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LIVING IN SWITZERLAND

How Switzerland’s Covid switch to card has made things more expensive

Finally, you can now pay in Switzerland with card at plenty of shops and retailers, although the change is placing upward pressure on costs of living.

Published: 9 February 2022 16:38 CET
A person pays with card at a hair salon. Photo by Blake Wisz on Unsplash
A person pays with card at a hair salon. Photo by Blake Wisz on Unsplash

For many, one of the few silver linings of the Covid pandemic was a final push in the direction of card payments. 

Unlike just two years ago, it is now possible to pay with cards rather than cash at a wide array of shops, stores and businesses all across the country. 

However, what we’ve gained in terms of convenience we may be paying for – quite literally. 

READ MORE: How the cost of living will change in Switzerland in 2022

Prices of everyday items are going up due to the added costs for businesses of setting up card payment systems, along with the costs which are levied on each transaction. 

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How much are things going up by?

According to a study by Switzerland’s Watson news organisation, the average card transaction costs the company 11 cents. 

The banks charge a fixed rate of ten cents per transaction, along with a fee which averages out at 0.7 cents for each transaction. 

READ MORE: Could Covid end the Swiss love affair with cash?

While the costs of each transaction have actually decreased since the start of the pandemic – pre-pandemic transactions cost roughly 28 cents each – the costs are still difficult for businesses to bear. 

With other costs on the rise due to inflation, the Covid pandemic and climate change leading to unpredictable crop yields over the past year, it has become even more difficult for businesses to absorb these costs. 

https://www.watson.ch/wirtschaft/schweiz/719657169-neue-bezahlgewohnheiten-wegen-corona-darum-wird-das-gipfeli-teurer

As a result, they are being passed on to the consumer. 

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COST OF LIVING

From meat to travel: What’s becoming cheaper in Switzerland this autumn?

Usually, you expect the cost of living in Switzerland to go up — and often it does. But sometimes the consumers get a pleasant surprise — prices actually drop!

Published: 19 September 2024 15:05 CEST
From meat to travel: What's becoming cheaper in Switzerland this autumn?

Even in Switzerland, prices go down at times, for reasons that are often hard to explain, because they driven by complex market forces. 

Right now, you can take advantage of these lower-than-normal prices:

Meat

Aldi recently announced price reductions of up to 36 percent for fresh beef, poultry, pork and lamb.

This means, for example, that 500 grams of minced beef now costs just 5.99 francs, almost 2 francs less than before.

A kilo of chicken thighs is 35 percent cheaper currently — at 5.49 francs.

And for 100 grams of pork fillet, you now have to pay 2.99 francs, instead of 3.99 francs previously.

Denner followed shortly after with its own reductions of around 25 percent on minced beef.

In the meantime, the more expensive retailer, Coop, is also about to cut prices: it said it would reduce the price per kilo of imported minced meat by a quarter. Swiss chicken thighs will cost 6.3 percent less, and pork fillet will be 25 cheaper.percent.

As The Local reported recently, this ‘price war’ among retailers benefits Swiss consumers:

READ ALSO: Is Switzerland’s latest supermarket price war good for shoppers? 

Fruits and vegetables

Tomatoes, zucchini, eggplants, and peppers have also seen a sharp decline.

According to figures from the Federal Statistical Office (FSO), their prices fell by 3.3 percent in August, as compared to the previous month.

For melons and grapes, prices dropped even more: by 7.8 and 15.5 percent, respectively.

Gasoline

Refuelling your car has also become cheaper.

Compared to the previous month, the price of petrol fell in August 1.9 percent. 

A litre of unleaded currently costs 1.77 francs and a litre of diesel 1.82 francs.

“In the last two weeks, fuel prices have fallen,” confirmed Vanessa Flack, a spokesperson for the TCS motoring organisation.

For heating oil, the decrease is between 6.4 and  12.6 percent.

Air travel

According to the latest figures from the FSO, the price level of international flights in August was 6.7 percent lower than in July.

“Overall, as far as tickets are concerned, we see that they are lower this year than in 2023,” according to Muriel Wolf Landau, spokesperson for Hotelplan travel agency.

All of the above cuts will bring some relief to Swiss consumers and may even (though slightly) offset the  increasing costs, like those of health insurance premiums.

READ ALSO: The best travel deals in Switzerland this autumn

Keep in mind though that these (and other) prices could very well increase in the medium term, if various negative economic factors converge.

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