ZURICH VS GENEVA: Differences Between Both Cities | Cost of Living, Job Market, Expat-Friendliness

Hey guys! in this video we are settling the debate once and for all - ZURICH VS GENEVA. We've lived in both and are weighing in on the pros and cons of both - with help from our instagram audience! Watch through to see the differences in everything from location, to cost of living, to everyday errands, and more!
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Bienvenue & Willkommen! We are Lex & Louis - and together we are The Traveling Swiss. We're an international couple (USA + Switzerland) who have recently moved from NYC to Switzerland. Come travel with us - we'll give you tips and guides, and hopefully have a few laughs along the way. Our goal is to show you that borders are meant to be crossed!
Keep up with us!
→ Instagram: / thetravelingswiss
→ Email: [e-mail]
This channel is a labor of love, if you enjoyed the video please make sure to subscribe!
xx Lex & Louis

[@MFYouTube683]

Very, very good video. I second everything 💯. May I bring up one more thing though: The culture around the Léman is one of a a kind with Montreux, Lausanne and the picturesque smaller towns and villages so close by, you find a density of cultural institutions and events that is unparalleled (I’m thinking about Prix de Lausanne (Coco Chanel is buried here, I often walk from Vidy across the beautiful cemetery all the way along the unparalleled promenade along the beautiful lake to Pully, it’s like going for a holiday at home), Montreux Jazz, Fête des Vignerons, Ballets de Béjart, the museums especially in Geneva, where people watch the sunrise by the lake while musicians play live, to name a unique example of the culture I prefer in Geneva ...that sort of stuff) but Zurich is home to our biggest opera house and a great Ballet company, the Grand Théâtre de Genève is also wonderful but not quite compareable. Zurich overall has more theatres, acting, events and concerts, but Geneva has a flair of cosmopolitan grandeur and elegance that Zurich can’t match, except maybe around Bellevue/ Bürkliplatz. The cultures and people are quite different and I personally love both equally, but recommend spending time in both places if you move here, because the cities are both worth your time, trust me. Zurich has a wonderful predominantly US expat community, I met wonderful people who I am still friends with even though I moved away. Just in case you’re watching this before moving here: Don’t move to beautiful Bern, the wages are low, the taxes are awful and much higher than in the biggest cities, it’s insufferably leftist and anti-business, the Bernese are the least likeable people of this country and everything is quite underground, you will have a hard time making friends, don’t move to shithole Basel either, Lucerne is nice, so are Locarno and Lugano which is also very international. ❤️from🇨🇭

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

Hi Malo! It's Louis! Thank you so much for your comment. You raise a very good point on art and culture. The Léman has lots of events (there is also the famous Paléo Festival;) Zürich, by being the largest city in Switzerland hosts larger concerts with famous names. People in the French part would actually travel to Zürich to attend them. However, in general the "culture per capita" of the Léman region feels indeed higher. Lastly, when comparing the bar and nightlife scenes (hopefully we are allowed to get back there soon...), we think Zürich has more to offer than Geneva, but Lausanne has a lot to offer, because of its large population of university students. Interesting to hear about the other cities too, thank you! Where are you from?!

[@MFYouTube683]

@@TheTravelingSwiss oh man, how embarrassing to forget Paléo 🤦🏼‍♂️. I’m Swiss, but went to an international school in Zurich to complete sixth form, hence the «expat-exposure», they have a number of cultural organisations like ETGZ and ZCC, it was great be part of for me cause the Swiss don’t really have a passion for show business, musicals, Broadway or English theatre and literature. At the same time, now splitting my time between Lausanne and Sète gave me a broader understanding of the culture of the Romandie and made me quite the francophil, as literature, the arts and society in general are much more influenced by France and the French. I love how fast I can get to the coast from Lausanne (or Geneva, rather). From Zurich or Bern its an extra 2 or 3 hours. Also, the Valais region is magnificent and quite close. Great work! I really enjoy watching.

[@VictoriaNamubiru]

@@MFKZbin683 😁😁😁

[@soumadip_skyy_banerjee]

Thanks for the heads-up 🇮🇳❤️🇨🇭

[@KelbyAdamOurLifethroughalens]

The info that you give on both cities is so very informative and something we will definitely keeping mind, should we ever get the chance to visit them. Great stuff guys and we look forward to your future adventures. Keep safe. ONE LOVE

[@nakata1994]

I have been living in Geneva for 9 years now. Having lived in London for 5 year prior to my move, I initially found the energy level and general "vibe" of Geneva a bit dead.. The youth culture was not very visible and the whole city seemed to be dominated by stern-looking bureaucrats. I went to Zurich a few times for work and each time I felt like being back to those London days. But Geneva reveals its charm to you slowly if you are determined to get to know it. Learning French is the key. Even though many services can be provided in English here in Switzerland, if you want to make the most of local events and activities, knowing French makes a huge difference. In conclusion, I love Switzerland! Sometimes I wake up in the morning and feel so grateful like "OMG, can't believe I made my way here!" You guys have great contents. Best of luck to you both.

