CITY / CITYVerified city comparison
GenevavsLisbon.
Lisbon is stronger on 4 of 8 headline facts; Geneva on 3. Cost of living (single, excl. rent): Geneva $2,028/mo, Lisbon $1,166/mo. Freelancer tax burden: Geneva 27.8%, Lisbon 30%. Climate comfort: Geneva 7/12 mo, Lisbon 10/12 mo.
VerifiedUpdated
14 compared criteria · 30 sources · country-level facts are clearly inherited
ch / pt · SettleMetric
01
The key differences
The key numbers head-to-head — the stronger side is marked. The overall score stays decoration; what matters is which facts fit you.
Headline result
Lisbon leads on 4 of 8
Geneva
3
Lisbon
4
01Cost of living (single, excl. rent)
Geneva
$2,028/mo
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2023
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Basket built from the 2023 Swiss household budget survey, per household per month in CHF: food and non-alcoholic drinks 637.76 + restaurants and cafés 427.20 (COICOP 531, excluding the 131.28 spent on accommodation) + service charges and energy of the main residence 271.46 (5712 + 5713, so the utilities without the 1,081.64 of net rent) + household goods and running the home 201.16 + clothing and footwear 160.60 + transport 743.53 + communications 161.81 + recreation, entertainment and culture 488.23 + other goods and services 319.26 = 3,411.01. Divided by the survey's own mean household size of 2.07 persons = CHF 1,647.83 per person per month, converted at 1 CHF = 1.2306 USD (ECB rates of 2026-08-13) = $2,028. Excluded: rent, alcohol and tobacco, out-of-pocket health spending, insurance premiums, taxes and social contributions.
- Notes
- Two things to hold against this figure. It is a PER-CAPITA share of average household spending, not a measured single-person budget, and a person living alone carries utilities, communications and household costs that a two-person household splits — so a real single in Zurich or Geneva will spend more than this. And it is 2023 data, the latest the survey publishes, with no inflation uplift applied. Health insurance is deliberately outside the basket even though it is compulsory, because it is carried separately by healthcare-private-cost and by the tax burden; add roughly $650/month for it if you want the all-in figure.
Lisbonstronger
$1,166/mo
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jun 30, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- INE 2022/2023 single-person (<65) household average spending €18,121/year = €1,510/month (incl. housing); CPI-uplifted to mid-2026 (×≈1.072 over 2024–2026 HICP) → €1,618/month; the rent/imputed-rent portion of the COICOP-2018 housing division (41.7% of the basket) removed while keeping utilities, then summed by category and converted at 1.1399 USD/EUR (ECB 2026-07-02) → ≈ $1,166/month excluding rent. Cross-checked against Eurostat comparative price level for household consumption (Portugal 2024 = 85.0, EU27=100 — ~15% below the EU average).
- Notes
- National average; Lisbon runs higher. Derived by summing the itemized cost-breakdown categories; see cost-breakdown for the split.
02Freelancer tax burden
Genevastronger
27.8%
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Scheme ch-einzelfirma-zurich at €60,000 revenue with 10% expenses, converted at the 2026-08-13 ECB rate (1 EUR = 0.9373 CHF) to CHF 56,238 revenue and CHF 50,614 profit. Levies: family-allowance contribution CHF 519 + AHV/IV/EO CHF 3,927 (7.840%, the degressive band that applies below CHF 60,500) + direct federal tax CHF 300 + compulsory KVG health insurance CHF 7,678 + Zurich cantonal and communal tax CHF 3,184 = CHF 15,608 of CHF 56,238 = 27.75%.
- Notes
- TWO NUMBERS HIDE INSIDE THIS ONE. Swiss income tax at this level is very light — federal tax is CHF 300 on a CHF 50,600 profit — and social contributions are only 7.8% here, because the AHV scale is degressive below CHF 60,500 and the self-employed pay no unemployment or occupational-pension contribution. Nearly half the burden is the compulsory health premium, a flat CHF 7,678 that does not scale with income at all. That makes the Swiss figure unusually sensitive to the profile: at CHF 150,000 of revenue the same scheme comes out at 27.5%, LOWER than at CHF 80,000 (30.6%). It is also a Zurich number: the cantonal and communal share is set by the commune, and other Swiss communes would move this by several points.
Lisbon
30%
SettleMetric tax engine over official 2026 rules (Autoridade Tributária + Segurança Social)
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Best eligible scheme pt-ifici-20 (IFICI 20% flat, NHR successor) at €60,000 revenue: social security 21.4%×70%×60,000 = €8,988; category-B simplified taxable income 0.75×60,000 = €45,000; IFICI IRS 20%×45,000 = €9,000; total €17,988 → 29.98% ≈ 30.0%. IFICI requires being a new resident (not resident in Portugal in the prior 5 years) in an eligible activity (IT/ICT qualifies) — realistic for an incoming remote worker. Without IFICI the same profile under the simplified 0.75 regime (progressive IRS) is ~34.4%.
03Homicide rate
Genevastronger
0.5/100k
Eurostat — police-recorded intentional homicide (crim_off_cat, ICCS0101, unit P_HTHAB)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- 0.50 per 100,000 in 2024, at the very bottom of the European range and stable: the series has moved between 0.48 and 0.71 every year since 2008 with no trend.
Lisbon
0.68/100k
Eurostat — police-recorded intentional homicide (ICCS 0101)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Police-recorded intentional homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, 2024 (Eurostat crim_off_cat). Portugal has trended down since 2013 (1.37) to 0.68 in 2024 — among the lowest in the EU.
04Climate comfort
Geneva
7/12 mo
NOAA/WMO Climate Normals 1991–2020 — station GENEVE / COINTRIN (WMO 06700, 411 m)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2020
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Months whose 1991–2020 normals have a mean daily maximum between 15 °C and 28 °C and under 150 mm of precipitation: Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct. Computed from the climate-normals stored alongside.
Lisbonstronger
10/12 mo
SettleMetric computation over climate-normals (IPMA Lisboa/Instituto Geofísico 1991-2020)
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2020
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Months with mean daily max 15–28°C and precipitation < 150mm: Jan (15.1°C, 103.8mm), Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Sep, Oct, Nov (18.1°C, 133.9mm), Dec = 10. Only Jul (TX 28.2°C) and Aug (TX 28.8°C) miss, exceeding the 28°C max cap; no month exceeds the 150mm precipitation cap.
05Internet speed
Genevastronger
89 Mbps
M-Lab NDT country aggregates for Switzerland
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2023
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- Median of the 2023 daily country medians over 343 days and 406,505 tests; monthly medians ran 77.8–102.1 Mbps. 2023 is still the latest full year M-Lab's public stats API carries for Switzerland — the 2024 file stops on 26 March. M-Lab NDT is single-stream and reads far below Ookla-style figures, so compare it only with other countries in this criterion.
Lisbon
40 Mbps
M-Lab NDT country aggregates for Portugal
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- M-Lab NDT daily country medians for Portugal cluster at ≈ 39–42 Mbps (2024). Recorded as 40 Mbps. WebFetch truncates the JSON to ~mid-January, so the full-year median should be re-aggregated from the M-Lab BigQuery dataset next cycle.
- Notes
- M-Lab NDT is single-stream and reads well below Ookla-style figures (Portuguese fibre retail speeds are far higher) — comparable only within this criterion. Value should be re-verified against the full 2024/2025 M-Lab aggregate.
06English proficiency
Geneva
High
EF EPI 2025 — Switzerland (rank 30/123, score 564, High band)
Research
- Data as of
- Nov 1, 2025
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- Our band, matching EF's own: 564 points, 30th of 123 countries and up 14 points on the previous edition. Do not read Switzerland as a Nordic-style English country — administration, healthcare and housing run in the local official language, which is German in Zurich and French in Geneva, and the two cities differ sharply in EF's own city scores (Zurich 621, Geneva 555). English gets a professional a long way inside international employers and almost nowhere inside a cantonal office.
Lisbonstronger
Very high
EF EPI 2025 — Portugal rank 6/123, score 612 (Very High band)
Research
- Data as of
- Nov 1, 2025
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Own band informed by EF EPI (attribution: EF Education First). Portugal ranks 6th of 123 countries (score 612, 'Very High'). English is broadly workable in cities, tourism, tech and services; less consistent in local government/administration.
07Private healthcare cost
Geneva
$8,437/yr
Official source
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Median of the 1,032 approved 2026 premiums across 34 insurers for an adult (age class 26+) on the standard model with free choice of doctor, the lowest CHF 300 franchise and accident cover included: CHF 571.35/month = CHF 6,856/year = $8,437 at 1 CHF = 1.2306 USD (ECB rates of 2026-08-13). Not a sample of three quotes — Switzerland approves and publishes every premium, so this is the whole population of them.
