Health Insurance Switzerland – Premium Situation 2026
Policyholders facing heavier burden in real terms
Health insurance premiums are set to jump sharply in 2026 for the fourth time in a row. Our analysis has revealed that many policyholders paying the cheapest premiums on the market will face a 7 per cent hike on average, much higher than the officially communicated figure of 4.4 per cent. This suggests that low-cost models in particular are coming under greater pressure. The sector as a whole is also on a firmer financial footing, with a strong increase in solvency ratios and healthier reserves in real terms.
The trend varies by region, however. The cheapest premiums are rising significantly in Ticino and Valais, while they are actually falling in the Canton of Zug due to its financing arrangements. Averaged out over the whole of Switzerland, the increase comes to around CHF 23 a month. At the same time, the gaps between the premiums charged by the major providers are narrowing, making price less of a distinguishing factor.
Based on our survey of around 1,300 policyholders and historical contextual data, we are expecting the percentage of those switching provider to remain high at roughly 7 to 10 per cent, equating to between 0.6 million and 0.9 million people. This switching trend is being driven by price sensitivity and the availability of price comparison sites, with even minimal increases in monthly payments enough to persuade customers to plan such a move. In response to these rising costs, the public are planning to optimise their basic insurance this autumn, too: over half of respondents (52 per cent) indicated that they were considering either switching or making adjustments. By contrast, the situation with regard to supplementary insurance remains more stable, with around 70 per cent not intending to make any changes despite the financial burden.
Financially speaking, the industry is more robust. Adjustments to the solvency test under the Swiss Federal Health Insurance Act (HIA) have pushed the minimum reserves for the twelve largest health insurers down by around 12 per cent to CHF 727 million, while their reserves are increasing in real terms. The average solvency ratio under the HIA has risen by some 26 percentage points in the market being studied. However, the differences between individual insurers remain relevant.
Health insurance is still a key issue among the general public. Satisfaction with basic insurance provision is high overall, and support for a unified health insurance fund is growing – although there remains a widespread lack of information as to what it would look like in practice. Respondents continued to bemoan a lack of transparency in health insurers’ sales activities. The large number of unwanted “cold calls” and the low level of systematic documentation of such conversations also stood out.
About the survey
Alongside an analysis of official market data, the study “Health Insurance Switzerland: Premium Situation 2026” is also based on a representative survey of 1,285 Swiss residents conducted in the third quarter of 2025 in partnership with YouGov. Among other things, this covered the perception of insurers, willingness to switch, price sensitivity, experience of sales activities and opinions on deductibles and the unified health insurance fund.
