Vicinus

Basel vs Uster

Uster leaves you CHF 1’259 more per year than Basel (CHF 105 a month).Per year, for the household and income above; median insurer; average rent for 2 rooms (single), 3 rooms (couple) or 4 rooms (family). Excludes commute costs. The better value in each row is highlighted.Hints, not a verdict; they don't change money left or the order. Rent > ⅓ income: 12 × the average net rent for your flat size is more than a third of your gross household income. Many landlords and agencies expect rent to stay within about a third of income; they usually count rent with service charges, which this figure leaves out, so the real share is higher. Vacancy < 0.5%: fewer than 1 in 200 dwellings stood empty and on offer on 1 June 2026 (BFS). The federal housing office sees the market in balance at about 1.5% and tight below 1%; below 0.5% flats are very hard to find. In small communes a few flats change the rate a lot.Source: Federal Tax Administration (FTA/ESTV), tax burden statistics 2026; reference date tax year 2026.Source: Federal Tax Administration (FTA/ESTV), tax multipliers 2026; reference date tax year 2026.Source: Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), health insurance premiums 2027; reference date 2027 premiums (published Sept 2026).Source: Federal Statistical Office (FSO/BFS), Structural Survey 2023; reference date 2023 (Structural Survey).Source: Alliance SwissPass, tariffs T650, T654, T603; reference date T650 prices valid from 2023-12-10 (edition 2026-06-01); GA CHF 3995 (T654 edition 2026-06-01).All sources →

Left per yearCHF 63’469CHF 5’289 a monthCHF 64’728CHF 5’394 a month
Income taxCHF 14’65914.7%
commune multiplier 50%
canton 50%
CHF 11’51711.5%
commune multiplier 112%
canton 95%
Health insuranceCHF 8’192CHF 6’823
Rent (2 rooms)CHF 13’680estimateCHF 16’932estimate
Income tax at other incomes
CHF 50’000CHF 3’889CHF 3’154
CHF 150’000CHF 27’401CHF 23’309
CHF 250’000CHF 57’068CHF 54’693
People and place
Residents180’09737’031
Language regionGermanGerman
Foreign nationals40.5%25.4%
Aged 65+18.9%18.8%
Area23.86 km²28.49 km²
12

Living hereAverages over where people live in each commune; noise, runoff and fibre as a share of residents. For sunshine, noise, fibre, electricity and travel times the better value is highlighted (for a price range, its middle); runoff, the vacancy rate and the counts are neutral. Counts from OpenStreetMap may be incomplete.All sources →

Sunshine / year1’780 h1’730 h
Winter sun, Nov–Feb (fog indicator)290 h260 h
Road noise > 55 dB(A)23%24%
Rail noise > 55 dB(A)0.4%3%
Surface runoff > 10 cm13%10%
Fibre to the building≈ 93%≈ 85%
Electricity excl. VAT, 5-room flat33.4 Rp./kWh25.7 Rp./kWh
Vacancy rate0.77%1.41%
Getting around
Zürich Airport (ZRH)1 h 3145 min
Geneva Airport (GVA)3 h 303 h 58
Basel-Mulhouse (BSL), via bus 5020 min2 h 00
International school0 min31 min
In the commune
Supermarkets8620
Pharmacies624
Doctors' practices4846
Schools5928
Childcare, kindergartens6057
Train stations42
Sources (21)
  1. Source: Federal Tax Administration (FTA/ESTV), tax burden statistics 2026. Tax burden in the communes, tax year 2026; reference date tax year 2026; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  2. Source: Federal Tax Administration (FTA/ESTV), tax multipliers 2026. Tax multipliers (income tax), tax year 2026; reference date tax year 2026; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  3. Source: Federal Tax Administration (FTA/ESTV), source-tax tariffs 2026 of the cantons. Source-tax tariffs 2026 (wages), all cantons; reference date tariffs valid from 1 January 2026; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  4. Source: Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), health insurance premiums 2027. Health insurance premiums 2027 (mandatory basic insurance); reference date 2027 premiums (published Sept 2026); downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  5. Source: Federal Statistical Office (FSO/BFS), Structural Survey 2023. Average rent by number of rooms (Structural Survey 2023); reference date 2023 (Structural Survey); downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  6. Source: Federal Statistical Office (FSO/BFS), STATPOP 2025. Permanent resident population (STATPOP) 2025; reference date 2025-12-31; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  7. © swisstopo. swissBOUNDARIES3D (swissboundaries3d_2026-01); reference date 2026-01-01; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  8. Timetable: opentransportdata.swiss; walking network © OpenStreetMap contributors. Public transport commute to job hubs (computed); reference date timetable fahrplan-2026-gtfs2020, 2026-11-10, 2026-11-17, 2026-11-24 07:00–08:30; downloaded 2026-11-02. Licence.
  9. Source: Alliance SwissPass, tariffs T650, T654, T603. Tariffs T650 (route passes) and T654 (GA), editions 2026; reference date T650 prices valid from 2023-12-10 (edition 2026-06-01); GA CHF 3995 (T654 edition 2026-06-01); downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  10. Source: Federal Statistical Office (FSO/BFS), language regions. Language regions (Structural Survey 2016–2020); reference date 2016–2020; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  11. Source: MeteoSwiss. Sunshine duration, climate normals 1991–2020 (spatial analysis); reference date 1991–2020; downloaded 2026-11-03. Licence.
  12. Source: Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN/BAFU), sonBASE. Road and rail noise by day, sonBASE (model 2021); reference date 2021; downloaded 2026-11-03. Licence.
  13. Source: FOEN/BAFU, cantonal building insurers (VKG), Swiss Insurance Association (SVV), surface runoff hazard map. Surface runoff hazard map (2018); reference date 2018-05-22; downloaded 2026-11-03. Licence.
  14. Source: Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM/BAKOM), broadband atlas. Broadband atlas: fibre connections FTTB/FTTH (2026); reference date 2026-04-30; downloaded 2026-11-03. Licence.
  15. Source: Federal Electricity Commission (ElCom), electricity tariffs 2027. Electricity tariffs 2027, consumption profile H4; reference date 2027-01-01; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  16. Source: Federal Statistical Office (FSO/BFS), dwelling vacancy survey 2026. Dwelling vacancy survey 2026; reference date 2026-06-01; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  17. Source: Federal Statistical Office (FSO/BFS), STATPOP 2025. Population and households statistics (STATPOP) 2025, hectare data; reference date 2025-12-31; downloaded 2026-11-03. Licence.
  18. Timetable: opentransportdata.swiss; walking network © OpenStreetMap contributors. Public transport to the airports (computed); reference date timetable fahrplan-2026-gtfs2020, 2026-11-10, 2026-11-17, 2026-11-24 07:00–08:30; downloaded 2026-11-02. Licence.
  19. Schools' own websites; timetable: opentransportdata.swiss. International schools (hand-curated list) and public transport to the nearest; reference date 2026-11-04; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  20. © OpenStreetMap contributors. OpenStreetMap, Switzerland extract (2026-11-03); reference date 2026-11-03; downloaded 2026-11-04. Licence.
  21. Timetable: opentransportdata.swiss. Swiss public transport timetable (fahrplan-2026-gtfs2020), stations served by trains; reference date 2026-11-10; downloaded 2026-11-02. Licence.