Population
45'466↑0.3%
About Neuchâtel
Municipality · Neuchâtel
Neuchâtel is a town, a municipality, and the capital of the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel on Lake Neuchâtel. Since the fusion in 2021 of the municipalities of Neuchâtel, Corcelles-Cormondrèche, Peseux, and Valangin, the city has approximately 45,000 inhabitants. The city is sometimes referred to historically by the German name Neuenburg; both the French and German names mean 'New Castle'.
Population
45'466
Tax multiplier
65%
Neuchâtel in numbers
Federal data — BFS (STATPOP, STATENT, land use), ESTV, BAKOM, ARE.65%
Bottom 10% in canton
Median taxable income
CHF 43'900↑1.2%
Middle in canton
Median net income
CHF 48'450↑0.7%
70%
Cantonal tax multiplier
124%
1.04%↑15.6%
Middle in canton
- Forest53%
- Settlement31%
- Agriculture16%
- Other1%
Foreign residents
33.0%
Top 10% in canton
Median rent
CHF 20/ m²
+11% vs CH
Dwellings
26'250↑2.3%
Jobs (FTE)
27'960↓3.1%
86%
Housing market in Neuchâtel
The rental vacancy rate is 1.04%, 44% below the cantonal average (1.85 %) — a tight rental market. The municipal tax multiplier (Steuerfuss) is 65%, 6% below the cantonal average (69 %) — tax-favourable. Median taxable income is CHF 56'500, 9% below the Swiss median (CHF 61'929). Neuchâtel has 45'466 residents (2025).
Source: Swiss Federal Statistical Office (BFS).