Residents of central Switzerland enjoy highest purchasing power
The residents of low-tax regions in central Switzerland enjoy the highest purchasing power in Switzerland, a new survey has revealed.
According to the GfK study published on Tuesday, the residents of Höfe district – Freienbach, Feusisberg and Wollerau – in canton Schwyz have the highest purchasing power in Switzerland: on average €87,853 (CHF103,206) per inhabitant in 2018.
They are followed by the residents of Meilen on the Zurich Gold Coast, with €61,431 per inhabitant, and canton Zug (€60,003).
In French-speaking Switzerland, the Vaud districts of Nyon (€47,298) and Lavaux-Oron (€46,878) are ranked eighth and ninth, respectively.
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In terms of cantons, Zug is ranked ahead of Schwyz , followed by Nidwalden, Zurich and Geneva. Vaud came ninth, while Jura was in last place with an average of €32,992 per inhabitant.
The Swiss average purchasing power was €40,456 per inhabitant, GfK said. This is almost twice as much as in neighbouring Austria (€23,282) and Germany (€22,992). In recent years, only Liechtenstein had higher purchasing power figures than Switzerland.
GfK defines purchasing power as a measure of the population’s disposable net income, including government subsidies such as pension payments, unemployment assistance and child benefit. However, living expenses, insurance or rent are not taken into account.
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