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

Thank you so much for your comment! My husband is from Geneva and I'm from NYC -- coming from NYC to Geneva at first I was a bit shocked.. everything just felt a bit dead to me. Now that we live in Zurich I look back and appreciate all of the charm that Geneva has to offer - I definitely think we'll up up in Geneva sooner rather than later. I'll keep practicing my french in the meantime! :)

[@taleblamaani6012]

zurich is french name

[@kar6812]

My friend wich city has bigger salary London or Zurich or Geneva .I'm interested for construction jobs

[@Explorcation]

It's great that you've been able to split your time between both cities over the past few months, as they both seem to be so different yet have so much to offer! I love that you have such easy access to the airports in both cities.

[@markus_ch]

Haha! I’m living Zurich as a Swiss and when in comes to recycling, I remember that friends from Geneva years ago where astonished that we recycled paper, glass, metal, etc. here already, while they were still used to throw just everything away like it’s common in the French culture. This has probably changed during the last years, but I think the awareness of recycling and keeping the environment clean is still higher in the German part of Switzerland than in the French part, so I don’t think this point goes to Geneva.

[@VictoriaNamubiru]

😇

[@darkkestrel1]

that was probably a long time ago haha. Having grown up in Geneva (I'm 22 y.o.) we've always recycled in my family. Maybe it is less common than in Zurich? idk haha. And well now at least, if by environment you mean nature, the canton of Geneva has put in a lot of effort to renature the canton and make it more green :)) but that may be a relatively recent thing (like from the passed 15 years or so)

[@TheMapPinners]

There was a lot of great info in this. Haven’t been to either city so will have to rewatch this when we one day plan our trip to Switzerland 🙂 thanks!

[@multipolarworldtoday]

I had a 12 hour layover in Geneve and I followed your suggestions from a previous video and it was perfect, 1) J’deau, 2) St Pierre, Bourge de Four, 3) Les Amures, and 4) Vitronix? . My comments; the water thing was okay but the Niagra Falls is better, 2) St Pierre was awesome but my legs got a workout, 3) Les Amures was by far my favorite activity; I did the mixed cheese fondue w/ meat and white wine, and 4) Vitronix (not sure of spelling) I bought an engraved Swiss Army knife, but had to check in baggage in order to get it back to the states. Thanks for your suggestions and encourage all to follow it. I can’t remember which video it was, but I am sure it’s easy to find

[@LweissTTU]

I have a cousin who lives near Lucerne. I am going to visit her from Texas in August, 2022. Your videos are great!

[@InSearchOfTraveler]

You guys are so cute! Love your videos! Def wanna check out the French cuisine in Geneva

[@ourworldschoolingfamily4463]

Oh this is awesome! Such a great vid 🙌❤️💜

[@IfWeGoTo]

Cool comparison! Thanks for sharing!

[@iwillwander]

Thanks for this guys. Covered a lot of stuff here.

[@rainforestsanctuary-sounds6489]

I’m a dual citizen of USA 🇺🇸 and South Africa 🇿🇦 and know I would love to live in Switzerland 🇨🇭… the natural beauty is superb. Great video

[@LooneyMooneyfuntimes]

HI guys, great review and comparison 👍👍❤️️ The Looney Mooney crew in Australia have subbed to your channel 👋👋🇦🇺🇦🇺

[@SomeplaceOrAnother]

Interesting 🧐 they seem more different then I would have thought

[@StephenandAndie]

Andie's been to Geneva, but not Zurich yet, so this is great info! Either way, we have to get to both cities together.

[@jayimba1594]

Hello! Thank you for this video. I am planning to visit Switzerland for a tour and I would like to know which of the two cities should I start my tour? Is it better to start in Zurich to Geneva? Or Geneva to Zurich? Thank you ☺️

[@SaltyBeaverExplores]

Lots of great information. I am originally from northern Germany but lived at the Swiss border for a year and would often shop in Kreutzlingen. I always thought the Schweitzerdeutsch was like they were trying to spit on me LOL. It is a very different German - a harsh sound.

[@markus_ch]

Ja LOL, der Charme der Norddeutschen halt... Aber während eines Jahres an der Grenze zur Schweiz anscheinend nicht mal gelernt wie man Kreuzlingen und Schweizerdeutsch schreibt.

[@ThisismeLADY]

Great video! Thanks for sharing.😍

[@minifoodies9448]

fantastic sharing I enjoyed watching ur videos 👍 Nice to meet u friend and stay safe

[@Holisticbrit]

Great video and very informative, my only complaint is when you interrupt one another because during a video it’s nice hearing people speak one at a time instead of trying to talk over each other.

