✦ Compare
Lugano vs
Melbourne
Cost-of-living comparison and salary equivalence. Enter your current salary to see what you'd need to earn to live equally well.
Lugano, CH vs Melbourne, AU at a glance — Melbourne, AU is 20% cheaper than Lugano, CH overall. Median 1-bed rent runs about $1,800/mo versus $1,800/mo. Top income tax: 45% vs 40%.
To keep the same standard of living in Melbourne, AU, you'd need
$60,082 / year
Melbourne, AU is 20% cheaper overall
Category breakdown (Melbourne, AU vs Lugano, CH)
- Housing-14%
- Food & groceries-25%
- Transport-13%
- Utilities-11%
- Healthcare-32%
- Goods & services-25%
◎ How Lugano, CH and Melbourne, AU compare
Index vs the US average — the line marks 100. Lower is cheaper.
▤ Full comparison
| Lugano, CH | Melbourne, AU | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | ||
| Overall cost index | 147 | 118 |
| Housing | 160 | 138 |
| Food | 150 | 112 |
| Transport | 115 | 100 |
| Utilities | 122 | 108 |
| Healthcare | 140 | 95 |
| Goods & services | 155 | 116 |
| Housing | ||
| Rent, 1-bed centre | $1,800/mo | $1,800/mo |
| Rent, 1-bed outside | — | $1,350/mo |
| Rent, 3-bed centre | — | $3,400/mo |
| Buy price / m² centre | — | $9,000 |
| Money & purchasing power | ||
| $1,000 goes as far as | $679 | $847 |
| Inexpensive meal | — | $17 |
| Monthly transit pass | — | $110 |
| Taxes | ||
| Income tax (top rate) | 40% | 45% |
| VAT / sales tax | 8.1% | 10% |
| Corporate tax | 15% | 30% |
| Capital gains | 0% | — |
| Economy & salaries | ||
| Avg net salary | $6,000/mo | $3,900/mo |
| Avg annual wage (OECD, PPP) | — | $72,018✓ |
| Minimum wage | — | $2,600/mo |
| GDP per capita | $114,769✓ | $65,130✓ |
| Inflation (annual) | 0.2%✓ | 2.9%✓ |
| Work & digital nomad | ||
| Digital-nomad visa | No | No |
| English proficiency | — | Native |
| Coworking spaces | — | 70 |
| Time zone | — | UTC+10 |
| Quality of life | ||
| Quality of life (overall) | — | 73 |
| Safety index | — | 68 |
| Healthcare index | — | 85 |
| Pollution index | — | 30 |
| Internet speed | — | 90 Mbps |
| Walkability | — | 78 |
| Public transport | — | 80 |
| Family-friendly | — | 74 |
| Tap water | — | Safe to drink |
| Life expectancy | 84 yr✓ | 83 yr✓ |
| LGBTQ+ acceptance | High | High |
| Climate | ||
| January avg | — | +20 °C |
| July avg | — | +10 °C |
| Sunny days / year | — | 180 |
| Rainfall / year | — | 600 mm |
| Connectivity | ||
| Flight to nearest hub | — | 1.5 h |
Taxes & Economy & salaries: Switzerland vs Australia. Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.
✓ = official statistics (OECD (PPP), World Bank 2025, World Bank 2024). Unmarked figures are CostTrek estimates. How we calculate these figures →
Cost of living: Lugano vs Melbourne — in your currency
Converted from USD at approximate rates (2026-09).
Good to know before you move to Lugano
- Currency
- Swiss franc (Fr. CHF)
- Languages
- German, French, Italian
- Power
- J · 230V
- Driving
- Right-hand side
Good to know before you move to Melbourne
Coffee, laneways and a famously liveable city — cheaper than Sydney, with famously changeable weather.
- Currency
- Australian dollar ($ AUD)
- Languages
- English
- Time zone
- UTC+10
- Internet
- 90 Mbps
- English
- Native language
- Safety
- 68/100
- Climate
- ❄ 20°C · ☀ 10°C · 180 sunny days/yr
- Tap water
- Safe to drink
- Power
- I · 230V
- Driving
- Left-hand side
- Popular areas
- Fitzroy · St Kilda · Carlton
Plan your move to Lugano
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsAviasales
- HotelsPlanetofhotels
- Car rentalDiscoverCars
- Airport transferKiwitaxi
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
Sponsored
Plan your move to Melbourne
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsAviasales
- HotelsPlanetofhotels
- Car rentalDiscoverCars
- Airport transferKiwitaxi
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- InsuranceSafetyWing
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
Sponsored
? Frequently asked questions
Moving from Lugano to Melbourne: cheaper or more expensive?
Moving from Lugano to Melbourne, your cost of living will be roughly 20% cheaper. Melbourne’s cost-of-living index is 118 versus 147 for Lugano (US = 100). Use the salary tool above to see the income you’d need to keep the same lifestyle.
Is Lugano cheaper than Melbourne?
Melbourne is about 20% cheaper than Lugano overall — its cost-of-living index is 118 versus 147 for Lugano.
Which is more expensive, Lugano or Melbourne?
Lugano is more expensive than Melbourne. Its cost-of-living index is 147 vs 118 (US = 100) — about 25% higher.
Is rent cheaper in Lugano or Melbourne?
Rent is cheaper in Lugano — about $1,800/month for a one-bedroom in the city centre, vs $1,800 in Melbourne.
How much do you need to earn in Melbourne to live like in Lugano?
To keep the same standard of living, a $75,000 salary in Lugano is worth about $60,082 in Melbourne. Enter your own figure in the calculator above.
Which has lower taxes, Lugano or Melbourne?
Switzerland has the lower top income-tax rate — 40% versus 45% in Australia.
◷ More comparisons from Lugano
How we calculate these figures →
Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.