Swiss increasingly turn to smartphones to pay bills

Mobile payment expands its leading position in payment methods Keystone-SDA

Smartphones, watches or other devices are the most widely used payment payment method in Switzerland, according to the Swiss Payment Monitor.

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Mobile payments account for the highest number of transactions and the most turnover when paying bills in Switzerland.

Payments are most frequently made using mobile devices such as cell phones, tablets or smartwatches. According to the study published on Tuesday by the ZHAW School of Management and Law and the University of St Gallen, this includes not only Twint but also payments with e-wallets such as Apple Pay, Samsung Pay or Google Pay.

+ Read about Switzerland’s love affair with cash

Compared to the last survey in May 2024, the total number of all transactions based on mobile devices has increased again by 3.9% to a share of 30.7%. Meanwhile, the use of debit cards has decreased by 1.8% to 24.4% and cash payments by 1.5% to 24.2%.

In terms of turnover, cash has also been pushed off the podium by credit cards. After mobile devices with a turnover share of 25.6% (+2.2%) and debit cards with 24% (+1.0%), credit cards follow in third place with 23.8% (+2.0%).

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Cash dominates in stores

When it comes to in-store payments, however, cash is once again the preferred method of choice. The use of cash has decreased by 1.7% to 28.2% of all transactions. However, the use of debit cards fell even more sharply by 2.1% to 28% market share.

And here too, mobile payment is catching up fast. With an increase of 4.3%, mobile devices already account for 24.4% of all transactions.

The Swiss Payment Monitor is published every six months and is based on representative survey data and public data from the Swiss National Bank. It is published by the Swiss Payment Research Centre of the ZHAW and the Swiss Payment Behavior Lab of the University of St Gallen.

Translated from German with DeepL/mga

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