How Expats Rate Life in Basel, Geneva, and Zurich

From a great quality of life to expensive housing, expats in these Swiss cities face some major highs and lows.

Different Work Prospects across Switzerland
High Incomes (Mostly) Make Up for High Costs
Swiss Cities Offer a Great Environment
Expats Struggle to Find Friends
Handling the Basics of Life Abroad
31 | Zurich
34 | Basel
35 | Geneva
Further Reading

With Basel, Geneva, and Zurich, three Swiss cities make it into the 2024 Expat City Ranking. They can be found in the midfield of the survey, placing 34th, 35th, and 31st, respectively, out of 53 cities. However, the share of expats who are happy with their life abroad is above average, ranging from 71% (Zurich) to 85% (Basel), compared to 68% globally.

Different Work Prospects across Switzerland

A look at the details reveals a mixed picture. Ranking 17th in the Working Abroad Index, Zurich does noticeably better than Basel (37th); while Geneva (23rd) is somewhere in between.

For instance, close to seven in ten expats in Zurich (69%) say they’re satisfied with their work–life balance (vs. 60% globally). That is over ten percentage points more than in Basel (58%) and Geneva (57%). And while Basel lands in the bottom 10 for personal career opportunities (45th), Geneva ranks 19th.

There is one area where these Swiss cities perform well, though: the Salary & Job Security Subcategory, with top 10 placements for all three. The state of the local economy continues the top 10 trend for these cities, and expats feel that they’re paid fairly in Basel (3rd), Zurich (8th), and, to a lesser degree, Geneva (15th).

High Incomes (Mostly) Make Up for High Costs

Speaking of money: globally, one in ten expats (10%) say their gross annual income is 150,000 USD or more. In Basel (38%) and Zurich (40%), this is true for around four in ten. And a lower, but still above-average share of 27% say the same in Geneva.

That’s good news, as costs across Switzerland are infamously high. (When asked about any concerns prior to the move, well over twice the global average named high cost of living for Swiss cities). Basel receives the “best” result for this factor (39th), while close to three-quarters of expats in Geneva (73%) rate their expenses negatively (vs. 39% globally).

“If you can afford the cost of living, it’s a country that works well, is safe, and is beautiful.” – British expat in Geneva

With high costs meeting high incomes, Basel (29th) and Zurich (26th) both land in the midfield of the Personal Finance Index. Geneva, on the other hand, narrowly escapes the bottom 10, ranking 41st.

Swiss Cities Offer a Great Environment

The Quality of Life is a plus for expats in Zurich (9th), Basel (19th), and Geneva (22nd).

Healthcare is one reason for the variable ranking. It’s considered expensive regardless of where in Switzerland you go (all three cities land in the bottom 10 for affordability). But respondents in Zurich are more likely to praise its quality (81% positive ratings vs. 66% globally) and availability (85% vs. 68%).

All three cities stand out in the Environment & Climate Subcategory — results range from 4th (Zurich) to 11th (Geneva) place. The natural environment is a highlight in the eyes of expats: not a single respondent in these cities gives it a negative rating (vs. 7% globally).

“The surrounding nature is beautiful, and the quality of life is fantastic!” – Polish expat in Geneva

One sore point, though? The culinary variety and dining options. Basel even ranks last for this factor (53rd), with Geneva (48th) and Zurich (47th) not much better.

Expats Struggle to Find Friends

It’s not easy to find your feet socially, especially when Swiss cities have never done well in the Ease of Settling In Index. Only Geneva, which places 35th, manages to escape the bottom 10, while Basel (47th) and Zurich (49th) rank among the worst-performing cities.

In fact, Basel places last when it comes to social life, and so does Zurich for getting used to the local culture and making local friends.

“I wish locals were more open to expanding their social circles, it is almost impossible to make friends here.” – Indian expat in Basel

Indeed, the majority of respondents — 58% in Basel and even more in Geneva (61%) and Zurich (65%) — find they’re mostly friends with other expats (vs. 37% globally).

Handling the Basics of Life Abroad

Zurich (26th) and Basel (27th) are about average in the Expat Essentials Index. Geneva ranks 37th, in large part due to accommodation that is both unaffordable (45th) and difficult to find (46th). Though Housing (42nd) isn’t a favorite topic among expats in Zurich, either.

“There’s an impossible housing market, both for rental and purchase.” – British expat in Zurich

Zurich stands out positively for its administration, though. For example, 63% of expats agree it’s easy to deal with local bureaucracy (vs. 36% globally). And the city also offers a good Digital Life (2nd). Zurich ranks 1st for the ease of paying without cash, which is in stark contrast to Basel’s 24th and Geneva’s 32nd place for this factor.