- Notes
- Switzerland is the one country in this dataset where the 'private insurance' figure is not optional: KVG/LAMal basic cover is a legal duty for every resident, so this number is a bill, not a choice, and it is already counted inside the freelancer tax burden. It buys more than the criterion asks for — there is no benefit ceiling at all, where the criterion assumes ~$100k. It is also the maximum-price configuration: the official enrolment-weighted average premium actually paid by adults in 2026 is CHF 465.30/month ($6,873/year) because most people take a restricted-choice model and a higher franchise, and the cheapest standard-model quote in the country is CHF 70/month lower than the median. City medians on the same basis: Zurich CHF 639.80/month, Bern CHF 681.50, Geneva CHF 752.20 — Geneva costs 18% more than Zurich for the same legal cover.
Lisbonstronger
$650/yr
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jul 4, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Comprehensive private plans that include inpatient/hospital cover (outpatient + hospitalization) for a healthy 35-year-old run ≈ €35–60/month across the main Portuguese insurers (Médis, Multicare, AdvanceCare/AdvanceCare-network, Allianz, Generali Tranquilidade). Midpoint ≈ €47.5/month ≈ €570/year ≈ $650 at 1.1399 USD/EUR (range ≈ $547–$752). Premiums are quoted on request, so this is a curated market midpoint, not a public engine quote.
- Notes
- Residents are covered by the public SNS; private insurance is optional/supplementary. Cheaper outpatient-only plans start ≈ €10–20/month but exclude hospitalization — this figure is the with-inpatient comprehensive tier, chosen for cross-country comparability. Insurers repriced ~+10% for 2026.
08Air quality (PM2.5)
Geneva
no verified data
Lisbon
7.6 µg/m³
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Aug 28, 2026
- Method
- Row Lisboa Greater City/PRT, year 2024, of the WHO Ambient Air Quality Database v8.0 (2026), read from the published spreadsheet on 2026-08-28: pm25_concentration = 7.604 µg/m³ at 84% temporal coverage over 17 stations (eleven urban background, four urban traffic, one urban industrial and one suburban industrial), reference "European Environmental Agency", WHO footprint population 1,872,036. Reference year 2024 — the latest year this database carries a full-year PM2.5 figure for this city, and the year already used by the other European cities in this dataset. Identity checked against the row's own station centroid, which lies 2.6 km from this city's recorded coordinates — the file contains near-miss names such as "Playa Del Ingles/ESP" and "Porto Empedocle/ITA", so the check is not a formality.
- Notes
- Two caveats. Coverage is 84%, below the EU's 90% data-quality objective, so the year is not quality-assured to the standard the other Portuguese figure here meets — but 2023, at 96% coverage, reads 7.26 µg/m³, within 0.35 of this value, so the sub-threshold year is not distorting anything. And the row is the Urban Audit "greater city": WHO gives its population as 1,872,036 against the 658,236 municipal figure recorded on this page, so it covers Greater Lisbon across 17 stations, not the municipality alone. Preceding years in the same series: 2021 8.50 (89%), 2022 7.36 (95%), 2023 7.26 (96%).
02
Which city fits your plan?
Each lens weighs only the facts that matter to that plan, and names the side it favours.
Remote IT / freelancer
Contract or freelance in tech, billing clients abroad.
Geneva fits better — 3 of 5
01Freelancer tax burden
Genevastronger
27.8%
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Scheme ch-einzelfirma-zurich at €60,000 revenue with 10% expenses, converted at the 2026-08-13 ECB rate (1 EUR = 0.9373 CHF) to CHF 56,238 revenue and CHF 50,614 profit. Levies: family-allowance contribution CHF 519 + AHV/IV/EO CHF 3,927 (7.840%, the degressive band that applies below CHF 60,500) + direct federal tax CHF 300 + compulsory KVG health insurance CHF 7,678 + Zurich cantonal and communal tax CHF 3,184 = CHF 15,608 of CHF 56,238 = 27.75%.
- Notes
- TWO NUMBERS HIDE INSIDE THIS ONE. Swiss income tax at this level is very light — federal tax is CHF 300 on a CHF 50,600 profit — and social contributions are only 7.8% here, because the AHV scale is degressive below CHF 60,500 and the self-employed pay no unemployment or occupational-pension contribution. Nearly half the burden is the compulsory health premium, a flat CHF 7,678 that does not scale with income at all. That makes the Swiss figure unusually sensitive to the profile: at CHF 150,000 of revenue the same scheme comes out at 27.5%, LOWER than at CHF 80,000 (30.6%). It is also a Zurich number: the cantonal and communal share is set by the commune, and other Swiss communes would move this by several points.
Lisbon
30%
SettleMetric tax engine over official 2026 rules (Autoridade Tributária + Segurança Social)
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Best eligible scheme pt-ifici-20 (IFICI 20% flat, NHR successor) at €60,000 revenue: social security 21.4%×70%×60,000 = €8,988; category-B simplified taxable income 0.75×60,000 = €45,000; IFICI IRS 20%×45,000 = €9,000; total €17,988 → 29.98% ≈ 30.0%. IFICI requires being a new resident (not resident in Portugal in the prior 5 years) in an eligible activity (IT/ICT qualifies) — realistic for an incoming remote worker. Without IFICI the same profile under the simplified 0.75 regime (progressive IRS) is ~34.4%.
02Internet speed
Genevastronger
89 Mbps
M-Lab NDT country aggregates for Switzerland
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2023
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- Median of the 2023 daily country medians over 343 days and 406,505 tests; monthly medians ran 77.8–102.1 Mbps. 2023 is still the latest full year M-Lab's public stats API carries for Switzerland — the 2024 file stops on 26 March. M-Lab NDT is single-stream and reads far below Ookla-style figures, so compare it only with other countries in this criterion.
Lisbon
40 Mbps
M-Lab NDT country aggregates for Portugal
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- M-Lab NDT daily country medians for Portugal cluster at ≈ 39–42 Mbps (2024). Recorded as 40 Mbps. WebFetch truncates the JSON to ~mid-January, so the full-year median should be re-aggregated from the M-Lab BigQuery dataset next cycle.
- Notes
- M-Lab NDT is single-stream and reads well below Ookla-style figures (Portuguese fibre retail speeds are far higher) — comparable only within this criterion. Value should be re-verified against the full 2024/2025 M-Lab aggregate.
03English proficiency
Geneva
High
EF EPI 2025 — Switzerland (rank 30/123, score 564, High band)
Research
- Data as of
- Nov 1, 2025
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- Our band, matching EF's own: 564 points, 30th of 123 countries and up 14 points on the previous edition. Do not read Switzerland as a Nordic-style English country — administration, healthcare and housing run in the local official language, which is German in Zurich and French in Geneva, and the two cities differ sharply in EF's own city scores (Zurich 621, Geneva 555). English gets a professional a long way inside international employers and almost nowhere inside a cantonal office.
Lisbonstronger
Very high
EF EPI 2025 — Portugal rank 6/123, score 612 (Very High band)
Research
- Data as of
- Nov 1, 2025
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Own band informed by EF EPI (attribution: EF Education First). Portugal ranks 6th of 123 countries (score 612, 'Very High'). English is broadly workable in cities, tourism, tech and services; less consistent in local government/administration.
04Cost of living (single, excl. rent)
Geneva
$2,028/mo
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2023
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Basket built from the 2023 Swiss household budget survey, per household per month in CHF: food and non-alcoholic drinks 637.76 + restaurants and cafés 427.20 (COICOP 531, excluding the 131.28 spent on accommodation) + service charges and energy of the main residence 271.46 (5712 + 5713, so the utilities without the 1,081.64 of net rent) + household goods and running the home 201.16 + clothing and footwear 160.60 + transport 743.53 + communications 161.81 + recreation, entertainment and culture 488.23 + other goods and services 319.26 = 3,411.01. Divided by the survey's own mean household size of 2.07 persons = CHF 1,647.83 per person per month, converted at 1 CHF = 1.2306 USD (ECB rates of 2026-08-13) = $2,028. Excluded: rent, alcohol and tobacco, out-of-pocket health spending, insurance premiums, taxes and social contributions.
- Notes
- Two things to hold against this figure. It is a PER-CAPITA share of average household spending, not a measured single-person budget, and a person living alone carries utilities, communications and household costs that a two-person household splits — so a real single in Zurich or Geneva will spend more than this. And it is 2023 data, the latest the survey publishes, with no inflation uplift applied. Health insurance is deliberately outside the basket even though it is compulsory, because it is carried separately by healthcare-private-cost and by the tax burden; add roughly $650/month for it if you want the all-in figure.
