Zurich is located in the north-central German-speaking part of Switzerland, near Lake Zürich. It’s the largest city in Switzerland, with a population of 420 thousand. Of these, almost one-third (32%) don’t hold Swiss citizenship. Zurich is one of the world’s largest financial centers as well as one of the most liveable cities on earth.
IT salaries in Zurich
Software engineer salaries in Zurich are very high. According to Teleport, Zurich ranks 4th for salaries for this job type among 265 cities.
A person working in the information technology sector in Zurich typically earns around CHF 137,000 per year (including housing, transport, and other benefits). The average salaries range from CHF 71,000 to 223,000, according to Salary Explorer.
Here are the average IT salaries in Zurich according to Salary Explorer (CHF per year):
- Android Developer: 133,000
- Angular Developer: 123,000
- Business Intelligence Analyst: 139,000
- Business Intelligence Developer: 150,000
- C# Developer: 153,000
- C++ Developer: 141,000
- Data Analyst: 129,000
- Data Architect: 139,000
- Database Administrator: 138,000
- Front-End Developer: 121,000
- Full-Stack Developer: 145,000
- Game Developer: 126,000
- Information Security Analyst: 160,000
- IT Project Manager: 218,000
- iOS Developer: 153,000
- Java Developer: 149,000
- JavaScript Developer: 136,000
- Network Engineer: 121,000
- PHP Developer: 126,000
- Python Developer: 137,000
- Ruby Developer: 119,000
- Salesforce Developer: 112,000
- Software Architect: 138,000
- Software Engineer: 142,000
- Software QA Engineer: 124,000
- Solutions Architect: 193,000
- System Administrator: 126,000
- Web Developer: 117,000
According to Jobs.ch, the average annual gross salary for software engineers in Zurich is CHF 100,000, including the 13th salary and a bonus:
Source: Jobs.ch
Economy
Zurich is one of the world’s largest financial centers with many banking companies and financial institutions, including Credit Suisse, UBS, Swiss Re, and Zürich Financial Services. In the 2017 Global Financial Centres Index, Zurich was ranked as having the 11th most competitive financial center in the world and second most competitive in Europe after London.
Important economic sectors in Zurich include:
- Banking
- Finance
- FinTech
- Light industry
- MedTech
- Textile industry
- Tourism
Zurich is also one of the major hubs for information and communications technology (ICT) in Europe. This city is home to over 5,000 companies and 50,000 computer specialists.
The largest technology companies present in Zurich include:
- ABB
- AdNovum
- Adobe
- Apple
- Avaloq
- China Telecom
- Disney Research
- ELCA
- Facebook
- Google
- Huawei
- IBM
- Kayak
- Microsoft
- Netcetera
- Noser Group
- Oracle
In addition, ETH Zurich, the leading university in continental Europe, the University of Zurich and several other universities are the innovation drivers in the fields of artificial intelligence (AI), computer vision, data science, robotics, software engineering, virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR), and other sub-sectors.
Software and hardware, microelectronics and telecommunications, embedded software as well as software-based processes are also popular tech sub-sectors in Zurich.
Cost of living
Zurich ranks 4th in Mercer’s Cost of Living ranking 2020, behind only Hong Kong, Ashgabat, and Tokyo.
The average monthly costs in Zurich are about CHF 1,500 for a single person or CHF 5,560 for a four-person family (excluding rent).
Here are examples of the average prices in Zurich (CHF):
- Meal at McDonald’s: 12–15
- Meal at another inexpensive restaurant: 18–35
- Average food basket (milk, bread, eggs, cheese, chicken, apples, potatoes, water, beer): 69
- Monthly fee at a fitness club: 50–150
- Monthly pass: 80–120
- Monthly rent (1 bedroom): 1,200 – 2,500
- Monthly rent (3 bedrooms): 2,000 – 5,000
- Property prices per square meter: 5,000 – 16,000
- Utilities: 100–330 per month
- Internet: 40–80 per month
Although Zurich is among the most expensive places in the world, you can still live there comfortably due to the high salaries.
Travel
Zurich Airport is the largest and busiest in the country. It’s served by more than 60 passenger airlines from around the world. Flight destinations include many European cities, as well as Hong Kong, Istanbul, Kyiv, Moscow, Shenzhen, Singapore, Tel Aviv, Toronto, and many more.
Entertainment
Zurich boasts a plentiful of cultural and architectural attractions. The most popular ones are the Swiss National Museum and Kunsthaus (art museum), Schauspielhaus Zürich (one of the most important theatres in the German-speaking world), expensive shops along Bahnhofstrasse, historic buildings on Münsterhof square, many churches, museums, art galleries, and parks.
Notable annual events held in Zurich include the Zurich Film Festival, the Street Parade (one of the largest techno and dance music festivals in the world), the Kunst Zürich (an international contemporary art fair), and more.