Overall, Geneva does much worse across all areas of the index, except one: expats find it much easier to learn the local language (French) than in German-speaking Basel and Zurich. In fact, more than half (52%) agree it’s easy, compared to 26% and 16% in Basel and Zurich, respectively.

31 | Zurich

Expats in Zurich praise the Quality of Life (9th) yet despair when it comes to the Ease of Settling In (49th) — the city sees some of its biggest losses in the latter index, where it still placed 37th out of 49 destinations in 2023.

The Safety & Security Subcategory (2nd) continues to delight, as does Environment & Climate (4th). But over three-quarters of respondents (77%) don’t find it easy to make locals friends (vs. 41% globally), and less than half (49%) feel welcome (vs. 63%). A year before, results for these factors were already worse than average but not nearly as bad: 55% struggled to make local friends and 61% felt welcome.

Zurich has also lost ground in the Working Abroad Index. While it made the top 10 in 2023 (10th), it now ranks 17th. Expats still appreciate the state of the economy (2nd). However, Career Prospects have worsened noticeably: following 9th place in 2023, Zurich now ranks 23rd. Only about half of respondents (51%) rate the local job market positively (vs. 70% in 2023).

The Personal Finances Index (26th) paints a similar picture to previous years. An above-average 79% of respondents say their disposable household income is enough or more than enough to live comfortably (vs. 70% globally) — despite high costs (65% negative ratings vs. 39%).

Close to three-quarters of expats (73%) share that housing is expensive in Zurich (vs. 47% globally). This partly explains why the city ranks a mediocre 26th place in the Expat Essentials Index, despite great results for Digital Life (2nd) and Admin Topics (5th).

34 | Basel

Basel didn’t make it into the Expat City Ranking in 2023. But its 34th rank in 2024 is a clear step down from 7th out of 50 cities in 2022. Expats have a more negative view on the city across all indices, but most noticeably when it comes to Personal Finance (from 8th to 29th) and Working Abroad (14th to 37th).

Respondents are unhappy with their working hours (47th) and don’t see many personal career opportunities (45th) — despite viewing the state of the economy favorably: 89% say it’s good, 30 percentage points above the global average of 59%.

Regarding the Ease of Settling In Index, Basel ranks 47th and receives bottom 10 results across all but one of the underlying factors: whether expats feel they have a personal support network there (37th). Indeed, only 41% of respondents find that locals are friendly towards foreign residents, 20 percentage points less than the global average of 61%.

Handling the more practical aspects of settling in is, at least, a little easier, with Basel ranking 27th in the Expat Essentials Index. Compared to Zurich and Geneva, housing is relatively more affordable: “only” 59% of expats in Basel give this factor a negative rating (vs. 47% globally).

Basel’s best result in an index? Its 19th place for Quality of Life. The city ranks 1st for the natural environment and the opportunity to travel, and expats find it easy to get around on foot or by bicycle (4th). Some are missing the advantages of big city life, though: 42% rate the culinary variety negatively (vs. 13% globally), and only half (50%) are happy with the culture & nightlife on offer (vs. 66% globally).

35 | Geneva

Geneva saw the fewest changes out of the three Swiss cities: following 30th place in 2023, it ranks 35th in 2024.

It receives its best results in the Quality of Life Index (22nd). Great political stability (6th) and natural environment (6th), among other aspects, make up for a dissatisfying nightlife offering (50th) and costly healthcare (51st).

In 23rd place is the Working Abroad Index. Compared to Basel, expats in Geneva are more likely to rate their career opportunities favorably (19th), and close to two-thirds (66%) find that moving there has improved their prospects (vs. 56% globally). Though with an average work week of 44.2 hours in a full-time position (vs. 42.5 h globally), it’s hardly surprising that expats aren’t enthusiastic about their working hours (37th).

All that work may pay off in terms of high incomes, but these incomes must combat high prices. Geneva ranks in the bottom 10 for cost of living (47th) and places 41st overall in the Personal Finance Index.

Paying for accommodation is a major expenditure point — and a staggering 83% of expats rate housing affordability negatively (vs. 47% globally). When asked about their concerns prior to the move, expats in Geneva were more than twice as likely to mention the housing market (41% vs. 19% globally). As such, it’s one of the aspects pulling down Geneva’s ranking in the Expat Essentials Index to 37th.

Geneva’s performance isn’t much better when it comes to the Ease of Settling In (35th). Only around half of expats there find the local residents friendly (52% vs. 63% globally) and feel welcome (51% vs. 63% globally).