News
What official data tells us about Switzerland’s 2’110 municipalities. Every article relies solely on public, dated, cited figures.
What moving to another municipality really changes
A married couple with an income of 120’000 francs pays 13’009 francs a year in income tax, health insurance premiums and electricity in <strong>Baar</strong>, in the canton of Zug, and 32’608 francs in <strong>Les Verrières</strong>, in the canton of Neuchâtel. Between the two extremes of the 2’106 municipalities documented on all three items, the difference reaches 19’599 francs a year.
The tax bill of a family with two children, municipality by municipality
A married couple with two children and an income of 150’000 francs pays 3’060 francs in income tax in <strong>Baar</strong>, in the canton of Zug, and 21’270 francs in <strong>Les Verrières</strong>, in the canton of Neuchâtel. At identical income and family situation, the gap reaches 18’210 francs a year across the 2’107 municipalities for which the Federal Tax Administration publishes a 2025 figure.
What a young adult pays depending on where they settle
A young adult aged 19 to 25 pays an average health insurance premium of 216.6 francs a month in <strong>Appenzell</strong> and 431.9 francs in <strong>Perly-Certoux</strong>, in the canton of Geneva. Over a year the gap reaches 2’584 francs, according to the official averages published by the Federal Office of Public Health for 2026.
Where vacant dwellings remain, and which ones are on the rail network
The official count of 1 June 2025 records 48’455 vacant dwellings in Switzerland. They are very unevenly spread: 1’154 municipalities out of 2’110 report a rate below 1 %, including 196 with no vacant dwelling at all, while 229 municipalities of at least 1’000 residents exceed 2 %.
Why a pension of 80’000 francs costs more than a salary
At equal income, a retired person pays more tax than an employee. On an income of 80’000 francs the median tax burden reaches 16.43 % for the retired person against 13.29 % for the working single person, or 13’144 francs against 10’632 francs. The difference holds in all 2’107 municipalities documented by the Federal Tax Administration, without a single exception.
The 2027 tariffs are coming: the 2026 baseline to compare them with
Switzerland’s roughly 590 grid operators must report their electricity tariffs for the following year before the end of August, and the national comparison published by the Federal Electricity Commission appears in early September. To gauge what the announced change will represent, here is what each of the 2’108 documented municipalities pays today.
The municipalities where more people work than live
Out of 2’022 municipalities, 67 have more jobs than residents. The Federal Statistical Office’s job survey relates to 2018; the population is that of 31 December 2024. Manno, in Ticino, comes top with 6’279 posts for 1’373 residents, or 4.57 jobs per resident. The median ratio stands at 0.34.
What an electricity bill contains, municipality by municipality
An electricity tariff is not a single price. It adds up energy, the grid, then levies and the federal surcharge. Across the 2’108 municipalities covered by the 2026 tariffs published by ElCom, the median municipal grid share reaches 39.7 % of the total. The price of energy stands at 12.11 ct./kWh for the median municipality, the grid at 11.03 ct./kWh.
The age of Switzerland, municipality by municipality
Switzerland has almost as many residents aged 65 or over as under 20: 19.6 % against 19.9 % of the permanent resident population, according to the STATPOP survey of the Federal Statistical Office at 31 December 2024. Differences between municipalities are marked. Among municipalities of at least 1’000 residents, Brissago (TI) reaches 39.1 % aged 65 or over, compared with 9.8 % in Chavannes-près-Renens (VD).
2’110 municipalities on 1 January 2026: five years of mergers redraw the Swiss map
Switzerland has 2’110 municipalities on 1 January 2026, down from 2’172 five years earlier, according to the official register kept by the Federal Statistical Office. Over five years, 83 municipalities were absorbed through mergers and 21 new entities were created. The same register year records a case unique to the period: Moutier and its 7’256 residents leave the canton of Bern to join the canton of Jura.
Electricity tariffs 2026: from one municipality to the next, bills vary more than fourfold
The same household pays 9.64 centimes per kilowatt-hour for its electricity in Zwischbergen (VS), but 43.61 centimes in Kestenholz (SO), according to the 2026 tariffs published by ElCom. The gap reaches a ratio of 4.5. For an annual consumption of 4’500 kWh, the bill thus rises from around CHF 430 to nearly CHF 1’960, without moving home or changing habits.
Health insurance premiums 2026: up to CHF 3’318 apart per year depending on the region
An adult pays an average of CHF 311.50 a month in Zug, against CHF 588 in Ticino’s highest premium region. The gap reaches CHF 276.50 a month, or CHF 3’318 a year, according to the official 2026 averages published by the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH). Place of residence remains one of the most visible factors in the level of the premium.
Vacant dwellings: Switzerland at 1.0 %, Thun at 0.05 %
Switzerland had 48’455 vacant dwellings on 1 June 2025, according to the survey by the Federal Statistical Office. That is 1.0 % of a stock of 4’840’096 dwellings. Behind this average, 1’154 municipalities sit below the 1 % mark. And among cities with more than 30’000 residents, Thun posts the lowest rate: 0.05 %.
Public transport: 2.67 million departures on a weekday, municipality by municipality
Swiss public transport schedules 2’671’020 departures on an ordinary Tuesday, according to the official 2026 timetable published on opentransportdata.swiss. Civiora has allocated these train, bus, tram, boat and cable-car services to the country’s 2’110 municipalities. The result: 2’066 municipalities have at least one departure, Zurich alone accounts for 223’827, and the offer shrinks by roughly a third on Sundays.
Switzerland has gained 1.18 million residents in fourteen years: where is growth concentrated?
Switzerland had 9’051’029 residents at the end of 2024, against 7’870’134 fourteen years earlier, according to the STATPOP statistics of the Federal Statistical Office. That is 1.18 million additional people, a rise of 15.0 %. The growth is not evenly spread: 1’247 municipalities with at least 1’000 residents in 2010 gained population, while 101 lost residents.