From 1996 to 2024, the average premium for compulsory health insurance (LAMal / OKP) rose from CHF 128.24 to CHF 356.51 a month in Switzerland, all insured persons combined. That is almost 2.8 times as much, or about 3.7% a year.

The figures come from the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), via OpenData.swiss. They describe a national and cantonal average: all deductibles, all insurance models. This is not the price of your policy, and not the cheapest priminfo offer.

What the average premium measures

The FOPH calculates the average premium by dividing the total premiums of a group of insured persons by the number of insured persons in that group. “All insured” weights children, young adults and adults.

It therefore rises if tariffs rise, but also if more people keep a low deductible or the standard model. Two households in the same canton can sit far from this average: one with a CHF 2,500 deductible and an HMO model, the other with a CHF 300 deductible and free choice of doctor.

To choose a fund, a deductible and a model, see our page on health insurance in Switzerland and the article on deductibles.

Health insurance file and Swiss banknotes on a table, illustrating the rise in LAMal premiums
The FOPH average is not your bill: it is the observed mean cost across all plan types.

Markers 1996–2024

LAMal took effect on 1 January 1996. OpenData.swiss does not publish a comparable per-insured premium series before that date: there are not fifty homogeneous years of OKP premiums on the portal.

Useful markers, Switzerland, all insured, per month:

YearAverage premiumChangeContext
1996CHF 128.24First LAMal year
2003CHF 190.12+9.13%Largest rise in the series
2008CHF 215.48−1.01%Slight fall
2010CHF 236.21+8.58%Sharp rebound
2022CHF 313.85−0.57%Slight fall
2024CHF 356.51+7.95%Largest recent rise

2019 to 2021 are almost flat (around CHF 314–316). The increase resumes in 2023 (+5.23%) and accelerates in 2024. An indicative sum — adding each Swiss annual average from 1996 to 2024 — exceeds CHF 80,000 per “average” insured person. That is not a personal history; it is an order of magnitude for the weight of OKP over three decades.

Gaps between cantons

In 2024, still all insured, the monthly average runs from CHF 244.42 (Appenzell Innerrhoden) to CHF 449.26 (Basel-Stadt). Geneva is just behind, at CHF 447.08, about 25% above the Swiss average.

The most expensive cantons in 2024: Basel-Stadt, Geneva, Ticino, Neuchâtel, Basel-Landschaft, Vaud. The least expensive: Appenzell Innerrhoden, Uri, Obwalden, Zug, Nidwalden. The explorer above shows whether the gap widens or narrows over time.

The canton sets part of the tariff, but not your deductible or model. Two people in Geneva do not pay the same amount.

Children, young adults, adults

In 2024 the Swiss monthly average is CHF 111.23 for children (0–18), CHF 296.94 for young adults (19–25) and CHF 423.39 for adults aged 26 and over.

The drop for young adults in 2019 (about CHF 321 then CHF 269) is not a general premium cut. It follows the stronger 19–25 tariff relief. Adults still carry most of the rise: CHF 168.68 in 1997, CHF 423.39 in 2024.

2025 and 2026: estimates

The StatKV average stops in 2024. For 2025 and 2026 the FOPH publishes an estimated average premium, Switzerland only, different method. All insured: CHF 376.70 in 2025 and CHF 393.30 in 2026, per month. Tick the option in the explorer to see them as a dashed line. Do not mix them with the 1996–2024 observed series.

What you can still do

You do not pick the FOPH average. You pick a fund, a deductible, a care model, and whether accident cover is included. Those levers move your bill more than a debate about the national curve.

  • Compare funds for 1 January, within cancellation deadlines.
  • Recalculate the deductible against your real medical costs, not the cantonal average.
  • Check whether a family-doctor, HMO or Telmed model still works for you.
  • Keep LAMal basic cover and supplementary insurance separate: cancellation rules differ.

Finwise SA, an independent broker in Geneva, can review your situation (canton, age, deductible, model, accident) and compare available offers, without treating the FOPH average as your price.

Have my premium reviewed Understand health insurance

Sources

Observed data 1996–2024: FOPH, StatKV statistics, Premiums dataset on opendata.swiss (premium-statkv export, published August 2026). 2025–2026 estimates: same catalogue, estimated average premium export. Cross-check: average OKP premiums from 1996, dashboardassurancemaladie.admin.ch and priminfo.

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