Cross-Country Financial Data
The same life decision costs wildly different amounts depending on which of six countries you make it in. These are the reference figures behind our calculators — parental leave, university, cars, housing, household budgets and retirement — for the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Ireland and Switzerland.
Free to use, quote and chart, with attribution. Journalists and researchers: there is a citation note and a machine-readable JSON version at the bottom.
Read this before citing. These are reference figures compiled from public sources — government statistics, revenue authorities and published surveys — chosen to be representative of a typical case in each country. They are not a survey we conducted, not original research, and not individually verified by a regulated adviser. Each table lists its source and vintage per country, and those vintages differ. Please cite them as what they are.
Parental leave and pay
What a new parent can expect to take, and how much of their pay continues while they do.
| United States | United Kingdom | Canada | Australia | Ireland | Switzerland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Typical unpaid weeks taken | 6 | 20 | 35 | 26 | 16 | 10 |
| Share of pay replaced | 0% | 25% | 55% | 60% | 25% | 80% |
| Reference weekly pay | $1,200 | £560 | C$900 | A$1,200 | €274 | CHF 1,200 |
Figures in each country's own currency — not converted, and not adjusted for purchasing power. Comparing the columns directly overstates the gap where local incomes differ.
This is the widest gap in the whole dataset. The United States replaces none of a new parent’s pay by statute; Switzerland replaces 80%. The US figure is not a low number — it is a structural absence, and it is why American parental-leave planning is really savings planning.
Sources and vintage for this table
| United States | EPI Child Care Cost Index 2023 (latest full state-level index published); FAIR Health | 2026-06 |
| United Kingdom | Coram/MoneyHelper UK childcare 2025; NHS free delivery; SMP £187.18/wk | 2026-06 |
| Canada | CWELCC provincial rollout; EI maternity/parental rates (Service Canada); public delivery via provincial medicare (2025-26) | 2026-06 |
| Australia | Child Care Subsidy (Services Australia); Parental Leave Pay ~22 wks at national minimum; public birth via Medicare (2025-26) | 2026-06 |
| Ireland | Citizens Information Maternity Benefit €274/wk 2025; Pobal/NCS childcare 2025 | 2026-06 |
| Switzerland | ch.ch maternity allowance 14 wks @80% (cap CHF 220/day); kizi.ch Kita costs 2026 | 2026-06 |
University cost, per year
Annual tuition and living costs for a domestic undergraduate studying away from home.
| United States | United Kingdom | Canada | Australia | Ireland | Switzerland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuition | $11,950 | £9,250 | C$7,000 | A$8,300 | €2,500 | CHF 1,500 |
| Room and board | $13,620 | £11,000 | C$12,000 | A$15,000 | €11,000 | CHF 16,000 |
| Books and supplies | $1,240 | £400 | C$800 | A$700 | €500 | CHF 600 |
| Forgone earnings what a school-leaver would earn instead | $35,000 | £22,000 | C$35,000 | A$50,000 | €24,000 | CHF 50,000 |
Figures in each country's own currency — not converted, and not adjusted for purchasing power. Comparing the columns directly overstates the gap where local incomes differ.
Tuition spans roughly eight-fold across these six countries, but living costs barely move. Where tuition is low — Ireland and Switzerland — accommodation, not fees, is the real constraint on where a student can study.
Sources and vintage for this table
| United States | College Board Trends in College Pricing 2025 (2025-26 published tuition & fees: $11,950 in-state, $31,880 out-of-state, $45,000 private nonprofit); NCES | 2026-09 |
| United Kingdom | GOV.UK tuition cap £9,250; UK student maintenance; Plan 5 loan terms | 2026-06 |
| Canada | StatCan avg domestic undergrad tuition ~$7,000 (2024/25); Canada Student Loans interest-free federal portion | 2026-06 |
| Australia | Student contribution bands $4,500–$16,500 (2024); HECS-HELP indexation cap (lower of CPI/WPI, 2024 reform) | 2026-06 |
| Ireland | gov.ie Free Fees Initiative / Student Contribution €2,500 (2025/26); SUSI | 2026-06 |
| Switzerland | UZH/ETH tuition ~CHF 1,460/yr (intl higher from 2025); cantonal scholarships | 2026-06 |
Running a car, per year
Reference figures for a typical mid-range car. Fuel price is per litre except the US and UK, where local convention differs.
