Cost of living comparison

Ottawa, Canada

compared to

Zurich, Switzerland

Zurich vs. Ottawa Cost of Living Summary

Zurich is 81.5% more expensive than Ottawa.

Restaurants: pay 2.3 times more in Zurich
Groceries: pay 38.1% more in Zurich
Transportation: pay 70.5% more in Zurich
Housing: pay 47.2% more in Zurich
Childcare: pay 2.6 times more in Zurich
Entertainment and Sports: pay 58.8% more in Zurich
Clothing: pay 73.2% more in Zurich

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

Zurich vs. Ottawa Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 2.3 times more for restaurants

	Ottawa	Zurich
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$17.96 CA$24.60	$28.51 CHF23.44	+58.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$10.78 CA$14.76	$18.25 CHF15.00	+69.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.17 CA$2.97	$5.42 CHF4.46	+149.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.53 CA$2.10	$4.99 CHF4.10	+225.8%
Average			+125.9%

Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 38.1% more for groceries

	Ottawa	Zurich
Bread 1 loaf	$2.65 CA$3.63	$3.85 CHF3.17	+45.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.28 CA$8.60	$12.99 CHF10.68	+106.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$9.92 CA$13.59	$7.50 CHF6.16	-24.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.31 CA$4.54	$6.93 CHF5.70	+109.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$5.89 CA$8.07	$12.79 CHF10.51	+117.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.93 CA$2.65	$1.53 CHF1.25	-21.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.64 CA$0.87	$1.08 CHF0.89	+70.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.44 CA$1.98	$1.36 CHF1.11	-6.0%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.69 CA$2.31	$2.40 CHF1.97	+42.1%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.20 CA$1.65	$1.13 CHF0.93	-5.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.31 CA$1.79	$1.12 CHF0.92	-13.9%
Average			+38.1%

Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 70.5% more for transportation

	Ottawa	Zurich
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.15 CA$5.68	$8.08 CHF6.64	+94.7%
Monthly public transit pass	$92.50 CA$126.70	$99.22 CHF81.56	+7.3%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$24,412.64 CA$33,436.77	$37,408.50 CHF30,749.79	+53.2%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.80 CA$25.74	$42.65 CHF35.06	+126.9%
Average			+70.5%

Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 47.2% more for housing

	Ottawa	Zurich
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$50.21 CA$68.78	$53.90 CHF44.31	+7.3%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,425.51 CA$1,952.45	$2,534.58 CHF2,083.42	+77.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,269.57 CA$1,738.86	$1,995.21 CHF1,640.06	+57.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$131.33 CA$179.88	$192.58 CHF158.30	+46.6%
Average			+47.2%

Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.6 times more for childcare

	Ottawa	Zurich
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$999.72 CA$1,369.27	$3,186.83 CHF2,619.58	+218.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$19,936.07 CA$27,305.44	$38,929.17 CHF31,999.78	+95.3%
Average			+157.1%

Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 58.8% more for entertainment and sports

	Ottawa	Zurich
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.75 CA$7.87	$9.12 CHF7.50	+58.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.71 CA$5.08	$6.13 CHF5.04	+65.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$12.93 CA$17.71	$10.26 CHF8.44	-20.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$46.27 CA$63.37	$82.87 CHF68.12	+79.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$10.78 CA$14.76	$22.81 CHF18.75	+111.7%
Average			+58.8%

Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 73.2% more for clothing

	Ottawa	Zurich
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$57.20 CA$78.34	$124.04 CHF101.96	+116.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$44.39 CA$60.80	$67.24 CHF55.27	+51.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$97.78 CA$133.92	$131.11 CHF107.77	+34.1%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$110.86 CA$151.83	$210.91 CHF173.37	+90.3%
Average			+73.2%

Ottawa vs. Zurich - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

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: June 2025

More cost comparisons

Ottawa vs.

Algiers

Ottawa vs.

Moscow

Ottawa vs.

Kiev

Ottawa vs.

Reykjavik

Ottawa vs.

Hanoi

Ottawa vs.

Vienna

Ottawa vs.

Singapore

Ottawa vs.

Delhi

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Canada vs. Switzerland. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Canada 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

Add prices for Ottawa

Add prices for Zurich

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Zurich or Ottawa. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.