Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Francisco vs. Zurich Cost of Living Summary
San Francisco is 10.6% cheaper than Zurich.
- Restaurants
-
pay 32.9% less in San Francisco
- Groceries
-
pay 18.9% more in San Francisco
- Transportation
-
pay 27.7% less in San Francisco
- Housing
-
pay 13.4% more in San Francisco
- Childcare
-
pay 7.2% less in San Francisco
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 3.6% less in San Francisco
- Clothing
-
pay 34.9% less in San Francisco
The cost of groceries and housing in San Francisco are more expensive than in Zurich. Expenses including clothing, restaurants, transportation, childcare, and entertainment and sports are lower in San Francisco.
San Francisco vs. Zurich Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Francisco instead of Zurich, you would:
pay 32.9% less for restaurants
|
Zurich
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$31.30
CHF25.12
|
$30.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$21.28
CHF17.08
|
$14.50
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$6.01
CHF4.83
|
$3.30
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$5.24
CHF4.20
|
$2.59
|
|
Zurich vs. San Francisco - Cost of restaurants
pay 18.9% more for groceries
|
Zurich
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.30
CHF2.65
|
$5.06
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$14.81
CHF11.89
|
$11.69
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.35
CHF6.71
|
$5.85
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.29
CHF5.85
|
$6.26
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$14.64
CHF11.75
|
$6.63
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.87
CHF1.50
|
$3.22
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.34
CHF1.08
|
$1.31
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.46
CHF1.18
|
$2.37
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.46
CHF1.98
|
$3.23
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.22
CHF0.98
|
$1.67
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.04
CHF0.83
|
$1.81
|
|
Zurich vs. San Francisco - Cost of groceries
pay 27.7% less for transportation
|
Zurich
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$8.63
CHF6.93
|
$4.89
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$108.91
CHF87.43
|
$90.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$41,061.59
CHF32,963.30
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$33.55
CHF26.93
|
$20.31
|
|
Zurich vs. San Francisco - Cost of transportation
pay 13.4% more for housing
|
Zurich
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$59.74
CHF47.96
|
$68.78
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,666.50
CHF2,140.60
|
$3,446.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,285.53
CHF1,834.77
|
$2,736.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$200.77
CHF161.17
|
$179.63
|
|
Zurich vs. San Francisco - Cost of housing
pay 7.2% less for childcare
|
Zurich
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$3,558.15
CHF2,856.40
|
$3,236.11
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$44,295.61
CHF35,559.50
|
$42,000.00
|
|
Zurich vs. San Francisco - Cost of childcare
pay 3.6% less for entertainment and sports
|
Zurich
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$10.02
CHF8.04
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.91
CHF5.55
|
$5.98
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.27
CHF9.04
|
$14.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$88.77
CHF71.27
|
$109.64
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$25.04
CHF20.10
|
$17.00
|
|
Zurich vs. San Francisco - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 34.9% less for clothing
|
Zurich
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$137.88
CHF110.68
|
$70.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$59.35
CHF47.64
|
$48.82
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$159.90
CHF128.36
|
$102.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$210.59
CHF169.05
|
$133.67
|
|
Zurich vs. San Francisco - 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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