Living in Sarnen

In Sarnen, unemployment is 0.8% (2022).

Sarnen is a city in Switzerland, with a population of 10,862 at the end of 2024. The resident counts list 8,938 Swiss permanent residents and 147 non-permanent residents at the end of 2024.

Last checked 2026-09-2427 sources

Population10,862people31 Dec 2024Official source · Switzerland official denominator source

Median gross salary (region)7,445EUR/month31 Dec 2024Official source · www.pxweb.bfs.admin.ch

Average net rent16.69EUR/m²/month31 Dec 2024Regional figureOfficial source · Loyer moyen par m2 en francs selon le nombre de pièces, par canton (mean rent per m2 in CHF by number of rooms and canton)

Unemployment rate0.8%country median 2.3% — 65% belowOfficial source · Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS/FSO), source data SECO

Recorded crime4,745incidents per 100,00031 Dec 2025Regional figureOfficial source · Polizeiliche Kriminalstatistik (PKS) 2025, tables T3/T8/T9

Which Switzerland-wide rules apply when you move to Sarnen?

National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.

Visa and entry rulesPassport-specific entry and national residence context.BenefitsCountry-wide eligibility and official application routes.Taxes in SwitzerlandNational rates and thresholds that apply in Sarnen.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

What recurs every month2 published recurring costs, € per month

€ / month

Internet, 60 Mbps€71

Mobile plan, 10 GB€56

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited	70.68 EUR/month	30 Sept 2026	Swisscom blue Internet S¹¹Official · national market
Mobile plan, 10 GB	56.03 EUR/month	30 Sept 2026	Salt Swiss 10GB⁷Official · national market
Average net rent (nettokalt)	16.69 EUR/m²/month	31 Dec 2024	Loyer moyen par m2 en francs selon le nombre de pièces, par canton (mean rent per m2 in CHF by number of rooms and canton)³Official · regional context

Is Sarnen a good place to live?

There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.

Try your profile

Remote worker66%strong on work, weak on air quality · range 55–77%

Skilled employee72%strong on work, weak on education · range 62–82%

Student41%strong on legal route, weak on education · range 29–53%

Family66%strong on family, weak on education · range 54–78%

Retirement55%strong on legal route, weak on admin · range 41–69%

Worked out from these numbers

What does a 60 m² flat cost?

About €1,001 a month in cold rent, from the published average of 16.69 EUR/m²/month. Heating, water and operating charges come on top, and a specific flat can sit either side of an average.

How international is the population?

17.7% of residents hold a foreign nationality — 1,924 of 10,862 people. This counts nationality, not place of birth, so long-settled residents who naturalised are not in it.

Work and income

Unemployment across cities in SwitzerlandUnemployment in Sarnen is 0.8%. Of 176 cities with data, 52 have unemployment of 2 to under 3%.

0–11–22–33–44–55–66–78–99–1011–12

Sarnen 0.8%

Unemployment rate (%)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Median gross salary (regional)	7,445 EUR/month	31 Dec 2024	www.pxweb.bfs.admin.ch¹⁸Official
Unemployment rate	0.8 %country median 2.3%	31 Dec 2022	Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS/FSO), source data SECO¹Official

What does a salary buy in Sarnen?

Take-home pay after tax, minus rent and the everyday bills this city publishes. Each line names its source.

Left over each month€5,084of €6,212 take-home

Rent
Internet
Mobile
Left over

Line-by-line breakdown and sources

Each month	€
Take-home payOECD Taxing Wages 2025, single, no children. Includes central and local income tax and employee social contributions; euro amounts at the ECB average for 2026-08.	€6,212
Rent, 60 m²€16.69/m² · official · Loyer moyen par m2 en francs selon le nombre de pièces, par canton (mean rent per m2 in CHF by number of rooms and canton) · 2024-12-31	− €1,001
Internet€71 · official · Swisscom blue Internet S · 2026-09-30	− €71
Mobile plan€56 · official · Salt Swiss 10GB · 2026-09-30	− €56
Other everyday billsnot published for this city: public transport pass, utilities	—
Left overbefore the bills this city does not publish	€5,084

Take-home pay for other salaries and households Compare with another city Check a job offer in Sarnen Salary needed to live in Sarnen

Public employment service

No exact public employment office is currently linked to Sarnen. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.

Country-level information

arbeit.swiss — Public employment service

State Secretariat for Economic Affairs / public employment service

Job SearchCareer Counselling

Open the Switzerland service overview

Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Sarnen. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.

