Cost of living comparison
compared to
Detroit vs. Zurich Cost of Living Summary
Detroit is 41.5% cheaper than Zurich.
- Restaurants
-
pay 52.9% less in Detroit
- Groceries
-
pay 17.6% less in Detroit
- Transportation
-
pay 43.1% less in Detroit
- Housing
-
pay 29.1% less in Detroit
- Childcare
-
pay 62.9% less in Detroit
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 36.5% less in Detroit
- Clothing
-
pay 48.1% less in Detroit
Expenses including childcare, restaurants, clothing, transportation, entertainment and sports, and housing are lower in Detroit.
Detroit vs. Zurich Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Detroit instead of Zurich, you would:
pay 52.9% less for restaurants
|
Zurich
|
Detroit
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$31.30
CHF25.12
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$21.28
CHF17.08
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$6.01
CHF4.83
|
$2.59
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$5.24
CHF4.20
|
$1.82
|
|
Zurich vs. Detroit - Cost of restaurants
pay 17.6% less for groceries
|
Zurich
|
Detroit
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.30
CHF2.65
|
$3.38
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$14.81
CHF11.89
|
$6.06
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.35
CHF6.71
|
$3.58
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.29
CHF5.85
|
$3.58
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$14.64
CHF11.75
|
$5.25
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.87
CHF1.50
|
$2.08
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.34
CHF1.08
|
$0.55
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.46
CHF1.18
|
$2.65
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.46
CHF1.98
|
$2.80
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.22
CHF0.98
|
$0.98
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.04
CHF0.83
|
$1.13
|
|
Zurich vs. Detroit - Cost of groceries
pay 43.1% less for transportation
|
Zurich
|
Detroit
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$8.63
CHF6.93
|
$3.40
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$108.91
CHF87.43
|
$66.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$41,061.59
CHF32,963.30
|
$35,699.74
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$33.55
CHF26.93
|
$13.68
|
|
Zurich vs. Detroit - Cost of transportation
pay 29.1% less for housing
|
Zurich
|
Detroit
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$59.74
CHF47.96
|
$52.14
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,666.50
CHF2,140.60
|
$1,450.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,285.53
CHF1,834.77
|
$1,058.17
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$200.77
CHF161.17
|
$192.03
|
|
Zurich vs. Detroit - Cost of housing
pay 62.9% less for childcare
|
Zurich
|
Detroit
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$3,558.15
CHF2,856.40
|
$1,294.79
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$44,295.61
CHF35,559.50
|
$16,800.00
|
|
Zurich vs. Detroit - Cost of childcare
pay 36.5% less for entertainment and sports
|
Zurich
|
Detroit
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$10.02
CHF8.04
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.91
CHF5.55
|
$4.86
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.27
CHF9.04
|
$10.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$88.77
CHF71.27
|
$43.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$25.04
CHF20.10
|
$12.50
|
|
Zurich vs. Detroit - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 48.1% less for clothing
|
Zurich
|
Detroit
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$137.88
CHF110.68
|
$59.08
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$59.35
CHF47.64
|
$31.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$159.90
CHF128.36
|
$97.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$210.59
CHF169.05
|
$109.00
|
|
Zurich vs. Detroit - 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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