Lisbonstronger
$1,166/mo
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jun 30, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- INE 2022/2023 single-person (<65) household average spending €18,121/year = €1,510/month (incl. housing); CPI-uplifted to mid-2026 (×≈1.072 over 2024–2026 HICP) → €1,618/month; the rent/imputed-rent portion of the COICOP-2018 housing division (41.7% of the basket) removed while keeping utilities, then summed by category and converted at 1.1399 USD/EUR (ECB 2026-07-02) → ≈ $1,166/month excluding rent. Cross-checked against Eurostat comparative price level for household consumption (Portugal 2024 = 85.0, EU27=100 — ~15% below the EU average).
- Notes
- National average; Lisbon runs higher. Derived by summing the itemized cost-breakdown categories; see cost-breakdown for the split.
05Domestic delivery quality
Genevastronger
Excellent
Die Schweizerische Post — Finanzbericht 2024 (Zugangspunkte) und My Post 24
Official source
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Sep 9, 2026
- Method
- Inputs: A-Post priority mail must arrive on the working day after posting, everywhere in the country; Swiss Post reports over 5,000 access points in its 2024 financial report, of which about 2,000 are staffed, plus 770 Postomaten, 563 drop-off and collection points in retailers such as Migros, and 14,077 letter boxes; tracking is standard on parcels.
- Notes
- The one part of the definition Switzerland does not meet on its own terms is the parcel-locker network: 303 My Post 24 terminals for nine million people is thin next to the locker-first markets in this dataset, where the count runs into five figures. What Switzerland has instead is an unusually dense network of STAFFED counters and retail collection points, which does the same job with different opening hours. Rated excellent on speed, coverage and tracking, with that caveat visible rather than averaged away.
Lisbon
Good
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2025
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- National operator CTT offers next-day ('Expresso Para Amanhã') and 2-day express nationwide, with the Collectt pickup network (CTT shops + Payshop agents + Locky 24/7 parcel lockers) and real-time tracking. Private carriers DPD, GLS, DHL, UPS, Chronopost and Seur operate nationwide. Rated 'good' — 1–3 day delivery is the norm and lockers exist in cities, but locker density and universal next-day are below the best-in-class (e.g. Poland's InPost).
Family
Relocating with a partner and school-age children.
Lisbon fits better — 2 of 5
01International schools
Geneva
no verified data
Lisbon
11
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jul 4, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Curated count of internationally-accredited schools in the Lisbon metro (Lisboa, Cascais, Sintra, Oeiras). Directly verified against their accreditor networks: Lycée Français Charles Lepierre (AEFE directly-managed establishment, aefe.gouv.fr) and Deutsche Schule Lissabon (German Auslandsschule under ZfA/Auswärtiges Amt, auslandsschulwesen.de). IB World Schools identified in the metro by name from IB 'by country' data and corroborating sources: St. Julian's (Carcavelos), St. Dominic's International (São Domingos de Rana), Carlucci/CAISL (Sintra), United Lisbon International, TASIS Portugal (Sintra), International Sharing School–Taguspark (Oeiras), Oeiras International School, PaRK International, plus The Lisboan (Cambridge + IB). Count = 11 named, accreditor-attributable schools.
- Notes
- ±3 uncertainty. The live IB World Schools finder and the Cambridge 'Find a Cambridge school' registry both returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch this cycle, so individual IB/Cambridge authorizations were confirmed from official-adjacent sources rather than each read directly against the accreditor's live registry; AEFE and the German school were verified directly. Portugal has ~16 IB World Schools in total, most clustered in the Lisbon metro, so the true metro count of all-accreditor international schools is likely somewhat higher than 11 (aggregator guides list 30+ 'international' schools, but many lack a recognised accreditor). Re-verify each authorization against the IB and Cambridge registries from a browser next cycle.
02Homicide rate
Genevastronger
0.5/100k
Eurostat — police-recorded intentional homicide (crim_off_cat, ICCS0101, unit P_HTHAB)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- 0.50 per 100,000 in 2024, at the very bottom of the European range and stable: the series has moved between 0.48 and 0.71 every year since 2008 with no trend.
Lisbon
0.68/100k
Eurostat — police-recorded intentional homicide (ICCS 0101)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Police-recorded intentional homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, 2024 (Eurostat crim_off_cat). Portugal has trended down since 2013 (1.37) to 0.68 in 2024 — among the lowest in the EU.
03Private healthcare cost
Geneva
$8,437/yr
Official source
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Median of the 1,032 approved 2026 premiums across 34 insurers for an adult (age class 26+) on the standard model with free choice of doctor, the lowest CHF 300 franchise and accident cover included: CHF 571.35/month = CHF 6,856/year = $8,437 at 1 CHF = 1.2306 USD (ECB rates of 2026-08-13). Not a sample of three quotes — Switzerland approves and publishes every premium, so this is the whole population of them.
- Notes
- Switzerland is the one country in this dataset where the 'private insurance' figure is not optional: KVG/LAMal basic cover is a legal duty for every resident, so this number is a bill, not a choice, and it is already counted inside the freelancer tax burden. It buys more than the criterion asks for — there is no benefit ceiling at all, where the criterion assumes ~$100k. It is also the maximum-price configuration: the official enrolment-weighted average premium actually paid by adults in 2026 is CHF 465.30/month ($6,873/year) because most people take a restricted-choice model and a higher franchise, and the cheapest standard-model quote in the country is CHF 70/month lower than the median. City medians on the same basis: Zurich CHF 639.80/month, Bern CHF 681.50, Geneva CHF 752.20 — Geneva costs 18% more than Zurich for the same legal cover.
Lisbonstronger
$650/yr
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jul 4, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Comprehensive private plans that include inpatient/hospital cover (outpatient + hospitalization) for a healthy 35-year-old run ≈ €35–60/month across the main Portuguese insurers (Médis, Multicare, AdvanceCare/AdvanceCare-network, Allianz, Generali Tranquilidade). Midpoint ≈ €47.5/month ≈ €570/year ≈ $650 at 1.1399 USD/EUR (range ≈ $547–$752). Premiums are quoted on request, so this is a curated market midpoint, not a public engine quote.
- Notes
- Residents are covered by the public SNS; private insurance is optional/supplementary. Cheaper outpatient-only plans start ≈ €10–20/month but exclude hospitalization — this figure is the with-inpatient comprehensive tier, chosen for cross-country comparability. Insurers repriced ~+10% for 2026.
04Air quality (PM2.5)
Geneva
no verified data
Lisbon
7.6 µg/m³
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Aug 28, 2026
- Method
- Row Lisboa Greater City/PRT, year 2024, of the WHO Ambient Air Quality Database v8.0 (2026), read from the published spreadsheet on 2026-08-28: pm25_concentration = 7.604 µg/m³ at 84% temporal coverage over 17 stations (eleven urban background, four urban traffic, one urban industrial and one suburban industrial), reference "European Environmental Agency", WHO footprint population 1,872,036. Reference year 2024 — the latest year this database carries a full-year PM2.5 figure for this city, and the year already used by the other European cities in this dataset. Identity checked against the row's own station centroid, which lies 2.6 km from this city's recorded coordinates — the file contains near-miss names such as "Playa Del Ingles/ESP" and "Porto Empedocle/ITA", so the check is not a formality.
- Notes
- Two caveats. Coverage is 84%, below the EU's 90% data-quality objective, so the year is not quality-assured to the standard the other Portuguese figure here meets — but 2023, at 96% coverage, reads 7.26 µg/m³, within 0.35 of this value, so the sub-threshold year is not distorting anything. And the row is the Urban Audit "greater city": WHO gives its population as 1,872,036 against the 658,236 municipal figure recorded on this page, so it covers Greater Lisbon across 17 stations, not the municipality alone. Preceding years in the same series: 2021 8.50 (89%), 2022 7.36 (95%), 2023 7.26 (96%).
05English proficiency
Geneva
High
EF EPI 2025 — Switzerland (rank 30/123, score 564, High band)
Research
- Data as of
- Nov 1, 2025
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- Our band, matching EF's own: 564 points, 30th of 123 countries and up 14 points on the previous edition. Do not read Switzerland as a Nordic-style English country — administration, healthcare and housing run in the local official language, which is German in Zurich and French in Geneva, and the two cities differ sharply in EF's own city scores (Zurich 621, Geneva 555). English gets a professional a long way inside international employers and almost nowhere inside a cantonal office.