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

Ahh you've perfectly capture our issue! (both in filming and real life lol!) We're working on it :)

[@cuocsongdailoan8538]

hello my friend,nice video,thanks for sharing

[@InTheLapOfNature]

blessings for both of u my friend stay safe

[@JNTravels]

Interesting picks🐸

[@FirmandoPangandaran]

Very Nice Video Beautifull Sharing My Friends

[@yanshen1795]

been to both - they are both great :) ... people should visit both - both are great for day trips to the surrounding areas too ... Michael :)

[@fmcgdistribution7324]

tx. great video

[@brockonairs]

Very informative guys :)

[@kirandas6996]

Yeah from Geneva you can go to Carrefour markets , Grandfrais etc. in France. It is cheap but I do feel the quality of thing s in Coop is better.

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

We loved shopping at the Migros in Étrembières! Still Migros quality, but could save quite a bit of $ -- especially if you're purchasing any meat/eggs etc

[@raibishwa]

nice, very informative

[@MrMrsMemories]

Once informative video 👌

[@KoneTravelVlog]

Both cities are great.

[@guzu_p4360]

As an international student (3rd national) with a study visa can you travel round Europe or France without a visa?

[@dsm_796]

I have lived in both cities and they definitely have their own pros and cons. On the cost, while it may seem that Zurich is more expensive you forgot to consider taxes which are much higher in Geneva. However as you mentioned in Geneva you have the opportunity to shop in France which helps reducing costs. In the end I think they are pretty close in terms of cost of living. Another important thing to mention is the weather which is much better in Geneva. The fog in Zurich can be a bit depressing.

[@hianjana]

Very useful video. Thanks a lot guys! Geneva and Zurich are sounding like they are in 2 different countries! Would you be able to recommend any online rentals portals for Geneva? Also, which city do you think has a more pleasant weather? Does it rain a lot in Geneva? Is it windy? I have so many questions! :D

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

If you're looking for a short term rental, AirBNB is your best bet in my opinion! The weather patters are similar in both cities, but Zurich tends to always be 1 or 2 degrees colder, but usually more sun than in Geneva since in Geneva the clouds get trapped between the mountains often

[@lucaleone3863]

High German / Hoch Deutsch it's actually from southern Germany. "High" refers to the mountains

[@cryptopeter1]

Love you both. Peter

[@travelsinsidecambodia]

Great information 🇰🇭

[@swedishguyonyoutube4684]

No offence to you, Alexis, but I feel like it might be easier to actually hear what you're saying if you would slow down a little bit, and maybe let you partner speak a little bit more. If you watch this video, you can clearly see that he's showing he wants to join in without wanting to interrupt you by humming and saying yes without you picking up on that and letting him in to the conversation. That's just one example. (14:20) Also, as linguist and a foreign language teacher, I feel like I have to point out that there's no such thing as a "pure" dialect which makes it "a spoken language". In this case, High German, Lower German, and Swiss German, by dent of being as similar as they are, are dialects of the same language. It's not correct to say that Swiss German is not German. Also, it's not correct to say that "there are no kind of rules" when it comes to dialects in general, nor when it comes to Swiss German.

[@oxymoira]

@3:54 - there are at least 4 x H&M shops in gva i can think of off the top of my head .. apartments are easier to find in zrh coz gva is a cul-de-sac and u can only go north .. LOL .. gva is too "french" IMHO, go to zrh !

[@SceneryFeels]

Missing both places! And, both carry premium price tags lol :)

[@kierstenh9225]

cool

[@felix121984]

Both cities have few shopping opportunities compared to NYC, Hong Kong or London. Even compared to most US metro havevmore.

[@edyscuisine9386]

New friend here sending my full support.

[@Nadelina_kb]

Ok I didn’t know about the garbage and the recycling ! Learning something 🙂. Geneva is more international due to it’s geographical position as well I guess. What languages do you speak other than English ? I don’t know Zurich I hope I can visit some days. Thanks for sharing.

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

Thanks for watching! I speak German at a B2 level - so I can communicate and get around with German pretty well, but Swiss German is a challenge! My husbands first language is French so I'm working on learning that as well!

[@Nadelina_kb]

@@TheTravelingSwiss I could hear a slight French accent from your husband but was not sure. Languages are a like a passeport to freedom 🙂.

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

Do you agree with us? What else would you have added to the list?

[@DavidSmithShow]

Maybe everything😀

[@taleblamaani6012]

zurich is french name

[@DavidSmithShow]

I agree

[@MFYouTube683]

Arts and Culture. I wrote a comment. 😂 Sorry but this is really important to me.

