How to compare personal loans in Switzerland

Compare personal loans for the same amount and the same term, on two figures: the effective annual rate and the total you repay in francs. Then check what the rate leaves out, how flexible each loan is, and who you are dealing with. A low monthly payment on its own tells you little, because a longer term lowers the payment and raises the total.

Start with the same amount and term

Offers are only comparable when they are for the same loan. The term changes everything else. Here is one loan of CHF 10’000 at an interest rate of 3 % a year, an effective annual rate of 3.04 %, over two terms (Swizeo’s figures):

The 36-month loan looks cheaper each month and costs CHF 306.00 more in interest. Ask every lender for the same amount and term, and choose the term yourself.

Compare the effective annual rate first

The effective annual rate (effektiver Jahreszins) is the fairest single figure for comparing. By law, it expresses the total cost of the credit, the interest and the other costs, as a yearly percentage (KKG, Art. 5 and 6). Every lender works it out with the same formula set in the law (KKG, Art. 33), and your contract must state it (KKG, Art. 9).

Two cautions:

• Compare the rate you are offered, not the bottom of a range. A lender that publishes a range sets your rate inside it after its check, and the bottom of the range is not a promise. Swizeo has no range: every loan is at 3 % a year, an effective annual rate of about 3.04 %.
• Know the legal maximum. From 1 January 2026, it is 10 % for cash loans (Federal Office of Justice, notice of 31 October 2025). A consumer credit contract above it is void (KKG, Art. 14 and 15). The guide to the maximum interest rate explains the cap.

Then compare the total in francs

The total to repay is the clearest figure for your budget: the amount, plus the interest, plus any costs. Where possible, the contract must state the total of all your payments (KKG, Art. 9). Put the totals side by side. For the same amount and term, the lower total is the cheaper loan.

Check what the rate leaves out

The law leaves some costs out of the effective annual rate (KKG, Art. 34). Ask about each one:

• Optional insurance. Payment protection insurance counts in the rate only if the lender requires it. If it is optional, its cost comes on top. Swizeo does not offer it.
• Late payment costs. Costs you pay if you miss a payment are not in the rate. The interest on a late payment may not be higher than the rate in your contract (KKG, Art. 18).
• Account and transfer costs. They count in the rate only if you have no reasonable choice and they are unusually high.

The contract must list the costs left out of the rate, with the amount or a way to work it out. Costs of a missed payment are the exception (KKG, Art. 9).

Compare how flexible each loan is

• Fixed or variable rate. If a lender can change the rate or costs, the contract must say under which conditions (KKG, Art. 9). A fixed rate keeps the same payment to the end. Swizeo’s rate is fixed for the whole term.
• Paying back early. You have the right to repay early, and the interest for the unused time falls away (KKG, Art. 17). Ask whether the lender charges anything when you do.
• The term you can choose. A lender that offers more terms lets you match the payment to your budget. Swizeo offers 6 to 84 months, in whole months.
• Fees. Ask for every fee in writing.

Know who you are dealing with

A credit broker (Kreditvermittler) arranges consumer credits as a business. The lender is the one that lends the money and signs the contract with you (KKG, Art. 2 and 4). If a website passes your request on, find out which lender would be named in your contract. You owe a broker nothing for arranging a consumer credit, and what the lender pays the broker is part of the total cost (KKG, Art. 35).

Swizeo is the lender: we lend our own funds, decide on your loan ourselves, and our name is on your contract.

A few signs of an offer to avoid:

• A fee before payout. See spotting loan scams.
• A promise of no credit check. Every lender that lends as a business must check your creditworthiness before signing (KKG, Art. 27a). See loans without a credit check.
• A rate above the legal maximum. Such a contract is void (KKG, Art. 15).
• Pressure to decide now. You have 14 days to withdraw in writing after you receive your copy of the contract (KKG, Art. 16). If an offer pushes for speed, read «instant» loans: what fast really means first.

Compare without giving your name

You can see the monthly payment and total cost of a Swizeo loan before you give your name. The calculator needs no name or ID, only an amount and a term. Collect the figures for each offer the same way where you can, and apply only where the numbers work for you.

Your comparison checklist

Write the figures from each offer next to these points.

The guide to rates and costs explains each part of the price in more detail.

Next step

Work out a Swizeo loan for the same amount and term as your other offers in the loan calculator. It shows the monthly payment, the total interest and the total to repay.