Does it cost a lot to get a driving licence in Switzerland? Yes, everybody knows that. But how expensive is it really? That question is considerably harder to answer. We have done it with great care. In our cost overview you can get a detailed picture of what the licence will cost you.
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How much does a driving licence cost in Switzerland?
The total cost of a category B licence in Switzerland comes to an average of 3’560 CHF with a manual gearbox and 2’660 CHF with an automatic. These are averages, which can vary a great deal from person to person under the influence of various factors. How talented and how motivated someone is to learn to drive. Where you live plays a role, because costs can differ considerably from canton to canton.
The choice of gearbox, manual or automatic, is also decisive. Learning to drive in an automatic tends to be easier and quicker, which makes the licence cheaper. The biggest cost factor is the driving lessons, which at more than 50% account for most of the cost on the road to the full licence. How many lessons a new driver needs before being ready for the test comes down to highly individual characteristics.
The overview map of Switzerland shows that the licence costs a different amount in each canton. Even though administrative process costs, such as the fees for the Lernfahrausweis (learner’s permit), differ, it is the number and the varying cost of the driving lessons that makes by far the biggest difference.
At an average of 3’820 CHF, the licence in the canton of Graubünden is the most expensive. Nidwalden and Obwalden are the cheapest cantons for a licence at 3’360 CHF. The canton of Zürich shows a slightly above-average cost level at 3’565 CHF. The cantons shaded grey have no significant data basis and are therefore not taken into account. The map only considers licences where the test was taken in a manual, but the general cost tendency is the same for automatics.
Whichever canton you live in, you have to reckon roughly with the following costs:
* The manual figure assumes 25 driving lessons of 50 minutes at 90 CHF. For the automatic, 15 lessons of 50 minutes at 90 CHF were assumed. The number of lessons needed varies a great deal from person to person.
The list of costs above gives you a picture of what you may have to pay. But as already mentioned, there are fixed costs that are the same for every learner driver within the same canton, such as the cost of the theory test or the application for the Lernfahrausweis. You do have to be aware, though, that the largest part of the cost can vary a great deal from person to person. How many lessons a learner takes, and with whom, is decisive. On top of that, more than 30% do not pass the practical driving test at the first attempt, which also leads to extra costs.
Important: it matters whether you want to take your lessons and the car test in a manual or an automatic and how many lessons you need in total.
By far the most expensive factor on the road to a licence is the driving lessons. But that also means that, besides the choice of gearbox (automatic/manual), this is where you can save the most and the most easily. How best to do that, and what you absolutely have to watch out for, is explained in the article on how to save money on the road to your licence.
Costs if you fail the driving test: if you do not pass, you have to pay the test fee of 130 CHF again at your next appointment and take additional lessons to practise with your instructor once more, so that you reach the required standard. The cost of failing can quickly climb from 200 CHF (practical test 130 CHF and 1 driving lesson 90 CHF, which you typically take before the test) to as much as 500 CHF.
Choosing the right learning software for the theory test is not easy. The reason is the wide range of providers, programs (app, online, USB stick and so on) and the widely varying prices. There are even free providers. We would not recommend those. Why the free theory programs are not much good is explained in the comparison of the various theory providers.
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How much does a driving lesson cost in Switzerland?
A driving lesson costs an average of 90 francs per lesson in Switzerland. That varies a great deal by instructor and by canton. NOTE: a driving lesson is not necessarily 60 minutes long, as is often assumed. Getting that wrong and finding out afterwards can be sobering. The length differs by instructor and varies between 45 and 75 minutes. The prices for automatics and manuals barely differ. Only in isolated cases can a lesson in an automatic be slightly cheaper.
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How many driving lessons do I need for category B?
Driving lessons are the biggest cost factor on the road to a licence. How many you need depends entirely on you. In Switzerland just under 30 lessons is the average. That figure will probably fall slightly with the recent changes in the law, since considerably more learner drivers now practise in automatics than before and therefore need considerably fewer lessons.
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How many driving lessons do I have to have in Switzerland?
Driving lessons are not compulsory in Switzerland. At present a learner driver voluntarily takes around 25 lessons. The reason is that it is very hard to pass the car test without lessons. An instructor knows exactly what the examiner looks for and can put the focus on those points accordingly.
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How much does a driving licence cost on average?
In Switzerland a category B (car) licence cost an average of 3’560 CHF with a manual gearbox and 2’660 CHF with an automatic in 2020. The costs vary a great deal, though, depending on the learner, the gearbox of the vehicle and the instructor. By international comparison the Swiss licence is rather expensive, as this article by swissinfo confirms. And the licence is only the start of the costs: the first car of your own needs insurance, road tax and the Swiss vignette – CHF 40 a year, as a sticker or an E-Vignette.
You can also see how the cost of a licence breaks down in this video.
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How can I save money on the road to my licence? 6 important saving tips
A driving licence costs a lot of money. There is no way around the high costs. But if you go about it the right way, you can save a lot of money without cutting corners. These 6 tips will save you the most on the road to your licence:
- Learn to drive in an automatic: whether you learn in a manual or an automatic makes a big difference.
- Find the right driving school and instructor: (not the cheapest…)
- Do plenty of private practice (practice makes perfect)
- Look out for saving packages: instructors often offer discounted packages.
- Pass the driving test first time: it sounds so obvious, but it is not. One in three fails and has to pay the test fee again, plus often at least two more lessons to get back up to standard.
- Keep to the deadlines. Do not make needless mistakes on the road to your licence. Do not sleep through any deadlines, that can become expensive and tiresome. Above all, do not forget to send in your WAB course confirmation. In a few cantons that happens automatically, though.
In this article about the 6 saving tips for your licence you will find a fuller explanation. This driving instructor from Germany also gives you further tips in this video on how to make your lessons more efficient and therefore cheaper.
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Licence costs: automatic and manual
Whether you learn in a manual or an automatic is up to you. Since the change in the law it is permitted to drive a manual without restriction after passing the driving test in an automatic.
If you learn in an automatic, the licence costs on average around 900 CHF less. But if you only have manual cars at work, it is to your advantage to learn and take the test in one. Because anyone who took the test in an automatic usually has great difficulty at first getting to grips with a manual gearbox. The biggest challenge is pulling away. Working the clutch, changing gear and at the same time keeping an overview and staying calm. For many new drivers that is too much, and it can quickly become dangerous.
In the article on manual or automatic you can read the exact advantages and disadvantages of the two types of gearbox.
The Solothurner Zeitung has also drawn up a cost breakdown. Read the article in the Solothurner Zeitung here.