Cost of living comparison

Ottawa, Canada

compared to

Switzerland

Switzerland vs. Ottawa Cost of Living Summary

Switzerland is 63.4% more expensive than Ottawa.

Restaurants: pay 99.1% more in Switzerland
Groceries: pay 38.2% more in Switzerland
Transportation: pay 71.6% more in Switzerland
Housing: pay 17.1% more in Switzerland
Childcare: pay 2.1 times more in Switzerland
Entertainment and Sports: pay 49.5% more in Switzerland
Clothing: pay 62.6% more in Switzerland

The cost of childcare, restaurants, transportation, clothing, entertainment and sports, and groceries in Switzerland are more expensive than in Ottawa. Notably, childcare and restaurants are significantly more expensive in Switzerland.

Switzerland vs. Ottawa Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Switzerland instead of Ottawa, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 99.1% more for restaurants

	Ottawa	Switzerland
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$17.96 CA$24.67	$27.66 CHF22.73	+54.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$10.78 CA$14.80	$16.97 CHF13.94	+57.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.17 CA$2.98	$4.67 CHF3.84	+115.3%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.53 CA$2.10	$4.13 CHF3.39	+169.6%
Average			+99.1%

Ottawa vs. Switzerland - Cost of restaurants

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pay 38.2% more for groceries

	Ottawa	Switzerland
Bread 1 loaf	$2.65 CA$3.64	$3.64 CHF2.99	+37.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.28 CA$8.63	$13.22 CHF10.86	+110.5%
Milk (1 gallon)	$9.92 CA$13.63	$7.31 CHF6.01	-26.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.31 CA$4.55	$6.80 CHF5.58	+105.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$5.89 CA$8.09	$12.89 CHF10.59	+118.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.93 CA$2.66	$1.52 CHF1.25	-21.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.64 CA$0.87	$1.03 CHF0.85	+61.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.44 CA$1.98	$1.31 CHF1.08	-8.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.69 CA$2.32	$2.85 CHF2.34	+68.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.20 CA$1.65	$1.12 CHF0.92	-7.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.31 CA$1.79	$1.07 CHF0.88	-18.2%
Average			+38.2%

Ottawa vs. Switzerland - Cost of groceries

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pay 71.6% more for transportation

	Ottawa	Switzerland
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.15 CA$5.70	$7.83 CHF6.44	+88.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$92.50 CA$127.07	$114.11 CHF93.74	+23.4%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$24,412.64 CA$33,534.42	$36,806.66 CHF30,235.53	+50.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.80 CA$25.82	$42.03 CHF34.53	+123.6%
Average			+71.6%

Ottawa vs. Switzerland - Cost of transportation

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pay 17.1% more for housing

	Ottawa	Switzerland
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$50.21 CA$68.98	$53.46 CHF43.91	+6.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,425.51 CA$1,958.16	$1,622.75 CHF1,333.04	+13.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,269.57 CA$1,743.94	$1,411.84 CHF1,159.78	+11.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$131.33 CA$180.40	$180.02 CHF147.88	+37.1%
Average			+17.1%

Ottawa vs. Switzerland - Cost of housing

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pay 2.1 times more for childcare

	Ottawa	Switzerland
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$999.72 CA$1,373.27	$2,587.05 CHF2,125.18	+158.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$19,936.07 CA$27,385.19	$30,321.56 CHF24,908.22	+52.1%
Average			+105.5%

Ottawa vs. Switzerland - Cost of childcare

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pay 49.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Ottawa	Switzerland
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.75 CA$7.90	$7.82 CHF6.43	+36.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.71 CA$5.10	$5.42 CHF4.45	+46.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$12.93 CA$17.77	$10.09 CHF8.29	-21.9%
Monthly membership at local gym	$46.27 CA$63.56	$88.49 CHF72.69	+91.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$10.78 CA$14.80	$21.15 CHF17.37	+96.2%
Average			+49.5%

Ottawa vs. Switzerland - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 62.6% more for clothing

	Ottawa	Switzerland
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$57.20 CA$78.57	$121.70 CHF99.97	+112.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$44.39 CA$60.98	$61.65 CHF50.65	+38.9%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$97.78 CA$134.31	$136.06 CHF111.77	+39.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$110.86 CA$152.28	$176.75 CHF145.19	+59.4%
Average			+62.6%

Ottawa vs. Switzerland - Cost of clothing

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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: May 2025

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