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Travel budget

How much does a trip to Zurich cost?

What a trip to Zurich costs, worked out for your days and your party, with every price traced to where it comes from. And then the part most budgets skip: how to actually pay once you are there.

Food, getting around and sights in Zurich come to CHF 100–130 per person per day. Accommodation, flights and the airport transfer are on top. Prices reviewed: November 2026.

Full Zurich guide

Your trip

How much money you still need

Days, people and how you like to travel decide almost everything. Flights are left out: they depend on where you start.

6 nights

Counted at the child fares each operator publishes.

Travel style

Set meals and the odd sit-down dinner, and one paid sight a day.

Accommodation

We have no sample of hotel prices for this city yet, so we will not guess one. Type what you have seen and the lodging tax is worked out from it.

Adjust accommodation, food and the rest

In local currency. We do not estimate this: nobody knows what you will buy.

Already paid for

You still need, flights aside

CHF 1,400–1,900

≈ $1,700 – $2,300 · rate of October 16, 2026

CHF 100–140 per person per day · 7 days and 2 people

Expected
CHF 1,400–1,900
Most trips land in here
Set aside
CHF 1,900
With this you are unlikely to run short
Cushion, kept apart
CHF 170
10% of the trip
  • FoodCHF 790–1,100
  • Getting aroundCHF 160–390
  • Airport, both waysCHF 29
  • Sights and activitiesCHF 180–340
  • Nights outCHF 42–88
  • Lodging tax and odds and endsCHF 56–94

Of that, in cash: CHF 19–200

The cash share is our reading of how each kind of place takes payment, not a measurement. Your own bank may charge on top; this page cannot know that.

  • Accommodation is not in this figure. Add your price per night to include it.
  • Flights are not included.
  • You probably will not spend the cushion. Having it to hand covers a night you had not planned, a taxi, or a changed ticket.
Styles

What a day in Zurich costs, by how you travel

Per person per day, two travelling, without accommodation, flights or the airport transfer. A style is not a figure: it is a way of eating, getting around and seeing things, and each one is spelled out below.

Budget

CHF 68–87 per person per day

Local food, public transport, the odd paid sight.

FoodLocal and cheap
CHF 41–49
Getting aroundPublic transport
CHF 11–28
Sights and activitiesThe odd paid sight
CHF 6.50–12.00
Sundries: luggage storage, laundry, water
CHF 2.90–4.40

Mid-range

CHF 100–130 per person per day

Set meals and the odd sit-down dinner, and one paid sight a day.

FoodMixed: set meals and one sit-down dinner
CHF 56–82
Getting aroundPublic transport
CHF 11–28
Sights and activitiesOne paid sight a day
CHF 13–24
Nights outNow and then
CHF 3.00–6.30
Sundries: luggage storage, laundry, water
CHF 4.00–6.70

Comfort

CHF 140–170 per person per day

The best food level we can price, public transport, two paid sights a day.

FoodRestaurants most of the time
CHF 77–90
Getting aroundPublic transport
CHF 11–28
Sights and activitiesTwo paid sights a day
CHF 26–48
Nights outNow and then
CHF 3.00–6.30
Sundries: luggage storage, laundry, water
CHF 5.70–8.30

A style's total is not the sum of the extremes of its lines: nobody has a trip where everything comes out cheap, or everything dear. “Sundries” is an assumption of ours, 5% of food, transport and sights, not a measurement.

By length of trip

How much money for 3, 5, 7, 10 and 14 days in Zurich

Per person, two travelling together, without accommodation or flights. It is not the daily figure times the days: airport transfers are paid once, so they weigh less the longer you stay.

DaysBudgetMid-rangeComfort
3CHF 220–280
CHF 72–92 a day		CHF 320–420
CHF 110–140 a day		CHF 430–520
CHF 140–170 a day
5CHF 350–450
CHF 70–90 a day		CHF 510–680
CHF 100–140 a day		CHF 690–840
CHF 140–170 a day
7CHF 490–620
CHF 70–89 a day		CHF 720–950
CHF 100–140 a day		CHF 970–1,200
CHF 140–170 a day
10CHF 690–880
CHF 69–88 a day		CHF 1,000–1,400
CHF 100–140 a day		CHF 1,400–1,700
CHF 140–170 a day
14CHF 960–1,200
CHF 69–88 a day		CHF 1,400–1,900
CHF 100–130 a day		CHF 1,900–2,400
CHF 140–170 a day

Add your accommodation in the calculator above: it is the largest line and the one we cannot source yet.

