Health insurance in Switzerland: 2026 guide

Switzerland has a world-renowned healthcare system, with some impressive health outcomes. In fact, life expectancy is 83 years, higher than the average for developed countries of 80.

But the system doesn’t come cheap. Healthcare spending is around 11.7% of gross domestic product (GDP). This is much higher than the 9.3% average for OECD countries.

For residents and expats in Switzerland, there’s a good chance you’ll have to pay more for healthcare here than you did in your home country. But there’s also another important difference. The Swiss Government doesn’t offer free healthcare to either residents or citizens. Instead, you’ll have to fund your own Swiss health insurance. This generally involves a mixture of compulsory and optional health insurance, as well as out-of-pocket costs.

Introduction to healthcare in Switzerland

While there’s no free healthcare in Switzerland, the government still plays a big role. The Swiss Federal Health Insurance Act of 1994 says that every citizen and resident in the country has to have health insurance. This law is known as Krankenversicherungsgesetz (KVG) or Loi fédérale sur l'assurance-maladie.

The KVG also sets a minimum level of health coverage that these plans have to provide. This means that compulsory health insurance coverage is fairly standardized across the country. The compulsory system is called Obligatorische Krankenpflegeversicherung (OKP) or Assurance obligatoire des soins.

However, the costs aren’t the same everywhere. That’s because Swiss cantons (i.e. regional governments) are in charge of setting price caps and controlling the cost of premiums. This means that the costs for both treatment and monthly insurance payments are different, depending on which canton you live in. For example, Geneva, Ticino, and Basel-Stadt have some of the highest healthcare costs in the country. Zug, Appenzell Innerrhoden, and Uri have some of the lowest.

OKP is the default option for healthcare in Switzerland. But you can also choose to buy extra private or international health insurance. We’ll discuss this in more detail below.

Compulsory health insurance in Switzerland (OKP)

If you’re staying in Switzerland for more than three months, you legally have to buy OKP insurance. There are 37 registered insurers across the country – and you’re free to choose which one you get. For expats in Switzerland, you have to sign up for an OKP plan within three months of arrival.

OKP is different from normal private health insurance in a few key ways:

• Insurers have to offer this insurance to everybody, regardless of age or medical condition. They also can’t charge different premiums for age, gender, or if you have pre-existing conditions.
• Regional governments tightly control the costs of premiums, deductibles, co-payments, and out-of-pocket costs.
• OKP plans are always non-profit.

In 2026, the average premium is CHF 393.30 a month, which works out at around $500 and €430.

Unlike in other countries, employers don’t have to offer or pay for OKP insurance. That means you have to choose and pay for the plan yourself.

There are a few exceptions to the compulsory healthcare rule. In practice, however, these apply to a fairly small number of people:

• If you live in Switzerland, but work in a European Free Trade Area (EFTA) state or in the United Kingdom (UK).
• If you exclusively claim a pension from an EFTA state or the UK.
• If you’re a member of a diplomatic or consular mission.

If you don’t sign up for OKP within three months, you’ll still be accepted - but you might have to pay an extra fee. You might also have to pay backdated payments without equivalent coverage.

What does OKP cover?

OKP plans legally have to offer a baseline level of medical coverage. This is defined under the KVG and includes:

• All services provided by a physician
• Hospital treatment
• Prescriptions for approved medicines
• Preventative care, including vaccinations, gynecological screenings, mammograms, and cancer screening
• Maternity care, including hospital care for newborns
• Physiotherapy
• GP visits
• Mental health treatment

As well as this, coverage for some treatments is more limited:

• Alternative/complementary medicine is only covered if it’s through a registered practitioner. Prescribed medicines must be on the List of Pharmaceutical Specialties or the List of Medicines with Tariffs.
• Dental care is only covered if the procedure is a medical emergency.
• OKP insurance will pay a fixed amount per year toward the cost of glasses, contact lenses, and hearing aids. You’ll still have to pay the usual co-pays on top of this (see next section for more details).

The standard insurance also only applies to OKP-registered providers. If the medical provider isn’t registered, you will have to rely on other payment methods to fund the whole treatment. This includes private supplementary insurance or out-of-pocket costs.

Deductibles and co-payments

OKP insurance does not pay all of the costs for your healthcare treatment. Instead, there are some extra costs that you’ll have to pay. These are set out in law (via the KVG), which means they don’t change each year. However, the insurance premium is set by your regional government and is reviewed each year according to inflation.

Generally, you will pay these out-of-pocket when you receive treatment. These include:

Deductible/Franchise:

Known as a franchise, this is a fixed annual cost. The standard/minimum franchise for adults is CHF 300.

