What drives your bill
Three factors dominate: your local utility's tariff (regulated, municipality-specific), your consumption (a 4-person household typically uses 4,000–5,000 kWh per year) and the high/low tariff split. Comparing providers is limited – most households are bound to the local utility for basic supply.
How to lower it
Shift heavy usage (laundry, dishwasher) to low-tariff hours, replace old appliances with efficient ones, and check whether your municipality publishes next year's tariff in autumn – increases are announced in advance, which helps you budget.
Budgeting electricity
Set a fixed monthly amount slightly above your average bill and treat the year-end settlement as a buffer, not a surprise.
Track these costs in your own budget: create your free Swiss budget in BudgetHub – in English, with Swiss categories built in.