When we choose a Swiss bank account, we want it to have the lowest fees and the maximum security. With this article, we will understand how to choose a good bank account in Switzerland?
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Security regarding Swiss bank accounts?
In Switzerland, banks have a reputation for being financially sound. This is an advantage for the customer.
On the other hand, a bank is a business. And as in any business, there is the possibility that the bank will go bankrupt.
In 2024, the most striking example was Credit Suisse. Indeed, one of the banks with the most customers in Switzerland went bankrupt. In reality, even large banks and traditional banks can go bankrupt!
But does this mean that if the Swiss bank goes bankrupt, the client could lose all his money? 🧐
In fact, before opening a bank account, You should find out whether the bank has a deposit guarantee of CHF 100,000 in the event of bankruptcy.. And fortunately, This is the case for the majority of Swiss banks.
👉 In short, this deposit guarantee redistributes the customer's first 100,000 Swiss francs in the event of the bank's bankruptcy.
Note that some banks do not have a deposit guarantee, but are linked to other Swiss banks that have a license. Thus, the customer is always protected.
👉 In addition, in Switzerland, bank accounts are monitored by FIMNA. This is a federal financial market supervisory authority in Switzerland.
This monitoring allows to regulate the finances of Swiss bank accounts. Which is excellent news for the customer 😉
Conditions for choosing a good bank account in Switzerland?
In my article ''Guide to Selecting a Cheap Bank Account'. I have detailed what are the conditions that I find acceptable for holding a bank account.
👉 In broad terms, my conditions for having a Swiss bank account are:
| Bank Card Financial Network | Mastercard or Visa |
| Account maintenance fees per year | 0 CHF |
| Bank card fees per year | 0 CHF |
| Cash withdrawals without bank fees (Switzerland) | At least twice a month |
| Cash withdrawal (abroad) | maximum 1.5% |
| National banking movements | 0 CHF |
| International banking movements (exchange rate included) | 1% maximum |
| Minimum amount to hold in the account (no fees) | 0 CHF |
| Guarantee of the first CHF 100,000 in the event of bank failure | Yes |
| Payment method | According to the customer's wishes |
| Payment region | In the world |
Expensive bank account VS cheap bank account
At first glance, you might think that bank charges do not have a big impact on the client's budget.
But in reality, the accumulated fees of an expensive bank account are very expensive!
Here is a comparison between two imaginary people:
- Vicent, who has an expensive bank account
- Toni, who has a cheap bank account.
Note that they spend exactly the same amount annually!
- Have a bank account
- 20,000 CHF of bank expenses within the country
- 1,500 CHF cash withdrawal in CHF from ATMs in Switzerland
- 10,000 CHF card payment abroad
- 5,000 CHF cash withdrawal from an ATM abroad
- 3,000 CHF of money transfers abroad
Here's how much each person will pay in bank fees:
| Vicent (expensive bank account) | Toni (cheap bank account) | |
|---|---|---|
| Account maintenance fees per year | 60 CHF | 0 CHF |
| Bank card fees per year | 100 CHF | 0 CHF |
| 20,000 CHF of bank expenses within the country | 0 CHF | 0 CHF |
| 1,500 CHF cash withdrawal in CHF in Switzerland | 0 CHF | 0 CHF |
| 10,000 CHF card payment abroad | (3%) 300 CHF | (1%) 100 CHF |
| 5,000 CHF cash withdrawal from an ATM abroad | (3%) 150 CHF | (1%) 50 CHF |
| 3,000 CHF of money transfers abroad | (3%) 90 CHF | (1%) 30 CHF |
| Total | 700 CHF | 180 CHF |
👉 We conclude in this example that Toni wins in his pocket 520 CHF per year in bank commissions compared to Vincent.
Although Vincent and Toni have exactly the same expenses per year!
In reality, the only aspect that changes between the two is… having a cheaper bank account!
Bank account comparators in Switzerland?
In Switzerland, there are several bank account comparators.
👉 In my opinion, the best comparators to compare Swiss bank accounts are:
- Moneyland
- Hellosafe
➡️ On the other hand, I must admit that I cannot find any comprehensive bank account comparator in Switzerland..
Indeed, the information written by the comparators is often too general in my opinion. With very few filters. And sometimes, the written information is false or outdated.
In addition, most sites only compare a few bank accounts. Thus, the customer cannot see the entire Swiss bank account market.
👉 Therefore, it is interesting to consult a bank account comparator to get an overview of the Swiss financial market. But in my opinion, it is better to check the commissions directly on the bank's website.