Lisbonstronger
Very high
EF EPI 2025 — Portugal rank 6/123, score 612 (Very High band)
Research
- Data as of
- Nov 1, 2025
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Own band informed by EF EPI (attribution: EF Education First). Portugal ranks 6th of 123 countries (score 612, 'Very High'). English is broadly workable in cities, tourism, tech and services; less consistent in local government/administration.
Money & crypto
Optimising tax, banking and crypto rules.
Geneva fits better — 1 of 3
01Crypto regulation
Geneva
Legal friendly
Official source
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- Holding and trading are legal and the tax treatment is published rather than improvised: the Federal Tax Administration's working paper sets out that gains realised by a private individual managing private assets are TAX-FREE capital gains (Art. 16 Abs. 3 DBG), while the holding itself is subject to the annual wealth tax at its 31 December market value, and losses are correspondingly non-deductible. The exemption is not unconditional — where the scale, financing and frequency of trading go beyond private wealth management the activity is reclassified as self-employment and the gains become taxable income, which is the line to watch if you trade actively. Mining and staking rewards are income, not exempt gains.
Lisbon
Legal friendly
Autoridade Tributária — Criptoativos: conceito fiscal e tributação (folheto informativo)
Official source
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Legal for individuals; regulated under EU MiCA/CARF. Since Law 24-D/2022: capital gains on crypto held ≥365 days are tax-EXEMPT (declared in Anexo G1); gains on assets held <365 days are taxed at a 28% autonomous rate (Category G, option to aggregate); crypto-to-crypto swaps are deferred (not taxed at the swap). Frequent/professional trading may be reclassified as Category B (general rates). Classified legal-friendly for the explicit long-term-holding exemption; short-term gains are still fully taxed.
02Financial control level
Geneva
Low
Bundesgesetz über die Bekämpfung der Geldwäscherei und der Terrorismusfinanzierung (GwG, SR 955.0)
Official source
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Inputs weighed: no exchange or capital controls on the movement of personal funds in or out of the country; no general legal ceiling on cash payments, only anti-money-laundering due-diligence duties on dealers and financial intermediaries under the GwG; residents declare worldwide income and worldwide net wealth in the annual cantonal return, and Switzerland exchanges account information automatically under the OECD standard.
- Notes
- Low control over the movement of money, but not low visibility. Two things surprise newcomers: the annual return asks for your WORLDWIDE assets, because the cantons levy a wealth tax on net assets, so there is a reporting duty here that most countries do not have; and opening an account is easy for a resident but often refused or heavily priced for non-residents, so 'Swiss bank account' is not something you arrange before you move.
Lisbon
Low
ASAE — cash-payment limits (Art. 63.º-E Lei Geral Tributária); euro-area free movement of capital
Official source
- Data as of
- Jul 4, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Composite: euro-area member, no currency or capital controls, EUR fully convertible; free movement of capital guaranteed by the EU Treaty (Art. 63 TFEU). Non-resident bank accounts routinely available. Standard EU CRS/DAC reporting via banks; no FBAR-style personal foreign-account self-declaration for individuals. Cash-payment limit €2,999.99 for residents (natural persons) and €9,999.99 for non-residents not acting as merchants (Art. 63.º-E LGT) — a limit on cash, not on bank money movement. Rated 'low' state control over personal money flows.
03Freelancer tax burden
Genevastronger
27.8%
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Scheme ch-einzelfirma-zurich at €60,000 revenue with 10% expenses, converted at the 2026-08-13 ECB rate (1 EUR = 0.9373 CHF) to CHF 56,238 revenue and CHF 50,614 profit. Levies: family-allowance contribution CHF 519 + AHV/IV/EO CHF 3,927 (7.840%, the degressive band that applies below CHF 60,500) + direct federal tax CHF 300 + compulsory KVG health insurance CHF 7,678 + Zurich cantonal and communal tax CHF 3,184 = CHF 15,608 of CHF 56,238 = 27.75%.
- Notes
- TWO NUMBERS HIDE INSIDE THIS ONE. Swiss income tax at this level is very light — federal tax is CHF 300 on a CHF 50,600 profit — and social contributions are only 7.8% here, because the AHV scale is degressive below CHF 60,500 and the self-employed pay no unemployment or occupational-pension contribution. Nearly half the burden is the compulsory health premium, a flat CHF 7,678 that does not scale with income at all. That makes the Swiss figure unusually sensitive to the profile: at CHF 150,000 of revenue the same scheme comes out at 27.5%, LOWER than at CHF 80,000 (30.6%). It is also a Zurich number: the cantonal and communal share is set by the commune, and other Swiss communes would move this by several points.
Lisbon
30%
SettleMetric tax engine over official 2026 rules (Autoridade Tributária + Segurança Social)
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Best eligible scheme pt-ifici-20 (IFICI 20% flat, NHR successor) at €60,000 revenue: social security 21.4%×70%×60,000 = €8,988; category-B simplified taxable income 0.75×60,000 = €45,000; IFICI IRS 20%×45,000 = €9,000; total €17,988 → 29.98% ≈ 30.0%. IFICI requires being a new resident (not resident in Portugal in the prior 5 years) in an eligible activity (IT/ICT qualifies) — realistic for an incoming remote worker. Without IFICI the same profile under the simplified 0.75 regime (progressive IRS) is ~34.4%.
Calm lifestyle
Prioritising safety, air, and an easy daily life.
Lisbon fits better — 2 of 4
01Homicide rate
Genevastronger
0.5/100k
Eurostat — police-recorded intentional homicide (crim_off_cat, ICCS0101, unit P_HTHAB)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- 0.50 per 100,000 in 2024, at the very bottom of the European range and stable: the series has moved between 0.48 and 0.71 every year since 2008 with no trend.
Lisbon
0.68/100k
Eurostat — police-recorded intentional homicide (ICCS 0101)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Police-recorded intentional homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, 2024 (Eurostat crim_off_cat). Portugal has trended down since 2013 (1.37) to 0.68 in 2024 — among the lowest in the EU.
02Air quality (PM2.5)
Geneva
no verified data
Lisbon
7.6 µg/m³
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Aug 28, 2026
- Method
- Row Lisboa Greater City/PRT, year 2024, of the WHO Ambient Air Quality Database v8.0 (2026), read from the published spreadsheet on 2026-08-28: pm25_concentration = 7.604 µg/m³ at 84% temporal coverage over 17 stations (eleven urban background, four urban traffic, one urban industrial and one suburban industrial), reference "European Environmental Agency", WHO footprint population 1,872,036. Reference year 2024 — the latest year this database carries a full-year PM2.5 figure for this city, and the year already used by the other European cities in this dataset. Identity checked against the row's own station centroid, which lies 2.6 km from this city's recorded coordinates — the file contains near-miss names such as "Playa Del Ingles/ESP" and "Porto Empedocle/ITA", so the check is not a formality.
- Notes
- Two caveats. Coverage is 84%, below the EU's 90% data-quality objective, so the year is not quality-assured to the standard the other Portuguese figure here meets — but 2023, at 96% coverage, reads 7.26 µg/m³, within 0.35 of this value, so the sub-threshold year is not distorting anything. And the row is the Urban Audit "greater city": WHO gives its population as 1,872,036 against the 658,236 municipal figure recorded on this page, so it covers Greater Lisbon across 17 stations, not the municipality alone. Preceding years in the same series: 2021 8.50 (89%), 2022 7.36 (95%), 2023 7.26 (96%).
03Cost of living (single, excl. rent)
Geneva
$2,028/mo
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2023
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Basket built from the 2023 Swiss household budget survey, per household per month in CHF: food and non-alcoholic drinks 637.76 + restaurants and cafés 427.20 (COICOP 531, excluding the 131.28 spent on accommodation) + service charges and energy of the main residence 271.46 (5712 + 5713, so the utilities without the 1,081.64 of net rent) + household goods and running the home 201.16 + clothing and footwear 160.60 + transport 743.53 + communications 161.81 + recreation, entertainment and culture 488.23 + other goods and services 319.26 = 3,411.01. Divided by the survey's own mean household size of 2.07 persons = CHF 1,647.83 per person per month, converted at 1 CHF = 1.2306 USD (ECB rates of 2026-08-13) = $2,028. Excluded: rent, alcohol and tobacco, out-of-pocket health spending, insurance premiums, taxes and social contributions.
