Zurich apartments & rentals: how to choose
Short-term rentals are legal in Zurich, but the regulation is tightening — the city now requires a change-of-use permit for flats let permanently as short-term or business apartments. The catch is supply and price: Zurich’s rental pool is small for a city of its stature, and a good apartment is not a discount product here. It’s a space-and-kitchen play — which, at Swiss restaurant prices, is worth real money to families and groups.
⚠︎ Know the rules (they’re lighter here)
Zurich is no longer the purely permissive end of the spectrum. There is no city registration number a guest has to look for on a listing, no tourist-rental licence regime, and no cantonal statutory visitor’s tax (Kurtaxe) — a small per-person, per-night city tax is still commonly collected on your booking, sometimes by the platform, so read the fee breakdown. Regulation now runs through zoning and a permit counter alike: on 30 April 2026 the Federal Supreme Court upheld the city’s BZO rule, so an apartment used permanently as an Airbnb or business apartment no longer counts toward the mandatory residential share (Wohnanteil), with no grandfathering, and the owner must file a building application (Baugesuch) declaring the type of residential use — expected in force from autumn 2026. A popular initiative to cap short-term letting at 90 days a year per dwelling is also pending. That is a host-side risk, not a guest-side checklist — but because it is actively moving, confirm the current position with the city portal below rather than trusting this page or a listing’s own claims.
Rules change — confirm the current requirements: City of Zurich — official portal (stadt-zuerich.ch).
Who a rental suits
Rentals suit families and groups for whom two or three hotel rooms at Zurich rates cost more than an apartment, stays of a week or more, and anyone planning to cook — the single most effective way to cut a Swiss food budget. Solo travelers and couples on short trips usually do better in Zurich’s deep hotel market, and serviced apartments are the strong middle option.
Verify before you book
- The all-in total — cleaning fee plus the per-person city tax — divided by nights; on Zurich’s already high base, fees change the real per-night number fast.
- The nearest tram or S-Bahn stop and whether the address sits in ZVV zone 110 (the city zone) — a base outside it changes every ticket you buy.
- Cooling in summer: air conditioning is rare in Swiss apartment buildings, so for July–August check the floor, the window orientation and whether fans are provided.
- Noise reality for anything on or near Langstrasse — read recent reviews for weekend nights specifically; a block’s distance makes a real difference.
- Swiss apartment-house norms: quiet hours from around 10pm, shared-laundry-room schedules and recycling rules are taken seriously — check the house rules so they don’t surprise you.
- Kitchen equipment, if cooking is your reason for renting — a hotplate and one pan defeats the purpose at Swiss grocery-to-restaurant price gaps.
Where to look for rentals
Kreis 4 (Langstrasse) and Kreis 5 (Zürich West) hold the largest share of apartment listings and the city’s more forgiving prices; Seefeld and Enge offer lakeside calm at a clear premium; Oerlikon is the value pocket with a five-minute S-Bahn link to the Hauptbahnhof. The Altstadt itself has only a handful of rentals — supply there is mostly hotels. Zurich’s serviced-apartment (aparthotel) sector is unusually strong and is often the realistic “rental” for stays under a week.
Check live rentals & availability
Browse current Zurich rentals on Vrbo — check the all-in total including cleaning and the per-person city tax.
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