Free bank account in Switzerland: what you really pay in 2026

A current account with no maintenance fee has become commonplace in Switzerland. The Price Supervisor has measured it: in 2025, 29% of the banks in its sample offered a free salary account, compared with 10% in 2022. But a bank does not work for free, and the useful question is not "is this account free?" but "where does this account make you pay?". This guide compares the official price lists in force on 28 September 2026, shows where the fees have moved, and puts a figure on what a CHF 0 account really costs over a year of ordinary use.

1. Which accounts are really free in Switzerland in 2026?

Without claiming to be exhaustive, this comparison covers six offers that show CHF 0 in account maintenance fees on 28 September 2026, with the debit card included or nearly so: three apps (neon, Zak, Yuh) and three established banks (UBS, Zurich Cantonal Bank, Migros Bank). All of them are designed for people domiciled in Switzerland.

Alongside these offers, several banks provide a conditional free account. PostFinance's Smart package costs CHF 5 a month, but becomes free if you add a mortgage, a life insurance policy or invested assets to it; money left in a private account or a savings account does not count. BCV's Directe package costs CHF 3.50 a month and is free from CHF 10,000 in assets. Raiffeisen's MemberPlus package, reserved for members who pay a salary or pension of at least CHF 1,260 into it or hold at least CHF 20,000 in assets, is free in the first year, then charged CHF 4 a month at the Vaud bank we surveyed, prices varying from one Raiffeisen bank to another.

Two free offers are no longer available

The landscape moves fast, and a free account is not a contract for life. Radicant, the neobank of Basellandschaftliche Kantonalbank, decided on 11 November 2025 to cease operating; its customers were transferred to another bank on 11 April 2026, with a new IBAN and a new card. At UBS, the price list in force since 23 September 2026 states that the free key4 banking package is no longer offered to new customers: existing holders keep it, new customers go through UBS Banking Easy. Changing IBAN means notifying your employer, landlord and insurer, and updating every standing order: it is a cost in time rather than in francs, but it is a cost all the same.

2. How does a bank make money on a CHF 0 account?

Through four channels: the exchange-rate margin, the interchange fee on card payments, non-interest-bearing deposits and the sale of paid offers. The free account is a way in; profitability is built behind it.

The exchange-rate margin

This is the channel most visible to you. Every time you pay in euros, dollars or pounds, the bank converts the amount with a markup: a displayed percentage, sometimes a margin built into its own rate, sometimes both. For an account holder who travels, shops online abroad or sends money to their home country, it is by far the largest cost item. We look at it in detail in the next chapter.

The interchange fee

Every debit card payment triggers a fee paid by the merchant's bank to the bank that issued the card. You do not see it: it is paid by the merchant. In Switzerland, it is governed by the Competition Commission (COMCO). For Mastercard, the May 2024 agreement sets it at 0.12% on domestic in-store payments. For Visa, since the July 2025 agreement, the average may not exceed 0.15% in shops, with a cap of 36 centimes from CHF 300, and the rate for domestic online payments fell from 0.31% to 0.25% on 1 November 2025. A few tenths of a percent per payment: this is why a neobank has an interest in you using its card every day.

Non-interest-bearing deposits

Almost all the accounts in the table pay 0%. For a bank, a sight deposit that pays no interest is a resource that costs it nothing in interest and partly funds its lending, mortgages in particular. One point of context, however, avoids a common misreading: with the SNB policy rate held at 0% on 24 September 2026, money that a bank simply deposits with the central bank earns it nothing, and the portion above a set threshold is even charged a negative rate of −0.25%. The value of your deposit, for the bank, therefore lies in what it does with it, not in the mere fact that it stays in the account.

Paid offers and cross-selling

The free account is often the first tier of a range. neon offers three subscriptions, plus at CHF 2, global at CHF 8 and metal at CHF 15 a month, which remove the exchange markup and reduce withdrawal fees. Zak Plus costs CHF 8 a month and makes withdrawals free. On top of that come the products an app highlights once the account is open: investments, 3^rd pillar, credit cards, mortgages.

« En période de compression des marges d'intérêt, elles ont accru le poids des frais ; en revanche, lorsque les conditions de marché se sont améliorées, ces hausses n'ont été que partiellement compensées par des baisses correspondantes (phénomène connu sous le nom de “fusée et plume”). » (Our translation: when interest margins were being squeezed, the banks increased the weight of fees; when market conditions improved, those increases were only partly offset by corresponding reductions, a phenomenon known as "rockets and feathers".)

