The summer semester is around the bend. As the days grow longer and warmer, many of Switzerland’s residents start making their travel plans. For some, travel is simply a long weekend abroad. For others, it is long vacations in foreign lands.
At the latest by the time you are relaxing in some charming cafe, gourmet restaurant, or seaside bar, the question of how to pay will arise. Credit card? Debit card? Or simply in cash? Dealing with the question of payments and finding the right payment card early can help you avoid unnecessary costs.
For its analysis, online comparison service moneyland.ch calculated the costs of making payments abroad. The analysis is based on 3000 francs of foreign spending within the same calendar month. The calculations account for the total cost, including the published foreign transaction fees, and the currency exchange markups on the interbank rate.
Paying with a debit card: Between 1 and 170 francs
The cost of using a debit card for payments in euros varies broadly between issuers. Making 35 payments worth the equivalent of 3000 francs, in total, costs between 1 and 125 francs, depending on the service provider.
Von den Anbietern, die für Konto und Debitkarte keine Grundgebühr verlangen, sind die Kosten bei der Bank WIR (1 Franken), Alpian* (6 Franken) und Wise* (8 Franken) am niedrigsten.
Of the service providers that have debit cards without a basic annual fee, those with the lowest costs are Bank WIR (1 franc), Alpian (6 francs), and Wise (8 francs).
Some service providers have offers with a basic annual card fee that, in turn, have lower fees for payments in foreign currencies. The basic fees can be as high as 200 francs per year. Among these offers, the debit cards with the lowest costs for the travel profile used are from the Luzerner Kantonalbank (3 francs), Revolut* (7 francs), and Neon (10 francs). Be aware, though, that those costs do not account for the basic, annual fee.
The costs of making payments in US dollars and Thai baht are also interesting. Across most service providers, the cost of making payments in US dollars is similar to that of making payments in euros. Making payments in Thai baht is more expensive at most banks. An interesting insight is that Bank WIR does not charge any fees for payments in both US dollars and Thai baht.
Paying with a credit card: Between 25 and 180 francs
Using a credit card to pay while traveling is significantly more expensive than using a debit card. Spending the equivalent of 3000 francs will cost you between 25 and 180 francs in credit card fees.
Of the Swiss credit cards that do not have a basic annual card fee, the Swisscard Credit Card from Swisscard has the lowest costs, at 55 francs. Interestingly, the most expensive cards in this category are also from Swisscard. Using the Cashback and Poinz credit cards from Swisscard would cost you 146 francs, regardless of whether you use the American Express, Visa, or Mastercard versions.
Of the standard credit cards, the Key4 credit card from UBS is the cheapest, with a cost of 25 francs for spending in euros. It is important to understand, though, that standard credit cards have an annual card fee, which is often in the realm of 100 francs per year. Standard credit cards are also often included in paid bank packages. Both of those apply to the Key4 credit card.
The costs are similar for spending in US dollars. Payments in Thai baht are more expensive with many Swiss credit cards, with up to 180 francs of fees, depending on the credit card.
Three important tips for paying while traveling
There are three important things to keep in mind when using payment cards outside of Switzerland:
- Take a debit card and a credit card: Bring both a debit card and a credit card from two different card issuers. A credit card is sometimes required for car rentals and hotel bookings.
- Never pay in Swiss francs: Being able to see the amount you will be charged in Swiss francs may seem practical. But the exchange rates used when you choose to pay in francs are often very unfavorable.
- Do not use a credit card for cash withdrawals: Always withdraw money using a debit card. Credit cards typically have much higher fees for cash withdrawals.
You can find detailed information and more useful tips in the moneyland.ch guide to using credit cards.
Which kinds of payment cards are popular with Swiss travelers?
Statistics from the Swiss National Bank show how Swiss travelers used payment cards abroad in 2025. Swiss credit cards were used to settle payments worth a total of 24.9 billion francs, while debit cards were used for 15.4 billion francs of payments. However, debit cards surpassed credit cards for the first time in terms of the number of individual transactions made. On the whole, debit cards gained market share compared to previous years.
“Our analysis shows that for foreign transactions, credit cards are usually the more expensive payment solution,” observes Ralf Beyeler from moneyland.ch. “Paying with a debit card instead of a credit card can save you money,” adds Beyeler. But it is important to study the specific fee schedules for your debit card and credit card. Many debit cards, especially those from conventional banks, have a foreign transaction fee of 1.50 francs per payment. “That means the card payment could cost you more than the actual price of that drink at the supermarket,” comments Beyeler.
How much does withdrawing money while traveling cost?
There are countries in which payment cards are not widely accepted. Small payments in particular often require payment in cash. For that reason, moneyland.ch calculated how much it would cost to withdraw a total of 3000 francs from ATMs. The calculation is based on 12 cash withdrawals, each worth the equivalent of 250 francs.
The analysis shows that Bank WIR is the cheapest, with a maximum of 25 francs in total fees. With most Swiss debit cards, the total fees are between 100 and 180 francs. With Swiss credit cards, the total fees range between 150 and 250 francs.
For the specific profiles used for the moneyland.ch analysis, withdrawing money to make payments never works out cheaper than settling payments with a debit card or credit card.
* Alpian, Revolut, Swissquote, Wise, and Yuh give you the option of holding account balances in various currencies. When you make a payment in a certain currency, the purchase is charged to the account in that currency, if there is money available. In that case, there is not currency exchange, so the foreign transaction fee does not apply.
Methodology
The moneyland.ch study accounted for these service providers:
- Debit cards from Swiss banks: Bank Cler, Bank WIR, Basler Kantonalbank, Luzerner Kantonalbank, Migros Bank, Postfinance, Raiffeisen, Valiant, and Zürcher Kantonalbank.
- Debit cards from neobanks: Alpian, Neon, Revolut, Wise, Yuh, and Zak. Yapeal could not be included in the analysis because moneyland.ch was unable to obtain the necessary information.
- Swiss credit cards with no annual fee: Bonuscard (Simply Card Smart), Cembra Money Bank (Certo One, IKEA Family Credit Card), Migros Bank (Migros Cumulus credit card), Swisscard (Cashback, Poinz, Visa Karte), Topcard (Coop Supercard Mastercard, Coop Supercard Visa), and Viseca (Manor World).
- Swiss standard credit cards: Bonuscard (Liberty Card), Cembra Money Bank (Cembra Mastercard), Cornércard, Postfinance, Raiffeisen, UBS, Valiant, and Viseca (Bank Cler, cantonal banks).
Twint is not accounted for because it cannot be used to pay in foreign currencies.
The analysis only accounts for the fees that are directly related to making payments in foreign countries:
- Debit card foreign transaction fees and currency exchange fees.
- Credit card foreign transaction fees.
- Markups on the interbank rates published by Oanda. The markups are calculated based on the average across 14 days (January 29, January 30, February 3, February 4, February 5, February 6, February 9, February 10, February 11, February 16, February 17, February 18, February 19, and February 20).
The analysis does not account for reward programs. There are also costs that are not accounted for. These include ongoing account fees, annual card fees, late-payment fees, and interest.
Cost figures are rounded to the nearest whole franc.
More on this topic:
Tips for using cards to pay and get money while traveling
Which currency should I choose for card payments while traveling?
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