Cost of living comparison
compared to
Basel vs. Washington Cost of Living Summary
Basel is 37.3% more expensive than Washington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 64.0% more in Basel
- Groceries
-
pay 31.7% more in Basel
- Transportation
-
pay 91.8% more in Basel
- Housing
-
pay 3.0% less in Basel
- Childcare
-
pay 9.4% less in Basel
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 13.1% more in Basel
- Clothing
-
pay 72.7% more in Basel
The cost of transportation, clothing, restaurants, groceries, and entertainment and sports in Basel are more expensive than in Washington. Expenses including childcare and housing are lower in Basel. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in Basel.
Basel vs. Washington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Basel instead of Washington, you would:
pay 64.0% more for restaurants
|
Washington
|
Basel
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$31.28
CHF25.11
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$18.77
CHF15.07
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.20
|
$5.84
CHF4.68
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.79
|
$5.36
CHF4.30
|
|
Washington vs. Basel - Cost of restaurants
pay 31.7% more for groceries
|
Washington
|
Basel
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.43
|
$3.85
CHF3.09
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.04
|
$14.39
CHF11.55
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.19
|
$8.54
CHF6.85
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.55
|
$8.19
CHF6.58
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.74
|
$16.89
CHF13.56
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.95
|
$1.77
CHF1.42
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.92
|
$1.22
CHF0.98
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$1.90
CHF1.53
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$3.32
CHF2.67
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.35
|
$1.48
CHF1.18
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.64
|
$1.34
CHF1.07
|
|
Washington vs. Basel - Cost of groceries
pay 91.8% more for transportation
|
Washington
|
Basel
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.53
|
$8.38
CHF6.72
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$77.50
|
$107.61
CHF86.39
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,699.74
|
$41,041.86
CHF32,947.46
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.73
|
$46.17
CHF37.07
|
|
Washington vs. Basel - Cost of transportation
pay 3.0% less for housing
|
Washington
|
Basel
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.41
|
$59.97
CHF48.14
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,568.48
|
$2,066.08
CHF1,658.60
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,088.16
|
$1,496.32
CHF1,201.21
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$146.54
|
$219.01
CHF175.81
|
|
Washington vs. Basel - Cost of housing
pay 9.4% less for childcare
|
Washington
|
Basel
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,650.00
|
$2,492.13
CHF2,000.62
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$40,166.67
|
$35,035.74
CHF28,125.88
|
|
Washington vs. Basel - Cost of childcare
pay 13.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Washington
|
Basel
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$10.01
CHF8.04
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.07
|
$6.60
CHF5.30
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.00
|
$11.89
CHF9.54
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$103.76
|
$94.49
CHF75.85
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.75
|
$25.03
CHF20.09
|
|
Washington vs. Basel - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 72.7% more for clothing
|
Washington
|
Basel
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$76.00
|
$143.69
CHF115.35
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.40
|
$89.47
CHF71.82
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.31
|
$177.52
CHF142.51
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$133.22
|
$195.20
CHF156.70
|
|
Washington vs. Basel - 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 United States vs. Switzerland.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within United States 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 Basel or Washington. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.