[@dsm_796]

Weather, taxes, child care, traffic, etc. are also important things to consider. I agree with all the points mentioned. I definitely don’t miss the recycling system in ZH. 😅

[@tomaasmonaco]

Hi guys! Anyone know where I can look for an apartment? (website) Thanks!

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

comparis.ch is a great place to start - it aggregates a few different search engines for apartments. We have an apartment hunting video as well if you want to check it out!

[@peettheengineer]

Zurich: no, for integration, you don’t have to learn to speak the dialect, but you should understand it. btw: the dialect is perfectly writable in informal communication and has rules like any other language. There are even books and lessons to learn it. OK, in Zurich, it will be hard to mingle in in a way that nobody will realize that you are an expat. In US nobody realized anymore, that I‘m Swiss, some where believing that I‘m from Kentucky.

[@dylanopowell5884]

naja was soll i sagen? 'was so hatte ich erwatet, Merci les gars c t sympa la video 👍

[@2ndchic862]

Hello. Good videos! Love it. I think I would like to point out, is if you let the native of Suisse speak more 😊 some times you tend to take over no offense.

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

I think I’ve gotten better at that in some of my more recent videos :) I’ve noticed it myself when editing a few times so have actively tried to speak a bit less :)

[@unodoscuatro_8138]

Has anybody any advice on cheap housing in Geneva??

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

I would check a bit outside of the city center - Switzerland is all very well connected via train, so looking a bit outside of the city may only add 15-20 minutes to a commute, but save quite a bit of money.

[@unodoscuatro_8138]

@@TheTravelingSwiss do u have advice on which part or area?

[@kesselbrenner]

It’s amazing that Tel Aviv is more expensive than Geneva.

[@Tom_OB]

and you don‘t speak hochdeutsch in northern part of germany. hochdeutsch is spoken in southern part od germany and niederdeutsch in northern. and if you refer to hochdeutsch as standard german, than it‘s theoreticaly spoken in whole german speaking area, somewhere (much) more common and somewhere (much) less.

[@RichardRietdijk]

*insert "the flag is a big plus" joke here*

[@peettheengineer]

It‘s not faire to do grocery shopping or any kind of shopping in neighbor countries with a Swiss salary just because the goods are cheeper there. You take away money from the Swiss economy and from the Swiss farmers.

[@Tom_OB]

and all dialects, also swiss german dialects, DO have rules and grammar. otherwise it would be impossible to understand each other.

[@user-ic1qb9xf3u]

yeah and the public signs are also written in swiss german. lmao

[@Tom_OB]

@@user-ic1qb9xf3u ?

[@user-ic1qb9xf3u]

@@Tom_OB She says in the video that public signs are written in "Berlin" german

[@Tom_OB]

@@user-ic1qb9xf3u and? what's the link to the rules and grammar of an dialect? and what is "berlin" german?

[@user-ic1qb9xf3u]

@@Tom_OB Nevermind bro

[@lucadellalombardia9055]

Geneva is more expansive!

[@midas1929]

The best thing about Zurich and Geneva are the trains to Locarno

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

😂 😂

[@natashabarnes1609]

LET HIM SPEAK NEXT TIME YOU DOMINATED THE ENTIRE CONVO

[@erikaweber_]

Omg I was just cringing thinking the same thing. He was clearly uncomfortable because she wouldn’t stop speaking!

[@ijeshwardhillon4927]

Why he with her wtf

[@mattr6206]

Some good information, however, she definitely dominated the conversation. The guy is from Switzerland, I would have valued his perspective more than a New Yorker.

[@emiriebois2428]

When you come from a poor country you are an immigrant whereas but an expat if you come from developed country.

[@TheTravelingSwiss]

*** when you plan on moving permanently you are an immigrant, when you relocate temporarily you are an expat

[@emiriebois2428]

@@TheTravelingSwiss . You are right , but in the same situation , many people from developed countries do not consider themselves to be immigrants but expats . Like the retired Americans living in Mexico !

[@12chachachannel]

Why do you put an American to tell about life in Switzerland ?

[@bryancardoso4560]

To have different kinds of opinions coming from different points of view? I see no problem at all...

[@aliokms]

Geneva could be one of the worst european city, not because of city but because of people and management. Zurich is waaay better. French mentality vs German mentality, that alone makes Zurich win.

[@joaovictorbraga8157]

Why?

[@zied6456]

If your comment reflects the so called German mentality I prefer to avoid it and would visit the French part.

[@Radee1989]

I don’t respect Swiss.

[@lemaxx2638]

Why??

[@unodoscuatro_8138]

How racist....you should respect every human

[@Radee1989]

@@unodoscuatro_8138 not for rude people

[@unodoscuatro_8138]

@@Radee1989 as if every Swiss was rude?? What the hell

[@keithreynolds6444]

She sure talks a lot