Safety

Recorded crime across major citiesSarnen highlighted among comparable cities

recorded incidents per 100k residents

Solothurn25,779

Bern20,196

Interlaken18,896

Olten15,369

Kloten13,097

St. Gallen9,783

Winterthur7,988

Muri bei Bern5,389

Wetzikon (ZH)4,048

Küsnacht (ZH)3,718

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents	4,745 incidents per 100,000	31 Dec 2025	Polizeiliche Kriminalstatistik (PKS) 2025, tables T3/T8/T9⁶Official · regional context

Mobility and administration

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Nearest airport	BXO	3 Aug 2026	OurAirports⁴Official
Distance to nearest airport	14 km	3 Aug 2026	OurAirports⁴Official

Language courses and integration

No exact city-level course record is currently published for Sarnen. These verified national programmes may still apply; use the official programme page to check local availability.

Country-level information

Cantonal integration programmes — Newcomer Adaptation

SEM and cantons

For migrants, refugees.

German, French, ItalianIn Person

Open official information

fide language promotion system — State Language Course

State Secretariat for Migration (SEM)

For adult migrants.

German, French, ItalianIn Person, Online

Open official information

Open the full Switzerland section

National programme information is not treated as proof of a course location in Sarnen.

Find courses near Sarnen

Climate and air quality

Temperature through the yearAverage daytime high and night-time low, °C

0°

-1°-7°

1°-5°

3°-2°

7°1°

11°5°

13°7°

10°4°

7°1°

3°-3°

0°-6°

JFMAMJJASOND

Night-time low to daytime high

Rainfall through the yearAverage monthly precipitation, mm

164

155

150

163

153

168

163

161

111

132

173

JFMAMJJASOND

Sunshine through the yearAverage monthly sunshine, hours

124

132

155

156

152

146

162

165

154

159

116

106

JFMAMJJASOND

hours

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Average daytime high by month	Jan -0.8 · Feb -1.2 · Mar 0.6 · Apr 3.2 · May 7.1 · Jun 10.5 · Jul 12.6 · Aug 12.8 · Sep 9.6 · Oct 7.3 · Nov 2.7 · Dec 0.1 °C	31 Dec 1991	World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI¹³Official
Average night-time low by month	Jan -6.5 · Feb -7.1 · Mar -5.2 · Apr -2.5 · May 1.3 · Jun 4.8 · Jul 6.8 · Aug 7.2 · Sep 4 · Oct 1.4 · Nov -3 · Dec -5.6 °C	31 Dec 1991	World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI¹⁴Official
Average temperature by month	Jan -3.8 · Feb -4.4 · Mar -2.5 · Apr 0.1 · May 4 · Jun 7.5 · Jul 9.5 · Aug 9.8 · Sep 6.5 · Oct 4 · Nov -0.3 · Dec -2.9 °C	31 Dec 1991	World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI¹⁵Official
Average precipitation by month	Jan 164.3 · Feb 154.6 · Mar 149.8 · Apr 163.4 · May 152.8 · Jun 167.9 · Jul 163.3 · Aug 161.1 · Sep 110.5 · Oct 98.5 · Nov 131.7 · Dec 173 mm	31 Dec 1991	World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI¹⁶Official
Average sunshine by month	Jan 123.5 · Feb 131.6 · Mar 154.9 · Apr 156 · May 152.1 · Jun 146.4 · Jul 161.8 · Aug 164.9 · Sep 153.9 · Oct 158.9 · Nov 116.2 · Dec 106 hours	31 Dec 1991	World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI¹⁷Official

Similar climate. In Switzerland: Winterthur ±6.6 °C. Elsewhere: Bad Aibling (Germany) ±0.7 °C, Kolbermoor (Germany) ±0.7 °C, Miesbach (Germany) ±0.7 °C, Jönköping (Sweden) ±3.8 °C, Titisee-Neustadt (Germany) ±2.0 °C. Twenty closest, compared month by month

Monthly highs and lows against the 1991–2020 station normals of the nearest station; ± is the average monthly difference.

