If they had also added the standard deviations, the figures might have become more meaningful. But waht was it Mark Twain said about statistics?
so much for statistics. I don't think I can recognise myself in one single one of those figures or percentages.
I am really awful when it comes to this sort of thing, but am I to understand that the average Swiss house hold has 8'967 Francs left over a month to play with or that they have 8'967 Francs to begin with and then everything is taken off? Either way, it doesn't seem right. The first option is too high and the second option doesn't seem feasable. I know double income families who just about get 8'000 and some that even have less.
I agree it is not really that clear but I understand it to be the gross income as 8,967 per household and all those expenses come out of that.
According to Wikipedia, the median household income for Switzerland was 95,184 CHF for 2005.
I've put it up there because a household, let's say with 2 kids, actually needs those 8'000 plus bucks to pay all that is mentionned there, insurance etc., plus food, clothes and extras like bus fare, sports lessons
So you can imagine that not much is left at the end of the month and how expensive life in Switzerland can be.
http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/search/...=1175587677000
But poverty does exist in Switzerland. The article is a bit of an eye opener.
Hey,
I'm a German uni student in Ireland considering applying for a position of teachers assistant in a swiss school. The salary is CHF 2’500 a month.
Would anybody be able to tell me what kind of lifestyle this would afford? Ie accomodation, transport, food, clothing, going out, a bit of travel..
Thanks very much,
Daniel
p.s. would anyone have info on this in comparison to germany and austria? the wage for german assistant is €800 a month and austrian €1000. Would there be a large difference in the lifestyle those different wages could afford? Thanks.
Where is Switzerland is the school? Prices on accomodation vary according to location.
I assume that 2500 is gross, and you will have deductions from that. It is not a lot of money to live on, but it is possible.
I would recommend shared accomodation to keep down the costs. Try http://www.wgzimmer.ch/ as a starting point.
Sorry, I cannot give you comparison for Germany or Austria.
Hope you find the info you are looking for, good luck!
The school could be in any one of these locations:
Appenzell-Ausserrhoden, Basel-Landschaft, Basel-Stadt, St. Gallen, Solothurn, Zug and Zürich.
I'm guessing there would be a significant difference between rural and urban costs.
Thanks for the link.
Hi,
For your comparison.
I am recently graduated, on Internship here.
The overall costs including flat, food, transport, insurance takes not more than CHF1500 in my case.
However, the other things are parties, sports, travelling which costs even more.... But still depends on your lifestyle....
Cheers,
karin
Hey Karin, do you mind me asking what kind of lifestyle do you have? Do you live in a wg? What is the size of your room? Do you use public transport often? What kind of food would you buy per month, would it be good quality and how much would it cost? Not trying to be nosey here! Just trying to get a picture. Thanks a lot for your help.
Cheers,
Daniel
It depends on every individual and their living style, rent is expensive in Geneva, but not as expensive as London, you could rent a decent two bedroom apartment downtown for 5000 to 8000.
Groceries, expensive in comparison to US, although milk, and dairy products are about the same as US. Fresh fruits and vegetables are expensive
English private school 20K a year.
Clothes, shoes are a little expensive, not good deals like old navy, marshalls, childrens place, but you can always get deals in London, or if you travel to US once a year.
Overall Switzerland is expensive in comparison to US in terms of shampoo, clothes,creams etc.
Given all these factors, you will still save money in comparison to US, because you can use public transportation. Everything is closed after 6 and on Sundays, so you automatically relax at home, and thus end up saving money.
12000 a month for a family of four is sufficient for rent, groceries, vacation about two times a year, and of course those occasional trips to the mountains.
Basically you earn in 2 months what DanielF will earn in a year.
I am really sorry but I fail to understand in what way this statement could be in any way useful to him
I first came to Switzerland as a student and at the time survived on less than 600 Franks a month. Okay this was in the 1990s but even if we assume all prices and costs have doubled (which they haven't) it means 1200 Franks a month can suffice.
During part of that time I had a job that raked in about 1000 a month. I saved much of that up to keep me going during the times I couldn't work (such as when I was learning for exams) but also payed some holidays etc out of it.
I can't help thinking that some people on this forum are tragically out of touch.
Hi
I too am think of moving to Zurich, in fact my partner is on the 4th interview!?
Anyway we are a family of 4 from the UK, with some expenses that we will still need to pay in the UK. We are fairly comfortable in my opinion (not really having to think about what we spend within reason)
The offer we got yesterday was about £8500 per month (for 13 months!?) and from what I am reading, I am seriously worried that this will not be enough for the type of lifestyle we have now. I suppose my fear is that we will end up feeling isolated, and concerned with money issues that we do not currently have. (I am sure we all know what type of pressure that can place on a family)
My questions are:
I will be giving up my job, and will a lack of German skills, I am not sure how easy it will be for me to get another one. Some advise on that would be very greatly received.
Is about CHF3000 for rent enough to get a 3 bed place within an hours commute to Zurich, with own laundry and some outside space?
How much roughly is health insurance for 4 people?
I know one mans opionion on what is comfortable is different to another, but your general views would be very greatly appreciated.
AnnabelD - I would say that GBP 8500 a month is plenty to survive on.
There's plenty of advice on the forum regarding (lack of) german skills and finding work. I would suggest doing an intensive course when you arrive to get the basics. If you are looking arounf Zürich, then chances are that most people will speak english.
CHF should be enough if you are not looking for a place in the city. Having your own laundry room may be more of a challenge. It is pretty standard here to share the launrdy facilities with others in the building. Most have a rota system when you can use it (and for some places this is on a fortnightly basis).
Health insurance costs depend on how much cover you want to get - just basic (which is required by law) or a lot more. Try here http://www.comparis.ch/krankenkassen/default.aspx for more info. Again there's loads of info on the forum regarding this.
I personally have a much more comfortable lifestyle than I did in the UK, and love living here.
Good luck!
Hey guys, thanks a lot for your replies to my questions and for trying to help. My main question is kind of still unanswered tho, if you were able to give me a description of the lifestyle 2500CHF net a month would afford, I would be really grateful, so I could get some idea. I'm basically just researching the trip at this stage, a lot of different options, and if I could get a clear idea of what this would be like I would be really really grateful. Thanks!
daniel
Childcare for two kids (under 4) will be around CHF 220 per day - meaning that you would need to at least earn around CHF 7000 a month just to break even. For older kids, school hours mean that you will need lunch time (1.5 hour break) and after school supervision - costing up to CHF 20 per child per day for lunch and extra for after school. This is ususally based on salary and the top bracket is usually over CHF 120k.
We moved from London and found that in Zug we could get twice as many m2 for the same price. CHF 3000 a month will get you a nice 3 bedroom apartment on the ground floor.
The limit of poverty for a single person to this country, I think it is 2400chf/month. So I think this is the "general" answer to the question
To take my personal situation (I am single) as an example (per month):
1000.- on rent
300.- on health insurance
300-400.- on food
100.- on public transport
That is ~1800.- on essentials then (if I had your salary) I would still have about 700.- to spend or save.
I would say it should be fine but you won't be living in luxury.
BTW You can buy decent clothes at H&M for reasonable prices.