- Notes
- Two things to hold against this figure. It is a PER-CAPITA share of average household spending, not a measured single-person budget, and a person living alone carries utilities, communications and household costs that a two-person household splits — so a real single in Zurich or Geneva will spend more than this. And it is 2023 data, the latest the survey publishes, with no inflation uplift applied. Health insurance is deliberately outside the basket even though it is compulsory, because it is carried separately by healthcare-private-cost and by the tax burden; add roughly $650/month for it if you want the all-in figure.
Lisbonstronger
$1,166/mo
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jun 30, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- INE 2022/2023 single-person (<65) household average spending €18,121/year = €1,510/month (incl. housing); CPI-uplifted to mid-2026 (×≈1.072 over 2024–2026 HICP) → €1,618/month; the rent/imputed-rent portion of the COICOP-2018 housing division (41.7% of the basket) removed while keeping utilities, then summed by category and converted at 1.1399 USD/EUR (ECB 2026-07-02) → ≈ $1,166/month excluding rent. Cross-checked against Eurostat comparative price level for household consumption (Portugal 2024 = 85.0, EU27=100 — ~15% below the EU average).
- Notes
- National average; Lisbon runs higher. Derived by summing the itemized cost-breakdown categories; see cost-breakdown for the split.
04Climate comfort
Geneva
7/12 mo
NOAA/WMO Climate Normals 1991–2020 — station GENEVE / COINTRIN (WMO 06700, 411 m)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2020
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Months whose 1991–2020 normals have a mean daily maximum between 15 °C and 28 °C and under 150 mm of precipitation: Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct. Computed from the climate-normals stored alongside.
Lisbonstronger
10/12 mo
SettleMetric computation over climate-normals (IPMA Lisboa/Instituto Geofísico 1991-2020)
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2020
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Months with mean daily max 15–28°C and precipitation < 150mm: Jan (15.1°C, 103.8mm), Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Sep, Oct, Nov (18.1°C, 133.9mm), Dec = 10. Only Jul (TX 28.2°C) and Aug (TX 28.8°C) miss, exceeding the 28°C max cap; no month exceeds the 150mm precipitation cap.
03
The full comparison
Open any fact to see what it measures, how fresh it is and the complete source trail for both cities.
01
Taxes
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−Freelancer tax burden% effective burden at €60k/year self-employed profileGenevastronger27.8Lisbon30
What this measures
Effective total burden (income tax + mandatory social and health contributions) for a solo IT freelancer with €60,000/year revenue and 10% deductible expenses, using the most favourable eligible scheme in the country's tax-schemes data. Computed by the SettleMetric tax engine; recorded as a curated value with the winning scheme id in method.
Lower is better· % effective burden at €60k/year self-employed profile· re-verified every 365 days
Geneva
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Scheme ch-einzelfirma-zurich at €60,000 revenue with 10% expenses, converted at the 2026-08-13 ECB rate (1 EUR = 0.9373 CHF) to CHF 56,238 revenue and CHF 50,614 profit. Levies: family-allowance contribution CHF 519 + AHV/IV/EO CHF 3,927 (7.840%, the degressive band that applies below CHF 60,500) + direct federal tax CHF 300 + compulsory KVG health insurance CHF 7,678 + Zurich cantonal and communal tax CHF 3,184 = CHF 15,608 of CHF 56,238 = 27.75%.
- Notes
- TWO NUMBERS HIDE INSIDE THIS ONE. Swiss income tax at this level is very light — federal tax is CHF 300 on a CHF 50,600 profit — and social contributions are only 7.8% here, because the AHV scale is degressive below CHF 60,500 and the self-employed pay no unemployment or occupational-pension contribution. Nearly half the burden is the compulsory health premium, a flat CHF 7,678 that does not scale with income at all. That makes the Swiss figure unusually sensitive to the profile: at CHF 150,000 of revenue the same scheme comes out at 27.5%, LOWER than at CHF 80,000 (30.6%). It is also a Zurich number: the cantonal and communal share is set by the commune, and other Swiss communes would move this by several points.
Lisbon
SettleMetric tax engine over official 2026 rules (Autoridade Tributária + Segurança Social)
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Best eligible scheme pt-ifici-20 (IFICI 20% flat, NHR successor) at €60,000 revenue: social security 21.4%×70%×60,000 = €8,988; category-B simplified taxable income 0.75×60,000 = €45,000; IFICI IRS 20%×45,000 = €9,000; total €17,988 → 29.98% ≈ 30.0%. IFICI requires being a new resident (not resident in Portugal in the prior 5 years) in an eligible activity (IT/ICT qualifies) — realistic for an incoming remote worker. Without IFICI the same profile under the simplified 0.75 regime (progressive IRS) is ~34.4%.
02
Legalization
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−Remote-work legalization easeGenevaShort stay onlyLisbonstrongerDedicated nomad visa
What this measures
Best available legalization route for a location-independent earner with a median (non-EU, non-US) passport, classified from this country's legalization-paths data: dedicated digital-nomad visa; general freelance/self-employment permit; realistic long-stay path (e.g. renewable temporary residence); only short visa-free/tourist stays; effectively none.
Rated by category· re-verified every 180 days
Geneva
SEM — Weisungen und Erläuterungen AIG, Kapitel 4: Aufenthalt mit Erwerbstätigkeit (Stand 30.06.2026)
Official source
- Data as of
- Jun 30, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Classified from this country's legalization paths for the criterion's persona — a location-independent earner holding a median non-EU, non-US passport. Switzerland has no digital-nomad visa and no remote-work permit. The one self-employment route open to third-country nationals, Art. 19 AIG, is an entrepreneur admission: it must serve the overall Swiss economic interest and have a lasting positive effect on the Swiss LABOUR MARKET, it must clear the Art. 21 priority of resident and EU/EFTA workers, and it competes for a national quota of 8,500 permits for all qualified third-country workers in 2026. A freelancer invoicing foreign clients meets none of that, so the realistic ceiling is the Schengen 90-in-180 visa-free stay.
- Notes
- This is the one indicator where Switzerland's score depends entirely on the passport. An EU or EFTA citizen simply registers as self-employed under the Free Movement Agreement and gets a five-year permit with no quota — for them the honest classification would be freelance-permit. The criterion deliberately asks about the median non-EU passport, and for that holder Switzerland is close to shut.
Lisbon
Official source
- Data as of
- Jul 4, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Portugal has a dedicated digital-nomad route (D8): a residence visa for remote professional activity carried out for entities outside Portugal (in force since 2022, Law 18/2022), leading to a 2-year residence permit renewable for 3 years and to permanent residence/citizenship after 5 years. A temporary-stay variant (under 1 year) also exists. Income requirement 4× the national minimum wage (4 × €920 = €3,680/month in 2026).
03
Cost of living
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−Cost of living (single, excl. rent)USD/month, single person, excluding rentGeneva2,028Lisbonstronger1,166
What this measures
Monthly cost of a defined single-person basket (food, transport, utilities, mobile+internet, modest leisure) excluding rent, curated from national statistics office price data and large local retailers' published prices, converted to USD at the ECB rate recorded in fx-rates. The method field of each value itemizes the basket inputs.
Lower is better· USD/month, single person, excluding rent· re-verified every 365 days
Geneva
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2023
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Basket built from the 2023 Swiss household budget survey, per household per month in CHF: food and non-alcoholic drinks 637.76 + restaurants and cafés 427.20 (COICOP 531, excluding the 131.28 spent on accommodation) + service charges and energy of the main residence 271.46 (5712 + 5713, so the utilities without the 1,081.64 of net rent) + household goods and running the home 201.16 + clothing and footwear 160.60 + transport 743.53 + communications 161.81 + recreation, entertainment and culture 488.23 + other goods and services 319.26 = 3,411.01. Divided by the survey's own mean household size of 2.07 persons = CHF 1,647.83 per person per month, converted at 1 CHF = 1.2306 USD (ECB rates of 2026-08-13) = $2,028. Excluded: rent, alcohol and tobacco, out-of-pocket health spending, insurance premiums, taxes and social contributions.
- Notes
- Two things to hold against this figure. It is a PER-CAPITA share of average household spending, not a measured single-person budget, and a person living alone carries utilities, communications and household costs that a two-person household splits — so a real single in Zurich or Geneva will spend more than this. And it is 2023 data, the latest the survey publishes, with no inflation uplift applied. Health insurance is deliberately outside the basket even though it is compulsory, because it is carried separately by healthcare-private-cost and by the tax burden; add roughly $650/month for it if you want the all-in figure.
