City comparison
Cost of living in Zürich vs London
One person needs about €3,790 a month in Zürich and €3,468 in London, rent included — London is 8% cheaper overall.
Salary you'd need to keep the same lifestyle
Enter your current net monthly pay. We scale it by the full cost basket — rent, groceries, transport, utilities, eating out and internet.
To live in London the way you live in Zürich on €3,000, you need
€2,745/ month net
8% less than today (-€255)
- Zürich today
- Basket €3,790 · left over -€790 (-26%)
- London at the matched salary
- Basket €3,468 · left over -€723 (-26%)
Local pay context: average tech net pay covers the basket 161% over in London (adequate) vs 237% in Zürich. Purchasing power index · How we calculate this
🇨🇭 Zürich
Highest salaries anywhere, and a grocery bill that will still shock you.
Monthly budget: €3,790
Sources: Eurostat, Harmonised price indices (2025) · 0 community reports
🇬🇧 London
Salaries are high, everything else is higher — transport alone costs a Tbilisi flat.
Monthly budget: €3,468
Sources: ONS + VOA, CPIH & private rental market summary (2025) · 468 community reports
Should you move to Zürich or London?
On salary, Zürich pays more for tech roles (€9,000 versus €5,600 a month), so the money left over after costs is €5,210 in Zürich at the top end.
Rent drives most of the gap: €2,600 in Zürich against €2,400 in London. Groceries, transport and utilities move far less between the two.
For remote workers, the nomad index scores Zürich at 66 and London at 64 — see the full nomad index and our data methodology.