i finally got around to looking at my finances one year on and discovered that, i'm basically around 1500CHFs poorer here than i was in the UK. is anyone else in the same position, or did you all get massive payrises that covered the increased cost of living?

EDIT: as in having 1500chf less each month as compared to the UK, a total of 18,000chf poorer each year.

im about 10k richer...but then I didnt work yet last year.

Now that I am working I do feel im losing more than I am making......

It's taken us 2 years to see the light at the end of the tunnel...and we've quadrupled our turnover and still run out of cash at the end of the month...that's what having a family of 5 does....

I am much, much poorer than I was when I lived in England. Not only is my salary worse than it would have been had I stayed in my old job, but all my expenses are higher than they used to be, not least having to pay more than twice as much for my rent as I paid for the mortgage on my old house.

But it's worth it for the view out of the train window as I commute to work.

... sometimes.

Well I sure hope the love of your life and the reason for the sparkle in your eye isn't offended by this.
You're richer by far, DB, you're richer by far.

Yup. But money ain't everything. Just almost everything....haha

Very true.

But I can take her somewhere where I'll have more money, too, then we'll both be happier.

... possibly.

Yep. Poorer. I spend all my money on food, eating in and out and so my costs have doubled.

Poorer. But that's because I own a flat in London whereas here I have to pay rent/bills (and maintain my London place). Plus the salary is similar to what I'd earn in the UK if I was to do the same job.

However, I'm not here for the money - I'm here for the experience. I earn enough to cover what I need and enjoy the fact that differing costs here make me live my life differently.

Absolutely not.

Before I came, my salary barely covered my costs, but i had to rent out rooms in my house to afford all the fun stuff.

Here, my flat costs 3 times as much, and is half the size of my house in Scotland, but I can pay both on my swiss salary, and still save up a decent amount each month.

But in all fairness, by going to Switzerland, I finally got the step up the career ladder, that seemed impossible in Scotland, where I only got offered jobs in call centers.

Doc.

My Husband and I have been debating on moving to London and wondering if you are really better off here with the lower taxes and all...??? The pay is a bit less in London for our jobs but is it really cheaper on a daily everyday needes bases in London? The flats there seem to be the same if not more or am I looking in the wrong areas? Soo enlighten me on what you feel is a more comfortable life. We are dying to here from first hand experiences.

yes..we had couple of 'discoveries' like that..now we stopped looking at it and worrying about it...

I have to say I think I'm much better off here that I was living in London.

I spent 6 years here in Switzerland, moved back to London for a year and have now in back in Switzerland for a year, and that year going back home was brutal! If I hadn't have taken Swiss savings back with me, I'd not have survived.

In the UK I was taxed beyond belief. So not only did I make less, a larger proportion was taken from me before I'd even seen it!

Here I find salaries higher and taxes to be a lot lower. Yes you need to look into your own health insurance, which you don't do in England having the NHS (even additional private health cover isn't a great deal extra.) But if you are in decent health you can find something pretty cheap on Comparis. So I think here I see a larger proportion of a larger salary at the end of the month.

Fair point, rent is a little more, but if you compare it to the South East of England it's not a great deal more, and I find the quality of housing here to be of a much higher standard.

In Switzerland, the rest of my costs I can at least in my control. Going out every night, yes that will cost an arm and a leg, but I don't need to do it. And because of that I feel there is a far greater potential to save than anywhere else.

Add to that the general quality of life here. How often would you eat a sandwich at your desk for lunch in London, compared to taking a walk by the lake in Zurich to find a sit down meal for an hour. In England my friends spend the weekends sat in pubs. Yes I can do that here, but there are so many more options with lakes and mountains to explore.

I don't have a family to support, which may be part of the reason I think things are so rosy here, but I really think that there is little to complain about here.

No, turns out I am poorer here, the job did not bloom as I had hoped and now instead of the travel job I signed up for I spend my time rotting in a cubicle doing the fugging companies flugging christmas cards. I have a big boss just short of clinging onto sanity, a sub-boss who is complete choleric moron and now I have a 25 year old sub-sub-boss, a nice guy and I like him a lot but he makes me want to pat him on the head and go "there, there"
Slammer had just about flucking had it. It is not a Swiss thing but a company thing.
Sod it now I am going to sit in a dark corner rocking back and forth mumbling to myself.

It's terrible. I used to light my cigars with $100 bills. Now I'm down to lighting them with CHF20- notes...

I'm one step from the breadline, me....

Thanks a million for the advice! We are trying to make up our minds before having a baby next year but for now looks like we might stay even with no parental leave in Switzerland...crazy..but I should be use to that being I am from the US but my German husband thinks it is insane. Thanks again it is very helpful to have someone who has has done the back and forth thing

The way things are going you may have to switch to tenners.

Same same, just that my apartment is better, the fridge looks beter, and the views are better. Add that to the less stressful lifestyle, better views (landscape and legs) , better health care, easier commute, better nightlife and I can't even begin to think about going back... I used to love Essex, but Zurich has my heart and head now...

I ported my Swiss unemployment to the UK, so comparing like for like, I've found living in the UK is much cheaper for me.

We pay double the rent we paid in San Francisco but we've managed to save quite a bit since we've been here. The trick is, we don't buy anything but groceries. Every time I think I want something and go shopping for it, I say to myself, "There is no way I'm paying that unreasonable price, it's twice what it costs in the rest of the world!!" and then I don't buy it.