Lisbon
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jun 30, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- INE 2022/2023 single-person (<65) household average spending €18,121/year = €1,510/month (incl. housing); CPI-uplifted to mid-2026 (×≈1.072 over 2024–2026 HICP) → €1,618/month; the rent/imputed-rent portion of the COICOP-2018 housing division (41.7% of the basket) removed while keeping utilities, then summed by category and converted at 1.1399 USD/EUR (ECB 2026-07-02) → ≈ $1,166/month excluding rent. Cross-checked against Eurostat comparative price level for household consumption (Portugal 2024 = 85.0, EU27=100 — ~15% below the EU average).
- Notes
- National average; Lisbon runs higher. Derived by summing the itemized cost-breakdown categories; see cost-breakdown for the split.
Monthly spending by category (excl. rent)
Geneva
Lisbon
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2023
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Each 2023 household-average category divided by the survey's mean household size of 2.07 and converted at 1 CHF = 1.2306 USD; the nine items sum to the $2,028 headline.
- Notes
- Transport is the largest line and the one most open to change: CHF 555 of the household's CHF 744 is buying and running a car, against CHF 189 on public transport, so a car-free household in Zurich or Geneva — where that is entirely practical — cuts this basket by a good deal more than the difference in fares suggests.
INE — Household Budget Survey 2022/2023 (COICOP-2018 structure), CPI-uplifted
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jun 30, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- INE 2022/2023 COICOP-2018 expenditure shares (food 13.0%, transport 11.3%, restaurants & accommodation 8.3%, furnishings 4.4%, health 4.2%, information & communication 3.8%, personal care/misc 3.4%, recreation 2.9%, alcohol/tobacco 1.7%, clothing 1.2%; housing 41.7% split into ~9% utilities/upkeep kept and rent excluded) applied to the CPI-uplifted single-person monthly total (€1,618) and converted at 1.1399 USD/EUR. Categories sum to the ~$1,166/mo excl-rent aggregate. National average.
- Notes
- Structure is the all-household COICOP-2018 split (INE does not publish a full single-person COICOP table); applied to the single-person total as a transparent approximation. Housing utilities are kept; rent/imputed rent is excluded per the cost-of-living definition.
01Transport
Geneva
$442
Lisboncheaper
$208
02Food & non-alcoholic drinks
Geneva
$379
Lisbon
—
03Recreation, entertainment & culture
Geneva
$290
Lisbon
—
04Restaurants & cafés
Geneva
$254
Lisbon
—
05Food & non-alcoholic beverages
Geneva
—
Lisbon
$240
06Other goods & services
Geneva
$190
Lisbon
—
07Utilities (electricity, gas, water) & upkeep
Geneva
—
Lisbon
$166
08Utilities (service charges & home energy)
Geneva
$161
Lisbon
—
09Restaurants & eating out
Geneva
—
Lisbon
$153
10Household goods & running the home
Geneva
$120
Lisbon
—
11Clothing & footwear
Geneva
$95
Lisboncheaper
$22
12Communications (mobile + internet)
Geneva
$96
Lisbon
—
13Household goods & equipment
Geneva
—
Lisbon
$81
14Health (out-of-pocket)
Geneva
—
Lisbon
$77
15Information & communication
Geneva
—
Lisbon
$70
16Personal care & misc goods
Geneva
—
Lisbon
$63
17Recreation, sport & culture
Geneva
—
Lisbon
$53
18Alcohol & tobacco
Geneva
—
Lisbon
$31
Total (excl. rent)
Geneva$2,027/mo
Lisbon$1,164/mo
04
Housing
Rent by apartment type
Asking rent, central price with outside-centre in parentheses ($/mo).
Geneva
Lisbon
OCSTAT Genève — T 05.04.2.01, loyer mensuel moyen des logements à loyer libre, mai 2025
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- May 31, 2025
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- OCSTAT surveys rents every May. Central = the Ville de Genève free-market ("loyer libre") figures by room count, outside = the "Suburbain 1re couronne" ring (Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Chêne-Bourg, Grand-Saconnex, Lancy, Onex, Vernier). Each class is lifted to a new-lease basis by the canton’s own free-market "loués à de nouveaux locataires" ratios (1-room ×1.1836, 2-room ×1.1857, 3-room ×1.1912, 4-room ×1.2239). Swiss flats are counted in rooms: 1-room = studio, 2-room = 1BR, 3-room = 2BR, 4-room = 3BR. OCSTAT publishes rents NET of charges, so each cell is grossed up by 1.1095 — the gross/net ratio of the Zurich market segment in the 2024 Mietpreiserhebung, the only Swiss survey in this dataset that publishes both. Converted at 1 CHF = 1.2306 USD (ECB rates of 2026-08-13).
- Notes
- Geneva’s controlled and subsidised stock is excluded, and it has to be: a controlled 3-room flat averages CHF 922/month against CHF 1,365 on the free market, but a newcomer cannot get one. The new-lease uplift is the largest in Switzerland — 19% on the free market, against about 5% nationally — which is what rent control looks like from the outside: cheap if you are already in, expensive if you are arriving. Two cells carry extra uncertainty: the gross-up for Nebenkosten is borrowed from Zurich because OCSTAT does not publish it, and the central figures are the whole Ville de Genève, inside which Cité-Centre runs about a third higher again.
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- May 31, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Base: idealista Lisboa city-wide asking rent €21.8/m² (May 2026). Applied typical dwelling sizes (studio 35 m², 1BR 55 m², 2BR 80 m², 3BR 110 m²) and a central/outside multiplier (central historic/central parishes ×1.15, outer parishes ×0.85), converted at 1.1399 USD/EUR (ECB 2026-07-02). E.g. 1BR center = 55×21.8×1.15×1.1399 ≈ $1,572.
- Notes
- ALL cells are DERIVED — idealista's public report gives only a single city-wide €/m² for Lisboa, not a room-count × district matrix (idealista's granular per-district report pages returned HTTP 403 on fetch). Both the dwelling sizes and the ±15% central/outside spread are transparent assumptions, not observed values; treat the matrix as indicative and re-derive from a directly fetched idealista Lisboa district report next cycle. Only the city-wide €21.8/m² base is directly observed.
01Studio
Geneva
$1,559$1,398 outside
Lisboncheaper
$1,000$739 outside
021-bedroom
Geneva
$1,779$1,578 outside
Lisboncheaper
$1,572$1,162 outside
032-bedroom
Geneva
$2,309$2,033 outside
Lisboncheaper
$2,286$1,690 outside
043-bedroom
Genevacheaper
$2,914$2,505 outside
Lisbon
$3,144$2,323 outside
05
Safety
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−Homicide rateintentional homicides per 100,000/yearGenevastronger0.5Lisbon0.7
What this measures
Intentional homicide victims per 100,000 population, latest available year. Country level: UNODC national series. City level: official municipal/police statistics where published; otherwise null (country value shown as country-level).
Lower is better· intentional homicides per 100,000/year· re-verified every 730 days
Geneva
Eurostat — police-recorded intentional homicide (crim_off_cat, ICCS0101, unit P_HTHAB)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- 0.50 per 100,000 in 2024, at the very bottom of the European range and stable: the series has moved between 0.48 and 0.71 every year since 2008 with no trend.
Lisbon
Eurostat — police-recorded intentional homicide (ICCS 0101)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Police-recorded intentional homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, 2024 (Eurostat crim_off_cat). Portugal has trended down since 2013 (1.37) to 0.68 in 2024 — among the lowest in the EU.
06
Climate
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−Climate comfortpleasant months/yearGeneva7Lisbonstronger10
What this measures
Number of months whose 1991–2020 climate normals satisfy: mean daily maximum between 15°C and 28°C and monthly precipitation under 150mm. Computed from the city's climate-normals indicator; the raw normals are stored alongside so users can judge by their own taste.
Higher is better· pleasant months/year· re-verified every 3650 days
Geneva
NOAA/WMO Climate Normals 1991–2020 — station GENEVE / COINTRIN (WMO 06700, 411 m)
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2020
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Months whose 1991–2020 normals have a mean daily maximum between 15 °C and 28 °C and under 150 mm of precipitation: Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct. Computed from the climate-normals stored alongside.
Lisbon
SettleMetric computation over climate-normals (IPMA Lisboa/Instituto Geofísico 1991-2020)
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2020
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Months with mean daily max 15–28°C and precipitation < 150mm: Jan (15.1°C, 103.8mm), Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Sep, Oct, Nov (18.1°C, 133.9mm), Dec = 10. Only Jul (TX 28.2°C) and Aug (TX 28.8°C) miss, exceeding the 28°C max cap; no month exceeds the 150mm precipitation cap.