Population and city profile

Who lives hereResidents by nationality, % of population

By nationality

National passport82.3%
Foreign residents17.7%

Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Cars per 1,000 residents	616.9 cars/1000 residents	31 Dec 2024	Swiss Federal Statistical Office/OFS/BFS¹⁰Official
City area	73.16 km²	2016	Exact BFS Arealstatistik municipality area: sum of exhaustive NOAS top-level categories 1-4, PERIOD=A4 (2013-2018), FJ=2015-16, municipality REGION state 2025-01-01; hectares converted to km².²Official
Foreign non-permanent residents	147 people	31 Dec 2024	Permanent and non permanent resident population by municipality, resident type and citizenship, 2024⁵Official
Foreign residents	1,924 people	31 Dec 2024	Ständige Wohnbevölkerung, Staatsangehörigkeit = Ausland, Gemeinde grain, 31.12.2024.⁸Official
Non-permanent residents	147 people	31 Dec 2024	Permanent and non permanent resident population by municipality, resident type and citizenship, 2024⁵Official
Population density	148.5 people/km²	31 Dec 2024	Reproducible density from BFS STATPOP permanent population at 31.12.2024 divided by the exact official BFS municipality area denominator (2013-2018; FJ=2015-16; area observed_at=2016).²Official
Population	10,862 people	31 Dec 2024	Switzerland official denominator source¹²Official
Swiss non-permanent residents	0 people	31 Dec 2024	Permanent and non permanent resident population by municipality, resident type and citizenship, 2024⁵Official
Swiss permanent residents	8,938 people	31 Dec 2024	Permanent and non permanent resident population by municipality, resident type and citizenship, 2024⁵Official

International community in Sarnen

Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.

Country of birth

Permanent resident population, total sex, all ages · 2025-12-31

Published group	People	Share
Place of birth - total	10,906	100.0%
In Switzerland	8,612	79.0%
Abroad	2,294	21.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁹

Country of birth

Non-permanent resident population, total sex, all ages · 2025-12-31

Published group	People	Share
Place of birth - total	277	100.0%
Abroad	276	99.6%
In Switzerland	1	0.4%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁹

Citizenship

Non-permanent resident population, total sex, all ages · 2025-12-31

Published group	People	Share
Citizenship - total	277	100.0%
Eritrea	51	18.4%
Afghanistan	48	17.3%
Somalia	45	16.2%
Ukraine	42	15.2%
Ethiopia	22	7.9%
Italy	8	2.9%
Poland	8	2.9%
Germany	7	2.5%
Algeria	5	1.8%

Show 26 more groups

Published group	People	Share
Türkiye	4	1.4%
Congo (Kinshasa)	3	1.1%
Sudan	3	1.1%
Sri Lanka	3	1.1%
Georgia	3	1.1%
France	2	0.7%
Portugal	2	0.7%
Morocco	2	0.7%
Iraq	2	0.7%
No indication	1	0.4%
Greece	1	0.4%
Hungary	1	0.4%
Slovakia	1	0.4%
Croatia	1	0.4%
Latvia	1	0.4%
Côte d'Ivoire	1	0.4%
Guinea	1	0.4%
Kenya	1	0.4%
Senegal	1	0.4%
Egypt	1	0.4%
South Sudan	1	0.4%
Colombia	1	0.4%
Iran	1	0.4%
Jordan	1	0.4%
Pakistan	1	0.4%
Thailand	1	0.4%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁹

Alternatives for people set on Sarnen

Three places for the three reasons people leave a city on the shortlist: stay in the region, stay in the country, or keep the budget and change the country. A percentage appears only where both cities publish that metric from the same source, period and grain. Distances are straight lines — travel times are not collected yet.

Stans as a Sarnen alternative in the same region

11 km away, better on 3 of 6 metrics measured the same way, worse on 1.

Recorded crime, per 100k: 3,008 Stans vs 4,745 Sarnen−37%
Nearest airport: 3.0 km Stans vs 14.0 km Sarnen−79%
Rent: €17.85/m² Stans vs €16.69/m² Sarnen+7%
Unemployment: 0.7% Stans vs 0.8% Sarnen−13%
Residents: 8,508 Stans vs 10,862 Sarnen−22%
Median gross pay, region: €7,445 Stans vs €7,445 Sarnensame level

Full comparison More about Stans

Bern as a Sarnen alternative in the same country

61 km away, better on 1 of 3 metrics measured the same way, worse on 0. Rent and recorded crime, per 100k cannot be compared like for like.

Residents: 137,995 Bern vs 10,862 Sarnen+1170%
Rent: €18.05/m² (2021) Bern vs €16.69/m² (2024) Sarnenno percentage
Nearest airport: 6.0 km Bern vs 14.0 km Sarnen−57%
Recorded crime, per 100k: 20,196 Bern vs 4,745 Sarnenno percentage
Median gross pay, region: €7,310 Bern vs €7,445 Sarnensame level

Full comparison More about Bern

Cities near Sarnen

Published cities within 25 km, nearest first. Distances are straight-line.

Alternative cities in Switzerland

Other cities in Switzerland to compare with Sarnen, nearest in population first.

All Switzerland cities

Maur10,884 residents Le Locle10,907 residents Val de Bagnes10,907 residents Davos10,774 residents Payerne10,758 residents Lutry10,751 residents

How does Sarnen compare?

Pick a city. The answer appears here and the address bar keeps it, so the comparison can be shared; the page stays Sarnen's.