| United States | United Kingdom | Canada | Australia | Ireland | Switzerland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purchase price | $35,000 | £25,000 | C$38,000 | A$42,000 | €30,000 | CHF 35,000 |
| Insurance | $2,575 | £560 | C$1,700 | A$1,600 | €620 | CHF 900 |
| Maintenance | $1,000 | £700 | C$900 | A$950 | €700 | CHF 900 |
| Distance driven miles for US/UK, km elsewhere | 13,500 | 7,000 | 15,300 | 12,900 | 16,100 | 14,500 |
| Car loan rate | 7.1% | 9.5% | 7.5% | 8% | 7.5% | 6% |
Figures in each country's own currency — not converted, and not adjusted for purchasing power. Comparing the columns directly overstates the gap where local incomes differ.
Insurance is the outlier: the US reference premium is over four times the UK and Irish figures. Distance driven runs the other way — Irish and Canadian drivers cover roughly twice the annual mileage of a UK driver, which is why fuel economy matters far more to their totals.
Sources and vintage for this table
| United States | AAA Your Driving Costs 2026 ($12,863/yr average for a new vehicle over 5 years / 75,000 miles); US average pump price $3.82/gal (2026 annual average); average full-coverage premium $2,575/yr (2026); EPA fuel economy | 2026-06 |
| United Kingdom | RAC/ABI/NimbleFins 2025-26; petrol 157p/L (Apr 2026) | 2026-06 |
| Canada | Metric: ~15,300 km/yr, 7.1 L/100km, petrol ~$1.55/L; ON HST 13% (provinces 5–14.975%); insurance varies by province (ON ~$1,700, QC ~$900) (2025-26) | 2026-06 |
| Australia | Metric: ~12,900 km/yr, 6.9 L/100km, petrol ~$1.95/L; comprehensive + CTP + rego ~$2,000+/yr; vehicle stamp duty ~3% (state-varying) (2025-26) | 2026-06 |
| Ireland | Metric: ~16,100 km/yr, 5.9 L/100km, petrol €1.82/L (GlobalPetrolPrices 2026); Central Bank NCID avg motor premium €616 (2024) | 2026-06 |
| Switzerland | Metric: ~14,500 km/yr, 6.2 L/100km, petrol CHF 1.92/L (GlobalPetrolPrices 2026); comparis avg motor premium (liability+partial casco) | 2026-06 |
Buying a home
Reference purchase price, the deposit convention, and what the transaction itself costs on top.
| United States | United Kingdom | Canada | Australia | Ireland | Switzerland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reference price | $400,000 | £290,000 | C$700,000 | A$800,000 | €387,000 | CHF 1,000,000 |
| Deposit | 10% | 15% | 20% | 20% | 10% | 20% |
| Mortgage rate | 6.8% | 5.2% | 4.9% | 6% | 3.9% | 1.7% |
| Transaction costs excludes transfer tax / stamp duty | 3% | 0.6% | 2.5% | 0.6% | 1% | 0.5% |
| Moving | $4,000 | £1,200 | C$2,500 | A$2,500 | €1,500 | CHF 2,000 |
Figures in each country's own currency — not converted, and not adjusted for purchasing power. Comparing the columns directly overstates the gap where local incomes differ.
Mortgage rates differ by a factor of four, from 1.7% in Switzerland to 6.8% in the United States, which moves affordability far more than the headline price does. Transaction costs are the quieter divide: 3% in the US against 0.5–0.6% in the UK, Australia and Switzerland, before any stamp duty.