02+−Air quality (PM2.5)µg/m³, annual mean PM2.5Genevano verified dataLisbon7.6
What this measures
Annual mean fine-particulate (PM2.5) concentration for the city, latest available year. Anchors follow the WHO 2021 guideline (5 µg/m³ → 10) through the EU limit value territory (25 µg/m³ → 2). Preferred source: European Environment Agency city-level air quality data; outside Europe: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database or the national monitoring network.
Lower is better· µg/m³, annual mean PM2.5· re-verified every 730 days
Geneva
Not recorded. Geneva’s canton publishes modelled NO2 immission maps as open data but no machine-readable PM2.5 station series was reachable in this pass, and the federal PM2.5 dataset is a modelled map rather than measured annual means. Zurich’s figure in this dataset comes from that city’s own published daily measurements, so borrowing it or a national average for Geneva would mix bases.
Lisbon
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Aug 28, 2026
- Method
- Row Lisboa Greater City/PRT, year 2024, of the WHO Ambient Air Quality Database v8.0 (2026), read from the published spreadsheet on 2026-08-28: pm25_concentration = 7.604 µg/m³ at 84% temporal coverage over 17 stations (eleven urban background, four urban traffic, one urban industrial and one suburban industrial), reference "European Environmental Agency", WHO footprint population 1,872,036. Reference year 2024 — the latest year this database carries a full-year PM2.5 figure for this city, and the year already used by the other European cities in this dataset. Identity checked against the row's own station centroid, which lies 2.6 km from this city's recorded coordinates — the file contains near-miss names such as "Playa Del Ingles/ESP" and "Porto Empedocle/ITA", so the check is not a formality.
- Notes
- Two caveats. Coverage is 84%, below the EU's 90% data-quality objective, so the year is not quality-assured to the standard the other Portuguese figure here meets — but 2023, at 96% coverage, reads 7.26 µg/m³, within 0.35 of this value, so the sub-threshold year is not distorting anything. And the row is the Urban Audit "greater city": WHO gives its population as 1,872,036 against the 658,236 municipal figure recorded on this page, so it covers Greater Lisbon across 17 stations, not the municipality alone. Preceding years in the same series: 2021 8.50 (89%), 2022 7.36 (95%), 2023 7.26 (96%).
07
Healthcare
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−Private healthcare costUSD/year, comprehensive private insurance premium, healthy 35-year-oldGeneva8,437Lisbonstronger650
What this measures
Median of at least three publicly quoted annual premiums for comprehensive private medical insurance (outpatient + inpatient, ~$100k coverage, small deductible) for a healthy 35-year-old resident foreigner, from local and international insurers. Method field lists the insurers quoted.
Lower is better· USD/year, comprehensive private insurance premium, healthy 35-year-old· re-verified every 365 days
Geneva
Official source
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Median of the 1,032 approved 2026 premiums across 34 insurers for an adult (age class 26+) on the standard model with free choice of doctor, the lowest CHF 300 franchise and accident cover included: CHF 571.35/month = CHF 6,856/year = $8,437 at 1 CHF = 1.2306 USD (ECB rates of 2026-08-13). Not a sample of three quotes — Switzerland approves and publishes every premium, so this is the whole population of them.
- Notes
- Switzerland is the one country in this dataset where the 'private insurance' figure is not optional: KVG/LAMal basic cover is a legal duty for every resident, so this number is a bill, not a choice, and it is already counted inside the freelancer tax burden. It buys more than the criterion asks for — there is no benefit ceiling at all, where the criterion assumes ~$100k. It is also the maximum-price configuration: the official enrolment-weighted average premium actually paid by adults in 2026 is CHF 465.30/month ($6,873/year) because most people take a restricted-choice model and a higher franchise, and the cheapest standard-model quote in the country is CHF 70/month lower than the median. City medians on the same basis: Zurich CHF 639.80/month, Bern CHF 681.50, Geneva CHF 752.20 — Geneva costs 18% more than Zurich for the same legal cover.
Lisbon
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jul 4, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Comprehensive private plans that include inpatient/hospital cover (outpatient + hospitalization) for a healthy 35-year-old run ≈ €35–60/month across the main Portuguese insurers (Médis, Multicare, AdvanceCare/AdvanceCare-network, Allianz, Generali Tranquilidade). Midpoint ≈ €47.5/month ≈ €570/year ≈ $650 at 1.1399 USD/EUR (range ≈ $547–$752). Premiums are quoted on request, so this is a curated market midpoint, not a public engine quote.
- Notes
- Residents are covered by the public SNS; private insurance is optional/supplementary. Cheaper outpatient-only plans start ≈ €10–20/month but exclude hospitalization — this figure is the with-inpatient comprehensive tier, chosen for cross-country comparability. Insurers repriced ~+10% for 2026.
08
Money & crypto
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−Crypto regulationGenevaLegal friendlyLisbonLegal friendly
What this measures
Own classification of the legal status of holding, trading and cashing out cryptocurrency for individuals: legal-friendly (legal with clear, favourable rules or explicit tax exemptions), legal-regulated (legal under standard licensing/AML and taxation), restricted (partial bans: payments or banking access prohibited), banned (holding/trading prohibited). Classified from national regulators' and central banks' official positions.
Rated by category· re-verified every 180 days
Geneva
Official source
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- Holding and trading are legal and the tax treatment is published rather than improvised: the Federal Tax Administration's working paper sets out that gains realised by a private individual managing private assets are TAX-FREE capital gains (Art. 16 Abs. 3 DBG), while the holding itself is subject to the annual wealth tax at its 31 December market value, and losses are correspondingly non-deductible. The exemption is not unconditional — where the scale, financing and frequency of trading go beyond private wealth management the activity is reclassified as self-employment and the gains become taxable income, which is the line to watch if you trade actively. Mining and staking rewards are income, not exempt gains.
Lisbon
Autoridade Tributária — Criptoativos: conceito fiscal e tributação (folheto informativo)
Official source
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Legal for individuals; regulated under EU MiCA/CARF. Since Law 24-D/2022: capital gains on crypto held ≥365 days are tax-EXEMPT (declared in Anexo G1); gains on assets held <365 days are taxed at a 28% autonomous rate (Category G, option to aggregate); crypto-to-crypto swaps are deferred (not taxed at the swap). Frequent/professional trading may be reclassified as Category B (general rates). Classified legal-friendly for the explicit long-term-holding exemption; short-term gains are still fully taxed.
02+−Financial control levelGenevaLowLisbonLow
What this measures
Own composite of state control over personal money flows: currency/capital controls (IMF AREAER), restrictions on foreign accounts and transfers, mandatory income declaration scope for residents, cash payment limits, banking access for foreigners. Low = free movement of personal funds and easy non-resident banking; very-high = strict capital controls and pervasive reporting. Method field on each value lists the inputs used.
Rated by category· re-verified every 365 days
Geneva
Bundesgesetz über die Bekämpfung der Geldwäscherei und der Terrorismusfinanzierung (GwG, SR 955.0)
Official source
- Data as of
- Jan 1, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Method
- Inputs weighed: no exchange or capital controls on the movement of personal funds in or out of the country; no general legal ceiling on cash payments, only anti-money-laundering due-diligence duties on dealers and financial intermediaries under the GwG; residents declare worldwide income and worldwide net wealth in the annual cantonal return, and Switzerland exchanges account information automatically under the OECD standard.
- Notes
- Low control over the movement of money, but not low visibility. Two things surprise newcomers: the annual return asks for your WORLDWIDE assets, because the cantons levy a wealth tax on net assets, so there is a reporting duty here that most countries do not have; and opening an account is easy for a resident but often refused or heavily priced for non-residents, so 'Swiss bank account' is not something you arrange before you move.
Lisbon
ASAE — cash-payment limits (Art. 63.º-E Lei Geral Tributária); euro-area free movement of capital
Official source
- Data as of
- Jul 4, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Composite: euro-area member, no currency or capital controls, EUR fully convertible; free movement of capital guaranteed by the EU Treaty (Art. 63 TFEU). Non-resident bank accounts routinely available. Standard EU CRS/DAC reporting via banks; no FBAR-style personal foreign-account self-declaration for individuals. Cash-payment limit €2,999.99 for residents (natural persons) and €9,999.99 for non-residents not acting as merchants (Art. 63.º-E LGT) — a limit on cash, not on bank money movement. Rated 'low' state control over personal money flows.
09
Infrastructure
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−Domestic delivery qualityGenevastrongerExcellentLisbonGood
What this measures
Quality of in-country parcel delivery. excellent = nationwide next-day widely available, dense parcel-locker network, real-time tracking standard; good = 1–3 day delivery, lockers in major cities; basic = reliable but slow (3–7 days), mostly to-door or post-office pickup; poor = unreliable delivery, street addresses often unusable, informal workarounds common. Classified from official service/coverage data of the national postal operator and the two largest private carriers; inputs itemized in each value's method field.
