Swiss households on average will pay a little less for electricity next year—but the relief will be uneven. Average tariffs will fall by 4% in 2026, after a 10% drop this year, according to ElCom, the federal electricity regulator. For a household using 4,500kWh annually, that means a saving of around CHF 58.
Beneath the average lie sharp regional contrasts. In La Chaux-de-Fonds and Neuchâtel, customers of Viteos will see prices tumble by 15%, bringing them level with those of Groupe E, the other big local supplier, which is cutting by 5%. Lausanne will enjoy a 12% drop. Elsewhere, declines are more modest: about 5% in much of Fribourg, central Valais and the Vallée de Joux, and barely 1–3% in Geneva, Jura and parts of Vaud.
Not everyone will celebrate. In Zermatt, bills will jump by 18%. Several Upper Valais communes also face steep rises. Zwischbergen, despite a 6.5% increase, will still boast the cheapest power in the country at 9.5 centimes per kWh—one-quarter the price of Kestenholz in Solothurn, the priciest at 43 centimes.
The respite reflects falling wholesale costs. Many contracts signed in 2022–23, when European energy prices soared, are expiring. Yet electricity remains far more expensive than before the crisis: next year’s average tariff of 27.7 centimes per kWh is still a third higher than in 2022, when households paid 21 centimes.
The geography of Swiss power prices, mapped by ElCom, reveals just how fragmented the market remains. With more than 600 local distributors setting tariffs, households in neighbouring towns can face very different bills.
For now, electricity in Switzerland will be a little cheaper—but hardly cheap. See 2026 prices by municipality below or by clicking on this EICom link.
More on this:
ElCom data (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
For more stories like this on Switzerland follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
Leave a Reply