Money-saving tips: How to get through the January slump
December is an expensive month for many Swiss people. To help you replenish your savings in January, Comparis has put together money-saving tips from various areas of life.
06.01.2026
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1. General money-saving tips
Increase the deductible for insurance policies
Consider whether you want to increase the deductible for certain insurance policies. In general, the following applies: the higher the deductible, the lower the insurance premium.
Avoid overinsurance
Many Swiss people pay more for insurance than necessary because they are overinsured. Therefore, check regularly whether there is double coverage. Example: many employees are already compulsorily insured against occupational and non-occupational accidents through their employer, but also take out accident coverage in the basic insurance.
Take advantage of multi-policy discounts
With some insurance providers, you will receive a multi-policy discount, if you already have another insurance policy (e.g. a household contents insurance policy) with them or a life insurance) with the same provider. Check if your provider offers such a discount.
Our tip: insurance check
Do a short insurance check once a year. Your life situation changes and so do your insurance needs. A comparison of different providers is also worth it, because the premium differences for identical services are sometimes large.
2. Save on car insurance
Optimise your insurance coverage
The scope of insurance is not only decisive for comprehensive protection, but also for the amount of the premiums.
Partial coverage instead of full casco: check if your car needs partial or full casco coverage. As a rule of thumb, if the car is six years old or older, a partial casco is usually enough. If you drive a particularly expensive car, you can wait a little longer before switching.
Short contract duration: only conclude one-year contracts. This is the only way you can switch to a cheaper provider every year. The bonus level is retained with every change.
Do without certain additional services
In car insurance there are numerous additional services that are often not necessary. By foregoing certain options, you can reduce costs without sacrificing the necessary protection.
Do not choose free choice of garage
Exclude «carried items»
Leave out passenger accident cover
Check whether you can exclude parked car damage cover
Make use of discounts and premium savings models
Through the targeted use of discounts in car insurance you can significantly reduce your premiums without sacrificing the necessary insurance cover. Discounts are available, for example, for drivers of electric cars, for members of certain professional groups or for taking out several policies with the same insurance company.
In addition, modern technologies and innovative insurance concepts offer new ways to lower the premium for car insurance. Options that can help you save include:
Check your life situation
Have you recently gained access to a garage at home or at work? Do you drive less than stated in your policy? In both cases, it may be worth adjusting the policy. The same applies if there are no longer any drivers under the age of 25 for your vehicle.
3. Save on health insurance
Change your basic insurance annually
Compare health insurer premiums annually. Basic insurance benefits are clearly defined and the same for every health insurer. So you don’t have to worry about worse cover with a cheaper insurer.
High savings potential with health insurance
Have you regularly switched from the most expensive to the cheapest health insurer and made adjustments to the health insurance model and the deductible since January 2015? Even without further changes and modifications in the following years, you will have been able to save over 35,000 francs by the end of 2025, depending on the region.
Increase your deductible
The higher the deductible, the lower the premiums. With the highest deductible, adults can save up to 1’540 francs per year.
Important: With a high deductible, you have to contribute more to the cost of treatment. In the worst case, you have to pay 3’200 francs for the deductible and coinsurance. Consider whether you could bear the costs in an emergency – for example, in the event of a serious illness.
Exclude accident coverage
Do you work at least eight hours a week for the same employer? Then you are automatically insured against accidents according to UVG – both for occupational and leisure accidents. You can therefore exclude accident insurance from your health insurer.
Optimise your supplementary insurance
Check which supplementary insurance you really need and use. Cancel insurance policies where the premiums are higher than the benefits paid out.
Use alternative insurance models
With alternative insurance models you can save up to 25% of the premiums, that you would pay for the standard model. These models include:
mixed models
With alternative insurance models, your first point of contact for medical questions. The benefits of the basic insurance remain the same.
Benefit from cash discounts
You have various options for paying your health insurance premiums. The usual method is monthly payment. Depending on the health insurer, you can also pay the premiums semi-annually or annually in advance. Depending on the method of payment of the premiums, many health insurers offer so-called cash discounts of up to 2% .
4. Save on housing
Check whether a rent reduction is possible
Check in the rental agreement which reference interest rate is used to calculate your current rent. Compare this with the currently published mortgage reference interest rate of the federal government. If the reference interest rate mentioned in the contract is higher than the current one, you are generally entitled to a rent reduction. Read here how to proceed.
Optimise your living situation
Optimising your living situation is one of the most effective levers to reduce your long-term housing costs. Many households live in larger or more expensive homes than their current life situation requires. Especially after the children have moved out or in the event of a separation, a move to a smaller flat can significantly reduce housing costs.
In addition, a move to a cheaper region can be worthwhile: in rural areas, rents are usually noticeably below the level of cities. If you work partially from home or accept longer commuting distances, you can significantly reduce fixed costs in the long term.
Reduce your incidental housing costs
Save energy through a conscious use of heating, hot water and electricity. As a rule of thumb, if you lower the room temperature by about one degree, heating costs will be noticeably reduced.
There is also potential for savings with hot water: shorter shower times, lower water temperatures and Water-saving shower heads significantly reduce energy consumption.
When it comes to electricity, it’s worth conscious use of devices. Switch to LED bulbs and do not let devices run in standby mode.
Take out a cheaper Internet subscription
Many Swiss people pay for Internet subscriptions that are faster or more extensive than they actually need. An example: you pay for a fibre subscription, although there is no active fibre socket in your apartment. It is worth comparing the offers regularly.
Good to know: Combined Internet and TV packages are often cheaper than two separate subscriptions.
Buying a property: Compare mortgage rates
Are you planning to buy a property? Then you should by no means accept the first offer from your house bank for your mortgage. The offers of mortgage providers differ greatly. Our mortgage partner HypoPlus supports you in negotiating the best conditions for you.
5. Save on taxes
Don’t forget any deductions
Did you know that you can deduct many expenses from your taxes? These include, for example (non-exhaustive list):
Public transport passes and bicycles
Professional development
Insurance premiums (e.g. from the health insurer or a life insurance policy)
Childcare costs
Donations
Mortgage interest
Pay into pillar 3a
With payments into the 3rd pillar you not only save for retirement, but also on taxes. You can deduct the entire amount paid from taxable income. In 2026 you can deduct are payments up to the maximum amount of:
7’258 francs for employees with a pension fund.
36’288 francs for employees without a pension fund.
Tip: Benefit from the compound interest effect
If you pay the maximum amount at the beginning of the year instead of only in December into pillar 3a, you benefit for longer from the so-called compound interest effect.
Pay your taxes as early as possible
Settle your tax bill as early as possible. If you do not pay on time, you have to pay default interest In some cantons, you will also receive interest on the taxes you have paid.
This article was first published on 06.01.2026