Rated by category· re-verified every 730 days
Geneva
Die Schweizerische Post — Finanzbericht 2024 (Zugangspunkte) und My Post 24
Official source
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Sep 9, 2026
- Method
- Inputs: A-Post priority mail must arrive on the working day after posting, everywhere in the country; Swiss Post reports over 5,000 access points in its 2024 financial report, of which about 2,000 are staffed, plus 770 Postomaten, 563 drop-off and collection points in retailers such as Migros, and 14,077 letter boxes; tracking is standard on parcels.
- Notes
- The one part of the definition Switzerland does not meet on its own terms is the parcel-locker network: 303 My Post 24 terminals for nine million people is thin next to the locker-first markets in this dataset, where the count runs into five figures. What Switzerland has instead is an unusually dense network of STAFFED counters and retail collection points, which does the same job with different opening hours. Rated excellent on speed, coverage and tracking, with that caveat visible rather than averaged away.
Lisbon
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2025
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- National operator CTT offers next-day ('Expresso Para Amanhã') and 2-day express nationwide, with the Collectt pickup network (CTT shops + Payshop agents + Locky 24/7 parcel lockers) and real-time tracking. Private carriers DPD, GLS, DHL, UPS, Chronopost and Seur operate nationwide. Rated 'good' — 1–3 day delivery is the norm and lockers exist in cities, but locker density and universal next-day are below the best-in-class (e.g. Poland's InPost).
02+−International delivery easeGenevaMinor frictionLisbonMinor friction
What this measures
Ease of receiving goods from abroad. seamless = major international carriers deliver door-to-door, meaningful duty-free de-minimis threshold, customs clearance predictable in days; minor-friction = carriers present but low de-minimis, extra paperwork or routine delays; significant-friction = frequent customs holds, high brokerage fees, some marketplaces refuse to ship; unreliable = parcels regularly lost or blocked, informal import channels dominate. De-minimis thresholds and clearance rules from the national customs authority (official source, cite the regulation); carrier presence from carriers' official pages.
Rated by category· re-verified every 365 days
Geneva
BAZG — Empfangen von Briefen und Paketen (Kleinsendungen, Wertfreigrenze)
Official source
- Data as of
- Sep 9, 2026
- Verified
- Sep 9, 2026
- Method
- Switzerland is outside the EU customs union, so every consignment is cleared. Import VAT is waived only where the tax due would be under CHF 5, which is a goods value of CHF 62 at the standard 8.1% rate and CHF 193 at the reduced 2.6% rate (books, food); customs duty under CHF 5 is likewise not levied, and unsolicited gifts between private individuals are free up to CHF 100. All the major carriers deliver door to door, and they set their own clearance fees, over which the customs administration states it has no influence.
- Notes
- Not friction from delay — clearance is quick and predictable — but from the threshold and the handling fee. A CHF 62 de-minimis is low, and the carrier's customs-clearance charge is often larger than the tax it collects, which is why a small parcel from an EU shop can arrive costing noticeably more than its price. Coming from an EU country this is the change people notice first: the same order that used to arrive with nothing to pay now clears customs.
Lisbon
Official source
- Data as of
- Jul 1, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Intra-EU shipping is frictionless (single market, all major carriers). Non-EU imports: the €150 duty-free threshold was removed on 2026-07-01 — a temporary flat €3/item duty applies to ≤€150 consignments (until the 2028 EU Customs reform); import VAT has applied from €0 since 2021 (IOSS collects it at checkout). Predictable but no longer duty-free — hence minor-friction.
03+−Internet speedMbps, median fixed downloadGenevastronger88.5Lisbon40
What this measures
Median fixed-broadband download speed over the trailing 6 months from M-Lab NDT open data (CC0), aggregated at country or city level. Not comparable with Ookla figures (different test methodology) — do not mix sources within this criterion.
Higher is better· Mbps, median fixed download· re-verified every 365 days
Geneva
M-Lab NDT country aggregates for Switzerland
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2023
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- Median of the 2023 daily country medians over 343 days and 406,505 tests; monthly medians ran 77.8–102.1 Mbps. 2023 is still the latest full year M-Lab's public stats API carries for Switzerland — the 2024 file stops on 26 March. M-Lab NDT is single-stream and reads far below Ookla-style figures, so compare it only with other countries in this criterion.
Lisbon
M-Lab NDT country aggregates for Portugal
Open data
- Data as of
- Dec 31, 2024
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- M-Lab NDT daily country medians for Portugal cluster at ≈ 39–42 Mbps (2024). Recorded as 40 Mbps. WebFetch truncates the JSON to ~mid-January, so the full-year median should be re-aggregated from the M-Lab BigQuery dataset next cycle.
- Notes
- M-Lab NDT is single-stream and reads well below Ookla-style figures (Portuguese fibre retail speeds are far higher) — comparable only within this criterion. Value should be re-verified against the full 2024/2025 M-Lab aggregate.
10
Language
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−English proficiencyGenevaHighLisbonstrongerVery high
What this measures
Own banding of how far English gets a resident in daily life (government offices, healthcare, housing, services). Informed by EF EPI band (research source, cited with attribution, not republished) plus official language status and service-sector realities. Values are our bands, not EF scores.
Rated by category· re-verified every 730 days
Geneva
EF EPI 2025 — Switzerland (rank 30/123, score 564, High band)
Research
- Data as of
- Nov 1, 2025
- Verified
- Sep 8, 2026
- Notes
- Our band, matching EF's own: 564 points, 30th of 123 countries and up 14 points on the previous edition. Do not read Switzerland as a Nordic-style English country — administration, healthcare and housing run in the local official language, which is German in Zurich and French in Geneva, and the two cities differ sharply in EF's own city scores (Zurich 621, Geneva 555). English gets a professional a long way inside international employers and almost nowhere inside a cantonal office.
Lisbon
EF EPI 2025 — Portugal rank 6/123, score 612 (Very High band)
Research
- Data as of
- Nov 1, 2025
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Notes
- Own band informed by EF EPI (attribution: EF Education First). Portugal ranks 6th of 123 countries (score 612, 'Very High'). English is broadly workable in cities, tourism, tech and services; less consistent in local government/administration.
11
Education
CriterionGenevaLisbon
01+−International schoolsaccredited international schools, countGenevano verified dataLisbon11
What this measures
Count of international schools in the metro area accredited by or member of IB, CIS, COBIS, or an equivalent national-curriculum-abroad body (verified against the accreditor's public registry, not aggregator sites).
Higher is better· accredited international schools, count· re-verified every 730 days
Geneva
Not counted, for the same reason as Zurich: the IB directory’s school search is behind a bot challenge we do not bypass. Geneva is the likeliest city in Europe to have a large count — the International School of Geneva is where the IB diploma was invented — which is exactly why an unverified number here would be worse than an open gap.
Lisbon
Curated by SettleMetric
- Data as of
- Jul 4, 2026
- Verified
- Jul 4, 2026
- Method
- Curated count of internationally-accredited schools in the Lisbon metro (Lisboa, Cascais, Sintra, Oeiras). Directly verified against their accreditor networks: Lycée Français Charles Lepierre (AEFE directly-managed establishment, aefe.gouv.fr) and Deutsche Schule Lissabon (German Auslandsschule under ZfA/Auswärtiges Amt, auslandsschulwesen.de). IB World Schools identified in the metro by name from IB 'by country' data and corroborating sources: St. Julian's (Carcavelos), St. Dominic's International (São Domingos de Rana), Carlucci/CAISL (Sintra), United Lisbon International, TASIS Portugal (Sintra), International Sharing School–Taguspark (Oeiras), Oeiras International School, PaRK International, plus The Lisboan (Cambridge + IB). Count = 11 named, accreditor-attributable schools.
- Notes
- ±3 uncertainty. The live IB World Schools finder and the Cambridge 'Find a Cambridge school' registry both returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch this cycle, so individual IB/Cambridge authorizations were confirmed from official-adjacent sources rather than each read directly against the accreditor's live registry; AEFE and the German school were verified directly. Portugal has ~16 IB World Schools in total, most clustered in the Lisbon metro, so the true metro count of all-accreditor international schools is likely somewhat higher than 11 (aggregator guides list 30+ 'international' schools, but many lack a recognised accreditor). Re-verify each authorization against the IB and Cambridge registries from a browser next cycle.