Electricity tariffs 2026: from one municipality to the next, bills vary more than fourfold

A ratio of one to 4.5 between the two extremes

Zwischbergen, a Valais municipality of 71 residents, has the lowest tariff in the country: 9.64 ct./kWh. At the other end, Kestenholz (SO), a Solothurn municipality of 1’884 residents, reaches 43.61 ct./kWh. For the reference household, that means around CHF 430 a year on one side and nearly CHF 1’960 on the other. The difference amounts to around CHF 1’530 per year.

The lowest tariffs are concentrated in the valleys of Graubünden. Four of the country’s five cheapest municipalities lie in that canton:

• Rongellen (GR), 59 residents: 10.47 ct./kWh
• Muntogna da Schons (GR), 368 residents: 10.97 ct./kWh
• Zillis-Reischen (GR), 426 residents: 11.47 ct./kWh
• Sils im Domleschg (GR), 976 residents: 12.33 ct./kWh

At the top of the scale, Kestenholz is followed by Bischofszell (TG, 6’417 residents) at 41.37 ct. and Teuffenthal (BE, 154 residents) at 41.09 ct. Next come Niederhelfenschwil (SG, 3’290 residents) at 39.83 ct. and Murgenthal (AG, 3’128 residents) at 39.65 ct.

The H4 profile, an identical reference household everywhere

These figures are based on the H4 profile, a standard consumption profile defined by ElCom, the federal electricity regulator. It corresponds to a 5-room flat with an electric cooker and a tumble dryer, consuming around 4’500 kWh a year. The same notional household is thus compared in every municipality, at local conditions.

On this basis, the national median — the middle value, splitting the municipalities into two equal halves — stands at 27.89 ct./kWh. That corresponds to an annual bill of around CHF 1’260 for the H4 household.

Large cities: Zurich and Geneva below the national median

The country’s two largest cities sit below the national median. Zurich stands at 24.76 ct./kWh and Geneva at 24.88 ct., against a median of 27.89 ct. across municipalities. Lausanne (30.5 ct.) and Winterthur (30.48 ct.) exceed it, while Bern (33.26 ct.) and Basel (33.25 ct.) have the highest tariffs of the six large cities.

The gap between Bern and Zurich reaches 8.5 ct./kWh. For the H4 household, that represents around CHF 380 of difference per year between the two cities.

Zug, Nidwalden and Zurich, the cantons with the lowest medians

At cantonal level, Zug has the lowest median at 21.88 ct./kWh. Nidwalden (22.06 ct.) and Zurich (24.14 ct.) follow, all three below the national median of 27.89 ct. For the H4 household, the Zug median corresponds to an annual bill of around CHF 980.

At the other end of the ranking, Basel-Stadt reaches 33.25 ct./kWh, ahead of Schaffhausen (32.2 ct.) and Solothurn (30.47 ct.). The canton of Solothurn is also home to Kestenholz, the municipality with the country’s highest tariff. Between the Zug median and the Basel median, the gap amounts to 11.37 ct./kWh, or around CHF 510 a year for the H4 household.

2’108 municipalities covered, 2027 tariffs expected in autumn 2026

ElCom’s survey covers 2’108 of the 2’110 municipalities Switzerland has on 1 January 2026. Civiora’s comparison tool shows where each municipality stands relative to its neighbour, its canton and the national median.

In 130 municipalities, several grid operators share the territory; Civiora then displays the median of their tariffs. A single village can therefore have several tariffs depending on the district or hamlet.

The tariffs shown correspond to ElCom’s H4 profile (5-room flat, around 4’500 kWh a year), in centimes per kWh. Annual bills are rounded to the nearest ten francs. For the 130 municipalities served by several grid operators, Civiora displays the median value of the tariffs in force on municipal territory.

Civiora’s comparison tool is updated with each new tariff release. ElCom publishes the following year’s tariffs at the end of summer; the 2027 tariffs are expected by autumn 2026.