Prices

What things cost in Zurich

Eating and drinking: no official statistic measures what eating out costs here, so these are prices from the menu each place publishes on its own website, and each row says where it comes from. It is a sample, not an average: there are cheaper and dearer places, and tourist areas cost more.

WhatPriceSource
Eating and drinking
Butter croissant (Gipfeli), HiltlCHF 1.90From the source Nov 2026
Coffee, HiltlCHF 4.80From the source Nov 2026
Coffee, ZeughauskellerCHF 4.80From the source Nov 2026
Valser mineral water, 5 dl, ZeughauskellerCHF 6.00From the source Nov 2026
Soup of the day, HiltlCHF 8.50From the source Nov 2026
St. Gallen bratwurst with a bread roll and mustard, Sternen GrillCHF 8.90From the source Nov 2026
Bratwurst with potato salad, Sternen GrillCHF 15.80From the source Nov 2026
Zurich veal sausage with potato salad and onion sauce, ZeughauskellerCHF 20.00From the source Nov 2026
Weekly lunch menu, ZeughauskellerCHF 24.50From the source Nov 2026
Weekly lunch menu, Zum KropfCHF 27.50From the source Nov 2026
Zurich-style sliced veal (Geschnetzeltes) with one side, ZeughauskellerCHF 36.50From the source Nov 2026
Draught house beer, 3 dl, ZeughauskellerCHF 5.20From the source Nov 2026
Draught Hiltl Lager, 30 cl, HiltlCHF 6.00From the source Nov 2026
Glass of Zurich white wine (Riesling x Sylvaner), 1 dl, ZeughauskellerCHF 6.80From the source Nov 2026
Glass of house wine, 1 dl, HiltlCHF 8.00From the source Nov 2026
Getting around
Short-journey ticket (half an hour)CHF 2.80From the source Nov 2026
Zurich city ticket (zone 110, one hour)CHF 4.70From the source Nov 2026
24-hour city ticket (zone 110)CHF 9.40From the source Nov 2026
Zürich Card, 24 hours (transport and museums)CHF 29.00From the source Nov 2026
Zürich Card, 72 hours (transport and museums)CHF 56.00From the source Nov 2026
Airport to Zurich main station by train, 3-zone ticketCHF 7.20From the source Nov 2026
Sights
Swiss National Museum (Landesmuseum)CHF 13.00From the source Nov 2026
Kunsthaus Zürich, collectionCHF 24.00From the source Nov 2026

From the source means we read it where it is set: the operator, the bank, the city or the statistics office. Reported means a guide or the press says so and we have not seen the original. Where sources disagree we show both figures and leave the price out of every sum.

What each food level is made of

A food level is not a number we chose. It is two lists of dishes from the table above, a cheap day and a dear one, and the price is the sum.

Bare minimum: convenience stores and counters
From Butter croissant (Gipfeli), Hiltl + St. Gallen bratwurst with a bread roll and mustard, Sternen Grill × 2 (CHF 19.70) to Butter croissant (Gipfeli), Hiltl + Coffee, Hiltl + Bratwurst with potato salad, Sternen Grill + Soup of the day, Hiltl (CHF 31.00).
Local and cheap
From Coffee, Hiltl + Butter croissant (Gipfeli), Hiltl + St. Gallen bratwurst with a bread roll and mustard, Sternen Grill + Zurich veal sausage with potato salad and onion sauce, Zeughauskeller + Draught house beer, 3 dl, Zeughauskeller (CHF 40.80) to Coffee, Zeughauskeller + Butter croissant (Gipfeli), Hiltl + Bratwurst with potato salad, Sternen Grill + Zurich veal sausage with potato salad and onion sauce, Zeughauskeller + Draught Hiltl Lager, 30 cl, Hiltl (CHF 48.50).
Mixed: set meals and one sit-down dinner
From Coffee, Hiltl + Butter croissant (Gipfeli), Hiltl + Weekly lunch menu, Zeughauskeller + Zurich veal sausage with potato salad and onion sauce, Zeughauskeller + Draught house beer, 3 dl, Zeughauskeller (CHF 56.40) to Coffee, Zeughauskeller + Butter croissant (Gipfeli), Hiltl + Weekly lunch menu, Zum Kropf + Zurich-style sliced veal (Geschnetzeltes) with one side, Zeughauskeller + Draught house beer, 3 dl, Zeughauskeller + Valser mineral water, 5 dl, Zeughauskeller (CHF 81.90).
Restaurants most of the time
From Coffee, Zeughauskeller + Weekly lunch menu, Zeughauskeller + Zurich-style sliced veal (Geschnetzeltes) with one side, Zeughauskeller + Draught house beer, 3 dl, Zeughauskeller + Valser mineral water, 5 dl, Zeughauskeller (CHF 77.00) to Coffee, Zeughauskeller + Butter croissant (Gipfeli), Hiltl + Weekly lunch menu, Zum Kropf + Zurich-style sliced veal (Geschnetzeltes) with one side, Zeughauskeller + Glass of Zurich white wine (Riesling x Sylvaner), 1 dl, Zeughauskeller × 2 + Valser mineral water, 5 dl, Zeughauskeller (CHF 90.30).
Getting around