— Price Supervisor, newsletter 2/26 of 28 April 2026, on the banks observed (original in French)

3. Currency exchange, the first price of a free account

On a card payment in a foreign currency, the free accounts that express this charge as a percentage bill from 0.35% to 2% of the amount, more on small purchases when the bank applies a flat fee or a minimum, and several add an unquantified margin to their own exchange rate. The gap between the cheapest and the most expensive is therefore almost one to six, on a transaction everyone makes.

In this table, the last column matters as much as the second. A percentage applied to the Mastercard, Visa or interbank rate can be compared directly. A percentage applied to a bank's own rate comes on top of a margin that the price list does not quantify: UBS says so in black and white, specifying that its rate includes a markup. The real cost is then higher than the price line suggests, and there is no telling by how much without comparing with the day's rate. Our guide on how to calculate an exchange rate shows how to measure that gap on a statement.

A flat fee per transaction penalises small purchases

A fixed fee or a minimum changes everything on small amounts. At Migros Bank, a coffee paid for at EUR 4 in Annecy costs CHF 1.50 in fees, more than a third of its value. At UBS, the CHF 1 minimum takes a CHF 20 purchase to an effective fee of 5%. Conversely, ZKB's CHF 1.50 cap makes its fees degressive on large purchases: above CHF 120, the effective rate falls below 1.25%.

The invisible exchange: incoming transfers in a foreign currency

Currency exchange is not just about payments. At neon, a transfer abroad generally costs, according to its price list, between 0.8% and 1.7%, and an incoming transfer in a foreign currency is also converted with a markup, quantified below. At Zak, payments outside the SEPA area and in currencies other than francs and euros are not available; at Yuh, transfers outside the SEPA area are not available either. For someone who receives part of their income from abroad or supports family in another country, these are the lines to read first.

To convert large amounts, compare the margin before the account

A free account is fine for paying for a coffee abroad; to convert a salary, savings or a regular transfer to family, its exchange-rate margin becomes the largest cost item, far ahead of account maintenance. Take a conversion of CHF 6,000 into euros:

• Transfer from neon, from 0.8% to 1.7% depending on the amount and the currency: CHF 48 to 102.
• Conversion at Yuh, at 0.95%: CHF 57.
• Universal bank, without an exchange subscription: conversion at its own rate, margin not published, so impossible to quantify before the transaction.
• Dedicated currency exchange service such as ibani, at 0.40%: CHF 24, also available to cross-border workers and without opening a bank account.

These examples are not exhaustive: other services publish comparable margins, or even lower ones on certain volumes. Compare the displayed margin before each conversion.

In the other direction, there is a cost too: at neon, CHF 6,000 received in euros is converted into francs with a markup of up to 1.5%, i.e. up to CHF 90.

4. Withdrawals, cash, paper: the fees that remain

Apart from currency exchange, a free account is paid for mainly at other banks' ATMs and in a series of one-off services. None of them is ruinous on its own; together, they make the difference between two offers displayed at the same price.

Cash withdrawals

The size of the network matters more than the price. A ZKB account holder withdraws free of charge at the ATMs of all the cantonal banks in the country; a neon account holder pays for every withdrawal, since neon has no ATMs of its own. Withdrawing euros in Switzerland costs more: CHF 5 per withdrawal at neon, CHF 5 at a third-party ATM with Zak.

Depositing cash

This is the clearest trade-off of the branchless model. neon states it in its price list: depositing cash is not possible. Yuh has no branch counters. Conversely, Zak accepts free deposits at Bank Cler ATMs, UBS at UBS Bancomat Plus machines in francs, and ZKB at its own machines, in francs as well as in euros. If you receive tips, sell at a market or collect rent in cash, this criterion comes before all the others.

