The daily use of digital technologies is a mark of a developed, forward-looking society. How is Switzerland doing in this respect?
In a recent survey, The Local asked its readers what major challenges they are facing in Switzerland.
One of the respondents wrote, “I wonder when Swiss will adapt to being digital,” sayng that there is still too much physical paperwork being done in the country.
Is Switzerland really backward in terms of its population’s digital skills?
Generally speaking it is true that many Swiss people, especially the older generation, are attached to traditions and may not have followed the fast-paced digital revolution that has taken over much of the world in the past decade quite as assiduously as their younger counterparts.
However, to say that all elderly people are tech-challenged is not true.
A study carried out in Switzerland in 2025 revealed that 88 percent of people between the ages of 65 and 74 have at least the basic digital skills.
The study also found that increasingly more older people (33 percent) are getting their information from digital devices such as smartphones, tablets and computers than from traditional media such as television (30 percent), the printed press (22 percent), and the radio (15 percent).
Within the general population – that is, people of all ages – the digitalisation rate is also high in international comparison.
The 2025 IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking, which measures the capacity of 69 nations to adopt digital technologies named Switzerland as the world’s most digitally savvy country.
One of the ways this savvy manifests itself is evident from the 2026 AI Index Report,.
It found that Switzerland recorded 110.5 AI researchers and developers per 100,000 inhabitants in 2025, placing it in the first place worldwide in terms of AI expert density.
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Some specific examples
Everywhere in the country, old ways of doing things are disappearing and new ones are taking over.
For instance, laces where commuters could buy paper tickets for public transport were abundant just a few years ago. But now, only electronic options, such as the SBB app, are available.
But perhaps the best example of Switzerland’s “far-reaching digital transformation” (as the government put it) is the new electronic identity (e-ID) card.
To be launched on December 1st, this card “will enable users to identify themselves digitally in a secure, fast and uncomplicated way,” and easily access a wide variety of services and procedures – which were previously performed manually – online, the Federal Council said.
READ MORE: What is Switzerland’s new ‘electronic ID’ and will you need it?
