Population
22'932↑1.0%
About Aarau
Municipality · Aargau
Aarau is a town, a municipality, and the capital of the northern Swiss canton of Aargau. The town is also the capital of the district of Aarau. It is German-speaking and predominantly Protestant. Aarau is situated on the Swiss plateau, in the valley of the Aare, on the river's right bank, and at the southern foot of the Jura Mountains, and is west of Zurich, 58 kilometres south of Basel and 65 kilometres northeast of Bern. The municipality borders directly on the canton of Solothurn to the west. It is the largest town in Aargau. At the beginning of 2010 Rohr became a district of Aarau.
Population
22'932
Tax multiplier
96%
Aarau in numbers
Federal data — BFS (STATPOP, STATENT, land use), ESTV, BAKOM, ARE.96%
Bottom quartile in canton
Median taxable income
CHF 54'300↑1.3%
Top quartile in canton
Median net income
CHF 58'350↑0.6%
81%
Cantonal tax multiplier
103%↓7.2%
0.38%↓7.3%
Bottom quartile in canton
- Settlement50%
- Forest32%
- Agriculture11%
- Other7%
Foreign residents
23.5%↑0.3%
Above average in canton
Median rent
CHF 24/ m²
+32% vs CH
Dwellings
12'632↑1.6%
Jobs (FTE)
26'800↑1.7%
89%
Housing market in Aarau
The rental vacancy rate is 0.38%, 68% below the cantonal average (1.19 %) — a tight rental market. The municipal tax multiplier (Steuerfuss) is 96%, 8% below the cantonal average (104 %) — tax-favourable. Median taxable income is CHF 62'100, roughly the Swiss average (CHF 61'929). Aarau has 22'932 residents (2025).
Source: Swiss Federal Statistical Office (BFS).