One-off services

• Replacement card: CHF 20 at neon, Zak and ZKB, CHF 40 at UBS (free if ordered in e-banking) and at PostFinance (CHF 25 via the voice assistant).
• Paper statements: CHF 5 a month at UBS and at PostFinance, CHF 1.50 per statement at Migros Bank. A free account assumes an entirely digital relationship.
• Manual assistance: neon charges CHF 25 per full 15-minute interval for searches, reactivations or returned mail.
• Closure: free at Zak, but transferring the remaining balance to another bank is charged CHF 15.
• Instant or express payment: a CHF 5 surcharge at UBS, CHF 10 for an express SEPA transfer at PostFinance.
• Forgotten account: a balance classed as "contactless", meaning the bank has lost contact with its holder, triggers annual fees of CHF 100 at ZKB, from CHF 200 at Migros Bank, CHF 300 at BCV (plus VAT), CHF 320 at PostFinance and CHF 1,000 at BCGE (plus VAT). A free account you no longer use should be closed, not abandoned.

5. The conditions that end the free account

Free accounts often come with conditions of age, residence, assets or channel. Ignore them, and one day you discover a fee line on a statement.

• Residence. neon requires residence and tax domicile exclusively in Switzerland; if you move abroad, the account must be closed, failing which neon charges CHF 40 a month. Zak points out that the main domicile must be in Switzerland, "always".
• Age. Migros Bank's free private account is aimed at people aged 25 and over, younger customers falling under another package. BCV's Directe package is intended for people aged 30 and over.
• Assets. BCV offers the Directe package free from CHF 10,000 in assets, PostFinance the Smart package on condition that invested assets, a mortgage or a life insurance policy are attached to it.
• Channel. UBS Banking Easy can only be opened in the UBS mobile app. neon free offers no telephone support: support is by e-mail and an automated assistant, with the telephone reserved for paid subscriptions. Yuh and Zak, for their part, offer a free phone number.
• Limits. Zak limits payment orders to CHF 25,000 a week. A free account suits everyday life, not necessarily a property down payment or a transfer of savings.
• Package changes. At Zak, one switch back from Zak Plus to Zak is free per twelve-month period; further switches cost CHF 40. neon's global and metal subscriptions have a minimum term of twelve months.

6. How much does a free account cost over a year?

On an ordinary resident's profile, a "free" account costs between CHF 28.50 and 84 a year in our calculation, excluding the margin built into some banks' own exchange rates. And the ranking does not follow that of the displayed exchange rates.

Our assumption, deliberately modest: a person domiciled in Lausanne makes 12 withdrawals a year at ATMs outside their bank's free network, and 30 payments of CHF 100 in euros a year, i.e. CHF 3,000 of spending across the border in France, on holiday or online. First year, card included.

Three lessons. First, Yuh comes out on top on this profile because its free weekly withdrawal absorbs the twelve withdrawals, whereas neon free, the cheapest for currency exchange among the offers in this table, loses its advantage as soon as you withdraw cash. Second, Zak and UBS cost the same displayed amount, but the UBS line is based on a rate that already includes a markup, and the Zak line on the Visa rate. Finally, PostFinance's paid package remains the most expensive, but it includes the network of post office counters, where you can pay cash into your own account free of charge up to 20 times a month, which neon and Yuh do not allow.

And if you send money abroad every month?

The calculation changes scale. Take an expatriate who sends CHF 1,000 a month in euros to an account in their home country, i.e. CHF 12,000 a year. At Yuh, at 0.95%, the conversion costs around CHF 114 a year. At neon, the stated range for international transfers, 0.8% to 1.7%, gives CHF 96 to 204. The universal banks in the comparison convert at their own rate, without quantifying the margin; UBS offers a subscription, key4 FX, at CHF 2 to 10 a month, which sets its markup at 1.2%, 0.8% or 0.4%. Through a dedicated currency exchange service such as ibani, at 0.40% per conversion, the same transfers cost CHF 48 a year, transfer fees included. An exchange subscription or a conversion volume included in a package can give a similar or even lower cost: here too, compare the displayed margin. On this profile, currency exchange alone can exceed the total annual cost of a free account in the previous table: this, and not account maintenance, is where most of the bill is decided.

7. Cross-border workers and newcomers: who can open what?

For a person domiciled outside Switzerland, none of the six offers remains free in September 2026, with one exception: Yuh, for people domiciled in Austria or Liechtenstein. The others are closed to people domiciled abroad or charge them additional fees. This is the most radical trade-off: the free account is almost always reserved for residents.