Sources and vintage for this table
| United States | NAR; CFPB closing costs; CoreLogic property tax | 2026-06 |
| United Kingdom | GOV.UK SDLT 2026/27; ONS UK avg house ~£290k; council tax Band D | 2026-06 |
| Canada | CREA national avg ~$700k; 5-yr fixed ~4.9%; closing incl. land transfer tax (ON ~1.5–2%, Toronto doubled) (2025-26) | 2026-06 |
| Australia | CoreLogic mean dwelling ~$960k (default modest $800k); variable ~6%; council rates ~$2,000/yr; stamp duty additional by state (2025-26) | 2026-06 |
| Ireland | CSO median dwelling €387,000 (Dec 2025); Revenue stamp duty 1%; LPT ~€345; new-mortgage rate ~3.9% | 2026-06 |
| Switzerland | FSO/JLL apartment ~CHF 9,224/m² (2025); min 20% down (≥10% cash); 5-yr fixed ~1.5–1.7%; imputed rental value taxed | 2026-06 |
Essential monthly outgoings
The baseline a single earner needs to cover each month — the figure an emergency fund is a multiple of.
| United States | United Kingdom | Canada | Australia | Ireland | Switzerland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $1,800 | £1,100 | C$1,850 | A$2,400 | €1,350 | CHF 1,700 |
| Food | $500 | £310 | C$420 | A$500 | €350 | CHF 600 |
| Transport | $400 | £250 | C$320 | A$350 | €250 | CHF 300 |
| Utilities | $200 | £200 | C$260 | A$300 | €250 | CHF 250 |
| Insurance | $300 | £90 | C$130 | A$150 | €100 | CHF 400 |
Figures in each country's own currency — not converted, and not adjusted for purchasing power. Comparing the columns directly overstates the gap where local incomes differ.
Insurance is where the health-system difference becomes visible in a household budget: CHF 400 and $300 a month in Switzerland and the United States, against £90 in the UK. Housing dominates everywhere, but it is the insurance line that separates the two systems.
Sources and vintage for this table
| United States | BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey; Fed SCF | 2026-06 |
| United Kingdom | ONS Family Spending; Ofgem energy price cap £1,723/yr typical dual-fuel direct debit (Oct-Dec 2026). Utilities default is a composite of energy, water and broadband, so it sits above the energy cap alone | 2026-06 |
| Canada | StatCan Survey of Household Spending; CMHC rental market report (avg 2-bed ~$1,900) (2025-26) | 2026-06 |
| Australia | ABS Household Expenditure Survey; capital-city rents ~$600/wk (2025-26) | 2026-06 |
| Ireland | CSO Household Budget Survey; Daft national avg rent €1,336/mo (Q4 2025) | 2026-06 |
| Switzerland | FSO household budget; avg net rent ~CHF 1,700/mo; mandatory health insurance ~CHF 350+/mo | 2026-06 |
Retirement and state pension
Reference annual spending in retirement, and the monthly state benefit that offsets it.
| United States | United Kingdom | Canada | Australia | Ireland | Switzerland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual spending | $60,000 | £35,000 | C$50,000 | A$60,000 | €38,000 | CHF 70,000 |
| State pension, monthly | $1,800 | £1,046 | C$1,675 | A$1,200 | €1,250 | CHF 1,800 |
| Reference annual saving | $24,000 | £12,000 | C$14,000 | A$18,000 | €12,000 | CHF 20,000 |
Figures in each country's own currency — not converted, and not adjusted for purchasing power. Comparing the columns directly overstates the gap where local incomes differ.
The state pension covers a materially different share of spending in each country — roughly a third of reference spending in Ireland and the UK, closer to 40% in Canada. That share, not the headline pension figure, is what determines how large a private pot has to be.
Sources and vintage for this table
| United States | Trinity Study (Bengen); SSA actuarial tables | 2026-06 |
| United Kingdom | GOV.UK State Pension rates 2026/27 (full new State Pension £241.30/wk) | 2026-06 |
| Canada | CPP max $1,507.65/mo, avg for new beneficiaries at 65 $925.35/mo (2026); OAS $751.97/mo age 65-74 (Jul-Sep 2026) — default = avg CPP + max OAS | 2026-08 |
| Australia | Age Pension single max $1,200.90/fortnight ≈ $2,602/mo (20 Mar-19 Sep 2026, incl. pension + energy supplements), heavily means-tested — conservative default | 2026-08 |
| Ireland | Citizens Information State Pension (Contributory) €289.30/wk 2025 (~€1,253/mo) | 2026-06 |
| Switzerland | AHV (1st pillar) 2026: max CHF 2,520/mo, min CHF 1,260/mo for a full contribution record | 2026-06 |
Statutory rates
The tables above are representative costs. These are the statutory figures — set by each government rather than estimated from a typical case, and so the safest thing on this page to quote directly.
