Best Apps Every Newcomer to Switzerland Should Install

These four apps run daily Swiss life. Set them up in your first seven days.

• TWINT — Swiss universal payment app. Send money to friends by phone number, pay in shops with a QR code, split restaurant bills. You need a Swiss bank account (or PostFinance) linked. Set it up the day your account opens — see Swiss bank account for foreigners.
• SBB Mobile — the federal railways app. Buy any train, tram, bus, boat or cable-car ticket in Switzerland, store your Half-Fare card, get real-time platform changes, save the QR ticket to Apple/Google Wallet. Do not buy paper tickets; you'll overpay.
• Post (Die Post / La Poste) — track parcels, redirect deliveries, find opening hours, pay bills at the counter with QR. Almost every online order in Switzerland ships with Swiss Post.
• SwissCovid / e-ID (soon) — as of 2026 the federal e-ID is rolling out for government services. Not mandatory yet but install when your canton offers it.

• Your bank's app — UBS Mobile, PostFinance, ZKB, Raiffeisen, Neon, Yuh, Zak, Revolut. Full account control, TWINT payments, QR-bill scanning for paying every Swiss invoice.
• eBill — receive Swiss invoices directly into your online banking, one-click pay. Every serious biller (insurance, telecom, utilities) offers it. Saves you scanning QR-bills.
• Neon / Yuh / Zak — the challenger banks. Fee-free debit cards, great FX, sit alongside a traditional bank. See the full comparison in the Swiss bank account guide.
• Revolut / Wise — for FX transfers home and multi-currency. Not a replacement for a Swiss bank account (you still need one for salary and rent).

• SBB Mobile — already mentioned; the single most useful app in Switzerland after TWINT.
• FAIRTIQ — 'check-in / check-out' travel. Swipe once when you board, once when you get off, it charges the cheapest ticket for your journey across most Swiss transport networks.
• Google Maps — fine for driving. For public transport, use SBB Mobile instead — it's more accurate and it sells the ticket.
• Mobility Carsharing — the Swiss car-sharing co-op. Book a car by the hour, unlock with the app, park in reserved spaces. Cheaper than owning if you drive under 12,000 km/year.
• Publibike / PubliBike — dockless station-based bikes in most Swiss cities.
• ViaMichelin / Waze — for cross-border driving to France, Germany, Italy.

• Migros — Cumulus points, digital receipts, weekly deals, Migros Bank, self-scan in bigger stores.
• Coop @ Home / Supercard — same idea, other side of the supermarket duopoly.
• Ricardo — Switzerland's eBay. Everyone furnishes their first flat from it. Sell your winter tires here every spring.
• Tutti / Anibis — free-to-list local classifieds. Best for furniture, bikes, kids' stuff.
• Too Good To Go — restaurants and bakeries sell end-of-day surplus at a big discount. Actually works in Swiss cities.
• Digitec / Galaxus — the Swiss Amazon. Same-day in most cities, honest reviews, real Swiss warranty.

More on cutting the food bill: save on food in Switzerland and buying second-hand.

• Homegate, ImmoScout24, Comparis Immo, Flatfox — the four apps every apartment hunter has open at once. See how much is rent in Switzerland.
• WG Zimmer — flat-share listings if you're on a student or L permit budget.
• Comparis (main app) — compare health insurance, banking, mortgages, cars, energy — a national institution.

• Your Krankenkasse app — CSS, Helsana, Sanitas, Concordia, Swica etc. Submit doctor bills, track deductible, order health card. Compare insurers first in Swiss health insurance compared.
• Medgate / Soignez-moi / Well — Swiss telemedicine. Talk to a Swiss doctor within 15 minutes, get a prescription sent to your local pharmacy. Included with 'Telmed' insurance models.
• OneDoc / Doctena — book appointments with GPs, dentists, physios across Switzerland.
• Pharmacy apps (TopPharm, Amavita) — refill prescriptions, check nearest open pharmacy on Sundays.

• MeteoSwiss — the federal weather app. Everyone in Switzerland trusts it over any other.
• Alertswiss — federal emergency alerts (storms, floods, civil defence). Install it and forget it, until the day it saves your weekend hike.
• SwissID — single sign-on for government and semi-official services (SBB, Post, ELM). The e-ID rollout in 2026 builds on this.
• Your cantonal tax app — Zurich (ZHprivateTax), Bern (TaxMe), Vaud (VaudTax) and most cantons let you file your Steuererklärung on the phone or tablet. Non-obvious but excellent.
• Serafe — nothing to install, but expect an invoice; see Serafe TV tax.

• WhatsApp — the default for everyone (friends, landlords, kita groups, plumbers).
• Threema — Swiss-made, end-to-end encrypted, paid (CHF 5 one-off). Used by some employers and government contexts.
• Signal / Telegram — common in tech, expat and international-organisation circles.
• Swisscom myAccount / Salt / Sunny — manage your Swiss mobile plan. See SIM cards in Switzerland.

• Smood — the Swiss food delivery leader; covers most cities and small towns Uber Eats never touches.
• Uber Eats / Just Eat (Takeaway.com) — Zurich, Geneva, Basel, Lausanne, Bern.
• Migros Online / Coop@Home — full grocery delivery.
• Farmy — direct-from-Swiss-farm groceries. Pricier but the produce is fantastic.
• OpenTable / LunchGate (lunchgate.ch) — restaurant reservations in Switzerland.

You didn't move to Switzerland to stay indoors. These are the apps that unlock the mountains, lakes and Sunday-closed weekends.

• Swiss Map Mobile (Swisstopo) — the official federal topographic map. Zero substitute for hiking, ski touring or biking; works offline. See hiking in Switzerland.
• Skiline / SkiResort — lift status, snow conditions, ski passes across the Alps.
• Komoot / Strava — route planning for running, cycling, hiking.
• Whitepod, Reka, MySwitzerland — Swiss weekend inspiration when you've exhausted Zurich and want to see the country.

1. Day 1: SBB Mobile, MeteoSwiss, Google Maps.
2. Day 2–3 (after bank account): your bank app, TWINT, eBill.
3. Day 4–5 (after Anmeldung): Post, Comparis, your Krankenkasse app, cantonal tax app. See how to register in Switzerland.
4. Week 2: Ricardo, Tutti, Migros, Coop, Digitec, WhatsApp/Threema.
5. Week 3+: Swiss Map Mobile, Mobility, Too Good To Go, Smood — the lifestyle layer.

Newly arrived? Read the practical companions: how to move to Switzerland, 7 Swiss rules new residents miss and 10 things I wish I knew before moving.

Swiss apps expect a Swiss phone number, a Swiss address, and often SwissID or a video-ID onboarding. Do your Anmeldung and get a Swiss SIM before you try to install everything above — otherwise you'll hit a wall on verification screens. Then it all lights up in one satisfying afternoon.