Cross-border workers: a surcharge rather than a free account

neon requires a tax domicile in Switzerland, Zak a main domicile in Switzerland, UBS Banking Easy residence in Switzerland. Yuh has suspended account openings for people who reside neither in Switzerland, nor in Austria, nor in Liechtenstein: a cross-border worker from Haute-Savoie, the Pays de Gex, Como or Baden-Württemberg can no longer sign up, and only a cross-border worker domiciled in Austria still can. Zurich Cantonal Bank accepts people domiciled abroad, but ZKB Banking then stops being free, with the surcharge shown below. Migros Bank also accepts people domiciled abroad, but charges them business relationship fees, the amount of which depends on the country and the assets: ask for it before opening an account. Our guide to Yuh alternatives for cross-border workers details the remaining options.

The surcharges published by the banks we surveyed:

BCV does not publish the price of its cross-border worker package in its fee brochure: ask for it before opening an account. The full cost of a Swiss bank account for a cross-border worker, institution by institution, is detailed in our guide on opening a bank account in Switzerland.

Newcomers: check which permit is required

A person settling in Switzerland can open a free account, but not just any account. For foreign nationals, neon asks for a B or C permit; its price list does not mention the L permit. For the first few weeks, when the permit has not yet been issued, our checklist for moving to Switzerland lists the steps in order, and our guide on TWINT without a Swiss bank account shows how to pay day to day in the meantime.

8. Neobank, foreign bank, payment service: what protects your money?

A Swiss neobank is not always a bank, but the money is held by a Swiss bank, covered by esisuisse deposit protection up to CHF 100,000 per customer and per bank. Revolut and Wise, often compared with these offers, fall under a different regime.

The protection follows the bank, not the app

The neon account is an account with Hypothekarbank Lenzburg; the protection applies there. Yuh distributes its services through Swissquote: Yuh specifies that the two entities are considered as one, so that assets held with Yuh and with Swissquote are added together under a single ceiling of CHF 100,000. If you hold accounts in two apps backed by the same bank, a single ceiling applies.

Revolut and Wise: neither a Swiss bank nor esisuisse protection

Revolut has more than 1.3 million customers in Switzerland, served by Revolut Bank UAB, an institution holding a licence in Lithuania, with a representative office in Switzerland but no Swiss banking licence. Revolut announced on 16 September 2026 that it had filed a licence application with FINMA; the procedure is under way and its outcome, in Revolut's own words, remains open. Its Standard price list includes an exchange allowance of 1,000 pounds a month, then a 1% fee above that, and 5 withdrawals or 200 pounds free per rolling month, then 2%.

Wise is not a bank: its customers' funds are safeguarded, that is, held separately from the company's own funds, which is a different form of protection from deposit protection.

9. How to choose according to your usage

The right free account is the one whose fees fall where you do not go. Four questions settle it, in this order.

1. Are you domiciled in Switzerland, and with which permit? Without a Swiss domicile, the free offers are closed or become chargeable, except Yuh for people domiciled in Austria or Liechtenstein: compare the non-resident surcharges or use a Swiss IBAN without a bank account. With an L permit, neon is not an option according to its price list, which requires a B or C permit.
2. How much do you spend in foreign currencies each year? Beyond a few thousand francs, the exchange percentage is your first criterion: neon free and Yuh lead, Zak and UBS trail. For large or regular conversions, such as salary, savings or transfers to family, use neither the card nor an unquantified in-house rate: choose a published, low margin, for example that of a dedicated currency exchange service such as ibani, which is also open to cross-border workers.
3. Do you withdraw or deposit cash? If so, favour an ATM network: ZKB, whose account holders withdraw free of charge at all cantonal banks, Bank Cler for Zak, UBS, or Yuh's free weekly withdrawal. Rule out neon if you need to deposit cash.
4. Do you need someone to talk to? If a card problem abroad must be resolvable by phone, check that telephone support is included in the free package.

Nothing obliges you to have only one account: you can combine a bank with a network for your salary, bills and 3^rd pillar, and an app with a low exchange-rate margin for travel. Our guide on opening a bank account in Switzerland covers the documents required and how long opening takes, and our comparison of student accounts the offers reserved for under-26s. For people who earn a salary in francs and live in the euro area, our guide on transferring your Swiss salary abroad puts a figure on the effect of the exchange-rate margin over a year of salary.

10. Frequently asked questions