Which ticket pays off

A pass is only cheaper past a certain number of rides. This is that number, worked out from the published fares.

  • 1-day pass at CHF 9.40: it pays off from 4 rides a day at CHF 2.80 each.

A pass only counts on the lines it covers. Check which ones before you buy.

Accommodation

What the night costs, and the tax on top

There is no open source of hotel prices, and we have not sampled this city yet. So the calculator asks you for the price you have seen instead of printing one that looks plausible.

Lodging tax

    • CHF 3.50 per person per night, whatever the room costs

Which area to stay in Zurich: the neighbourhood comparison

Saving

What saves money in Zurich, and what does not

Each line is a subtraction done with the prices on this page. No tricks: just the sum.

What saves

  • Eating “Mixed: set meals and one sit-down dinner” instead of “Restaurants most of the time”: CHF 8.40–21.00 less per person per day.
  • Eating “Local and cheap” instead of “Mixed: set meals and one sit-down dinner”: CHF 16–33 less per person per day.
  • Eating “Bare minimum: convenience stores and counters” instead of “Local and cheap”: CHF 18–21 less per person per day.
  • “Weekly lunch menu, Zeughauskeller” (CHF 24.50) instead of “Weekly lunch menu, Zum Kropf” (CHF 27.50): CHF 3.00 less each time.

What does not

  • The 1-day pass (CHF 9.40) on fewer than 4 rides of CHF 2.80 a day: it costs more than paying for each ticket.
Questions

Questions about money in Zurich

How much money do you need for a week in Zurich?

For seven days, CHF 720–950 per person on the “Mid-range” style with two travelling. Accommodation and flights are not included. The airport transfer, there and back, is included.

How much money do you need for 3 days in Zurich?

For 3 days, CHF 320–420 per person on the “Mid-range” style with two travelling. Accommodation and flights are not included. The airport transfer, there and back, is included.

What is a realistic daily budget in Zurich?

Per person per day, without accommodation or flights: CHF 68–87 on the “Budget” style, CHF 100–130 on the “Mid-range” style, and CHF 140–170 on the “Comfort” style.

Can you travel to Zurich on a budget?

The cheapest style we work out is “Budget”: CHF 68–87 per person per day, without accommodation or flights. Local food, public transport, the odd paid sight.

How much does food cost in Zurich?

From CHF 20 per person per day (“Bare minimum: convenience stores and counters”) to CHF 90 (“Restaurants most of the time”). The price table has what each dish costs.

How much does transport cost in Zurich?

A ride on public transport costs CHF 2.80–4.70. The 1-day pass costs CHF 9.40 and pays off from 4 rides a day at CHF 2.80 each.

Is there a lodging tax in Zurich?

Yes: CHF 3.50 per person per night.

How much cash should you carry in Zurich?

For a week on the “Mid-range” style, about CHF 9.40–99.00 per person, two travelling. It is our reading of how each kind of place takes payment, not a measurement.

Is it better to use cash or card in Zurich?

By card: in general.

Do you tip in Zurich?

Restaurants: customary.

Sources

Where every figure comes from

Each price on this page carries its source. These are all of them. Prices reviewed: November 2026.

The rest of Zurich

In the app

This page tells you how much to take. The app keeps count of what you spend.

Joru works out the budget of your itinerary day by day and sets it against what you actually spend, by category and with the exchange rate. On your phone, with no account.

Google PlayApp Store

Free for one destination of up to three days, on Android and iPhone.