My Favorite Swiss Bank Accounts
It is worth noting that my favorite bank accounts are those that have the criteria in the table in the “ the conditions for choosing a bank account in Switzerland? ”.
So here is the table again 😊
| Bank Card Financial Network | Mastercard or Visa |
| Account maintenance fees per year | 0 CHF |
| Bank card fees per year | 0 CHF |
| Cash withdrawals without bank fees (Switzerland) | At least twice a month |
| Cash withdrawal (abroad) | Maximum 1.5% |
| National banking movements | 0 CHF |
| International banking movements (exchange rate included) | 1% maximum |
| Minimum amount to hold in the account (no fees) | 0 CHF |
| Guarantee of the first CHF 100,000 in the event of bank failure | Yes |
| Payment method | According to the customer's wishes |
| Payment region | In the world |
➡️ In fact, according to my research and to my knowledge, there are only 3 Swiss bank accounts that offer the conditions in the table!
I wrote a detailed article for each account. But here is a table to summarize each account!
Neon red version
| Bank Card Financial Network | MasterCard |
| Account maintenance fees per year | 0 CHF |
| Bank card fees per year | 0 CHF per year (but 10 CHF for sending the card) |
| Cash withdrawals (Swiss) | No fees if a maximum of 2 withdrawals per month (from the 3rd withdrawal, 2 CHF per withdrawal) |
| Cash withdrawals (stranger) | 1.5% |
| National banking movements | 0 CHF |
| International Payments (exchange rate included) | 0.35% |
| International money transfer | Wise Price + 0.4% markup |
| Minimum amount to hold | 0 CHF |
| Guarantee of the first CHF 100,000 in the event of bank failure | Yes |
| Payment method | – Bank card – Twint – Mobile payment |
| Payment region | Worldwide (MasterCard countries) |
In reality, if you use Neon only to pay and hold a bank account. Neon is a bank without fees!
We (top banking package))
| Bank Card Financial Network | MasterCard |
| Account maintenance fees per year | 0 CHF |
| Bank card fees per year | 0 CHF |
| Cash withdrawals (Swiss) | No fees if a maximum of 24 withdrawals per year (from the 25th withdrawal, 2 CHF per withdrawal) |
| Cash withdrawals (stranger) | No fees if a maximum of 24 withdrawals per year (from the 25th withdrawal, 2 CHF per withdrawal) (SEPA countries only) |
| National banking movements | 0 CHF |
| International Payments (exchange rate included) | 0% |
| International money transfer | 0% (only SEPA countries) |
| Minimum amount to hold | 0 CHF |
| Guarantee of the first CHF 100,000 in the event of bank failure | Yes |
| Payment method | – Bank card – Twint |
| Payment region | Worldwide (MasterCard countries) |
👉 At the time of writing, Wir is probably the most interesting bank account in Switzerland!
🔍 In fact, with moderate use, the Wir bank account does not charge any commission throughout Europe!
Yuh
| Bank Card Financial Network | MasterCard |
| Account maintenance fees per year | 0 CHF |
| Bank card fees per year | 0 CHF |
| Cash withdrawals without bank fees (Swiss) | No fees if maximum 1 withdrawal per week (from the 2nd withdrawal per week, 2 CHF per withdrawal) |
| Cash withdrawals (stranger) | 4.90 CHF |
| National banking movements | 0 CHF |
| International Payments (exchange rate included) | 0.95% |
| International money transfer | 4 CHF or 0.95% (only SEPA countries) |
| Minimum amount to hold | 0 CHF |
| Guarantee of the first CHF 100,000 in the event of bank failure | Yes |
| Payment method | – Bank card – Twint – Mobile payment |
| Payment region | Worldwide (MasterCard countries) |
Yuh also has very good commissions!
On the other hand, Yuh has an exchange rate of 0.95 %. Which makes Yuh more expensive compared to Neon or Wir.
Conclusion
In order to understand how to choose a bank account in Switzerland. There are several criteria. The main ones are:
- No fees for opening and maintaining the bank account
- No bank card fees
- No surcharge for bank transactions in Switzerland
- Increase of maximum 1% concerning banking movements with foreign countries
- Guarantee of reimbursement of the first CHF 100,000 in the event of bankruptcy of the bank account
Note that in order to analyze bank accounts in Switzerland, there are bank account comparators. But in my opinion, they are currently not sufficiently developed.
👉 After analyzing several Swiss bank accounts, here are my top 3:
- Neon red version
- Yuh
- We have the top banking package
➡️ My favorite Swiss bank account at the moment is the Wir bank account. Indeed, I think it is the Swiss bank account with the most interesting commissions!
How to choose a good bank account in Switzerland?
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