainment and sports

	Reykjavik	Lugano
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$13.89 ISK1,692	$9.60 CHF7.92	-30.9%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$6.74 ISK821	$4.70 CHF3.88	-30.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$13.89 ISK1,692	$10.80 CHF8.91	-22.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$100.25 ISK12,209	$70.70 CHF58.33	-29.5%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$19.57 ISK2,384	$21.60 CHF17.82	+10.4%
Average			-20.9%

Reykjavik vs. Lugano - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 24.7% less for clothing

	Reykjavik	Lugano
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$149.01 ISK18,147	$108.00 CHF89.11	-27.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$65.79 ISK8,012	$48.00 CHF39.60	-27.0%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$181.84 ISK22,145	$164.00 CHF135.31	-9.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$248.81 ISK30,300	$168.00 CHF138.61	-32.5%
Average			-24.7%

Reykjavik vs. Lugano - Cost of clothing

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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