Open the full comparison

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Sarnen under the national coverage rules.

Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.

Open the official coverage guide

Country rule verified 2026-08-03.

School for children who move here. School is compulsory from age 4 to 15, and public school is free. Newly arrived pupils get support in the school language: Einführungsklassen / integrative DaZ-Sprachförderung (per canton). How to enrol a child (edk.ch).

A country-wide rule for Switzerland; Sarnen's school authority applies it locally.

Sources: eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu · 2025–2026.

Put Sarnen's key facts on your site — a card with this page's figures and a link back, free under CC BY 4.0.

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

How much does it cost to rent in Sarnen?

Average net cold rent is 16.69 EUR/m²/month, excluding heating and operating charges. For a 70 m² flat that is about €1,168 a month before utilities. Source: Loyer moyen par m2 en francs selon le nombre de pièces, par canton (mean rent per m2 in CHF by number of rooms and canton).

What is the typical salary around Sarnen?

The median gross salary is 7,445 EUR/month. Source: www.pxweb.bfs.admin.ch.

What is the unemployment rate in Sarnen?

The unemployment rate is 0.8 %. Source: Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS/FSO), source data SECO.

How safe is Sarnen?

Police recorded 4,745 incidents per 100,000. This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: Polizeiliche Kriminalstatistik (PKS) 2025, tables T3/T8/T9.

How many people live in Sarnen?

The published population is 10,862 people. Source: Switzerland official denominator source.

How many foreign residents live in Sarnen?

1,924 residents hold a foreign nationality. Source: Ständige Wohnbevölkerung, Staatsangehörigkeit = Ausland, Gemeinde grain, 31.12.2024..

Is Sarnen a good place to live?

Sarnen may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.

Which cities are near Sarnen?

Kerns, Sachseln, Alpnach, Hergiswil (NW), Stans are near Sarnen. Typed relationship labels are shown where published; other rows use straight-line distance from admitted coordinates.

How many people born in Place of birth - total live in Sarnen?

The official country of birth distribution records 10,906 people (100.0%) in the source-defined population for 2025-12-31. This is a country of birth measure, not a general estimate of ethnicity or migration status.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation

ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Sarnen, Switzerland: population, rent, salary, jobs, safety [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 9afba5fe6d912dc2caf9c8a08786e679]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/ch/sarnen/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

BibTeX citation

@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_sarnen-switzerland-population-rent-salary-jobs-safety_48e26fa1137d,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Sarnen, Switzerland: population, rent, salary, jobs, safety},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-10-16},
  version = {9afba5fe6d912dc2caf9c8a08786e679},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/ch/sarnen/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}

Markdown citation

[Sarnen, Switzerland: population, rent, salary, jobs, safety](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/ch/sarnen/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 9afba5fe6d912dc2caf9c8a08786e679; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

JSON Markdown

Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS/FSO), source data SECO dam-api.bfs.admin.ch · checked 2026-08-04
Exact BFS Arealstatistik municipality area: sum of exhaustive NOAS top-level categories 1-4, PERIOD=A4 (2013-2018), FJ=2015-16, municipality REGION state 2025-01-01; hectares converted to km². disseminate.stats.swiss · checked 2026-07-15
Loyer moyen par m2 en francs selon le nombre de pièces, par canton (mean rent per m2 in CHF by number of rooms and canton) dam-api.bfs.admin.ch · checked 2026-09-24
OurAirports davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-08-03
Permanent and non permanent resident population by municipality, resident type and citizenship, 2024 pxweb.bfs.admin.ch · checked 2026-07-18
Polizeiliche Kriminalstatistik (PKS) 2025, tables T3/T8/T9 dam-api.bfs.admin.ch · checked 2026-09-24
Salt Swiss 10GB salt.ch · checked 2026-09-15
Ständige Wohnbevölkerung, Staatsangehörigkeit = Ausland, Gemeinde grain, 31.12.2024. pxweb.bfs.admin.ch · checked 2024-12-31
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO) pxweb.bfs.admin.ch · checked 2026-08-30
Swiss Federal Statistical Office/OFS/BFS pxweb.bfs.admin.ch · checked 2026-08-08

Show 17 more sources

Swisscom blue Internet S swisscom.ch · checked 2026-09-15
Switzerland official denominator source pxweb.bfs.admin.ch · checked 2026-07-14
World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-03
World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-03
World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-03
World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-03
World Meteorological Organization / NOAA NCEI nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-03
www.pxweb.bfs.admin.ch pxweb.bfs.admin.ch · checked 2026-08-27
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06

Spotted a number that looks wrong? Every value here carries its source and date — tell us what you found and we will re-check it against the source.