You have to pay your whole franchise out-of-pocket before OKP coverage kicks in. Here are some examples to show how the franchise works, assuming the standard CHF 300 franchise:

• If your first treatment of the year is CHF 200, you’ll pay the whole cost out-of-pocket. Then, you’ll have to pay CHF 100 toward your next treatment before standard OKP coverage applies. It will then apply as normal to all remaining treatments for that year.
• If your first treatment of the year is CHF 500, you’ll pay the CHF 300 franchise up-front. Standard OKP coverage will then apply to the remaining CHF 200 and all remaining treatment for the year.

You have some level of choice over your franchise. With a higher franchise, your monthly premium payments will be lower. We’ll cover this in more detail in the next section.

Co-payment:

You also have to pay 10% of the costs for all treatments up-front. This is a flat rate for most treatments and is the same across the country. There’s one major exception: A higher 40% rate might apply if you choose premium/branded medication.

Crucially, the co-payment cost still applies after you’ve paid your whole annual franchise. But here’s the good news: Annual co-payments are capped at CHF 700 for adults and CHF 350 for children/adolescents. This cap is the same even if you have a higher franchise.

If you choose the standard CHF 300 franchise, your maximum out-of-pocket costs will be CHF 1,000 a year. This includes franchise and co-payment. If you choose a higher franchise, it will be the cost of your franchise, plus CHF 700. This does not include hospital charges.

Hospital co-payment:

If you stay in hospital overnight, you’ll have to pay an extra charge. This is CHF 15 per day, regardless of how long you stay for. Children, adolescents, and under-25s in full-time education don’t have to pay this.

These costs don’t contribute to either your franchise or co-payment caps.

Franchise vs premium: How to choose the right option

If you want a lower monthly premium, you can choose a higher yearly franchise. In total, there are six options: 300, 500, 1,000, 1,500, 2,000, 2,500 (all CHF). If you don’t expect to visit the doctor much, you might choose a higher franchise to reduce your monthly premiums.

Here are some examples to show how this decision affects your costs, compared with the standard minimum of CHF 300:

• If you choose a CHF 500 franchise, you can save a maximum of CHF 140 each year (CHF 11.66 a month) on your franchise.
• If you choose a 2,500 franchise, you can save a maximum of CHF 1,540 a year (CHF 128.33 a month). Both examples are compared to the standard minimum CHF 300 franchise.

Be aware, these examples are maximum savings. They could be less, depending on the canton you’re in or the insurance provider you’ve chosen.

You can save on these costs by opting for an HMO-only or GP-only model. The first means you can only access practices registered with the Health Maintenance Organization. The second means you have to consult your GP first, except for emergency treatment.

Beyond OKP: Supplementary and international health insurance in Switzerland

As we explained in the last section, OKP health insurance doesn’t cover all healthcare treatments. It also doesn’t cover every healthcare provider in the country. That’s why many people choose to take out additional private health insurance in Switzerland to increase their coverage.

Here’s an important point to understand: Neither of these options can replace OKP. They can only work alongside your compulsory insurance to extend your coverage.

Supplementary private health insurance in Switzerland

Supplementary private health insurance (‘Zusatzversicherung’) can help to increase your healthcare coverage. This option is used by around 28% of people in the country.

This includes several treatments and medications that aren’t widely available under OKP:

• Private or semi-private hospital rooms
• Dental treatment
• Optical
• Alternative and complementary medicine
• Certain medications not on the OKP federal list

Unlike OKP, supplementary insurers set their own prices and can refuse you for age or pre-existing conditions. That’s why it’s important to think carefully about your healthcare needs and take the time to compare the options.

International health insurance in Switzerland

This is essentially a type of Zusatzversicherung. International health insurance does everything Swiss supplementary cover does. But it also provides coverage outside of Switzerland. There are many situations where this can be a good idea:

• If you frequently travel abroad for leisure or work
• You’re a temporary Swiss resident who needs health insurance that travels with you when you leave
• You live near another European country and want to get specialist treatment over the border
• You’re an expat resident and want emergency evacuation or repatriation coverage to your home country

So what’s the right health insurance for you? To help you decide, here’s an overview of the main differences:

If you’ve made it this far, you’ve probably realized that the healthcare system in Switzerland can be a bit complex. What’s more, the country has four official languages and none of them are English. This can make navigating the healthcare and insurance system a real challenge for expats.

That’s why we founded Feather. We wanted to make it as easy as possible for expats to easily access high-quality healthcare, wherever you are in the world. That’s why we offer:

• English-speaking support
• Policies available in just a few hours
• Global healthcare coverage

Want to find out more? Explore our international health insurance or get in touch with our team today.