| United States | United Kingdom | Canada | Australia | Ireland | Switzerland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State pension, full rate single person, full contribution record | varies by earnings record | £241.30/wk | $1,507.65/mo (CPP max) | $1,200.90/fortnight | €299.30/wk | CHF 2,520/mo |
| Pension age | 67 (full) | 66 | 65 (OAS) | 67 | 66 | 65 |
| Employer pension contribution statutory minimum | none | 3% (auto-enrolment) | CPP, shared | 12% (SG) | 1.5%, rising to 6% | BVG, age-banded |
| Tax-free savings allowance annual | IRA $7,500 | ISA £20,000 | TFSA $7,000 | super $32,500 concessional | none (pension relief only) | pillar 3a CHF 7,258 |
| Statutory paid parental leave | none federally | 39 weeks (SMP) | up to 40 or 69 weeks (EI) | 26 weeks | 26 weeks (Maternity Benefit) | 14 weeks |
| Child benefit first child | Child Tax Credit $2,200/yr | £27.05/wk | CCB, income-tested | Family Tax Benefit, income-tested | €140/mo | cantonal, from CHF 200/mo |
Rates current for 2026 or the 2026–27 tax year, verified against each issuing authority. Amounts indexed quarterly or annually change without notice — check the authority before publishing a precise figure.
The clearest division on this page. Statutory paid parental leave runs from 26 weeks in Australia and Ireland and up to 69 weeks in Canada, to none at all federally in the United States — and the employer pension minimum runs from 12% in Australia to nothing in the US.
Citing this data
Use it freely, including commercially. The one condition is a link back, so a reader can check the sourcing and vintage for themselves — which matters more here than usual, because the vintages are not uniform.
Suggested citation
DecisionsCalc, "Cross-Country Financial Data" (updated 2026-09).
https://decisionscalc.com/data/In an article
Something like: “…according to reference figures compiled by DecisionsCalc, which puts the Swiss pay-replacement rate at 80% against none in the United States.” Linking the first mention is enough.
Machine-readable
Every figure on this page, with its source and vintage attached, is available as JSON: /data/countries.json. It is generated from the same data at build time, so it cannot fall out of step with the tables above.
curl https://decisionscalc.com/data/countries.jsonWhat we can't tell you
Worth being explicit about the limits, because they affect how far these numbers can be pushed:
- No currency conversion. Columns are in local currency. Converting them at spot rates would imply a precision the underlying figures don't have, and would go stale immediately.
- No purchasing-power adjustment. A CHF 70,000 Swiss retirement spend and a £35,000 UK one are not two points on one scale.
- Vintages differ. Some figures are current to 2026, others are the most recent published release, which in a few cases is 2023–24. Each is labelled; none is silently rolled forward.
- These are typical cases, not averages. They're chosen to make a calculator's first screen sensible, not to be a measure of central tendency.
- Two fields are deliberately absent — fuel economy and property tax — because the units differ by country and a side-by-side row would mislead. They exist in the calculators, where the local unit is shown.
Press and corrections
If you're writing something and need a figure we don't publish, a breakdown by state or province, or a check on how one of these was compiled, get in touch. If you think one is wrong, please say so — corrections are welcome and we'll say what changed and when.
DecisionsCalc is run by a solo operator, not a firm, and has no regulated adviser on staff. Figures are compiled from public sources with AI assistance and are general information, not financial advice. See our editorial standards and methodology.
Related
- Six-country cost comparisons — the written analysis behind these tables.
- Embeddable calculators — put the interactive versions on your own site, free.
- All calculators — run any of this against your own numbers.