In the future, sustainable development under the umbrella of the 2000 W society could be of major interest. Could the target of the 2000 W society, i.e. a primary energy per capita (PEC) consumption of 2000 W, be realized until 2050? Various combinations of PEC and CO₂ targets are tested, and the additional costs to be paid by the society are estimated. The assessment is carried out with the Swiss MARKAL model, a bottom-up energy-system model projecting future technology investments for Switzerland. The analysis reveals that the 2000 W society should be seen as a long-term goal. For all contemplated scenarios, a PEC consumption of 3500 W per capita (w/cap) is feasible in the year 2050. However, strong PEC consumption targets can reduce CO₂ emissions to an equivalent of 5% per decade at maximum. For stronger CO₂ emission reduction goals, corresponding targets must be formulated explicitly. At an oil price of 75 US$₂₀₀₀/bbl in 2050, the additional (cumulative, discounted) costs to reach a 10% CO₂ reduction per decade combined with a 3500 W per capita target amount to about 40 billion US$₂₀₀₀. On the contrary, to reach pure CO₂ reduction targets is drastically cheaper, challenging the vision of the 2000 W society.