Investing for beginners in Switzerland: The honest beginner’s guide
August 25, 2025
6 min read
arvy's Teaser: You know you should invest. Everyone says so — your parents, the internet, your gut feeling when you check your savings account balance. But you've never started because: "I don't understand it." "I don't have enough money." "I'm waiting for the right moment." This guide destroys all three excuses. No financial jargon, no product pushing, no 50-page theory. Just the truth about investing in Switzerland — and a clear roadmap to get started today.
Why Invest? The Calculation That Changes Everything
Imagine you put CHF 500 per month into your savings account. Interest rate: 0.75% (typical for Swiss savings accounts in 2026). After 30 years, you've deposited CHF 192,000 and have about CHF 214,000 in the account. Sounds okay?
Now imagine you invest those same CHF 500/month in a broadly diversified stock portfolio. Historical average return of global equities: roughly 7% per year (before inflation). After 30 years, you've still deposited CHF 192,000 — but your portfolio is worth roughly CHF 610,000.
Savings Account (0.75%)
CHF 214k
Invested (7%)
CHF 610k
Difference: CHF 396,000 — just from investing instead of saving. Same amount, same discipline.
The difference is called compound interest: your returns generate their own returns. In the first year, you earn little. After 10 years, you notice it. After 20 years, it explodes. The earlier you start, the more powerful the effect.
What happens if you DON'T invest?
Inflation. At 1.5% per year, your savings account loses roughly 36% of its purchasing power over 30 years. Your CHF 214,000 in the savings account will only buy what CHF 137,000 buys today. Not investing isn't the safe option — it's the guaranteed way to lose money in real terms.
Before You Invest: The 3 Prerequisites
1. Pay Off Debt (Except Your Mortgage)
Consumer loan at 7% interest? Credit card debt? Pay it off first. No investment reliably beats 7%. Your mortgage is different — rates are low and interest is tax-deductible.
2. Build an Emergency Fund
6 months of expenses in a savings account. That's typically CHF 15,000–25,000. This money is NOT invested. It's your insurance against job loss, car repairs, or dental bills. (→ CHF 50k Guide)
3. Only Invest Money You Won't Need for 5+ Years
Invested money can temporarily drop 20–40% in value. That's normal and not a problem — as long as you don't have to sell at that exact moment. So: only invest money you won't need for at least 5 years. Better: 10+ years.
What's Out There: Asset Classes in 60 Seconds
For most beginners, the answer is clear: broadly diversified stocks, held long-term. It sounds risky, but over a 10+ year horizon, it's historically the safest way to build wealth.
What Is an ETF? (Actually Simply Explained)
Imagine you want to buy 1,000 companies worldwide: Apple, Nestlé, Samsung, LVMH, and 996 more. That would be incredibly expensive and complex. An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) does exactly that for you — in a single product.
An ETF is a basket of stocks (or bonds) that you can buy on the stock exchange like a single share. You pay once and automatically own tiny pieces of hundreds or thousands of companies.
Why ETFs Are Ideal for Beginners
🟢 Instant diversification: A global ETF holds 1,500+ companies. If one goes bankrupt, you barely notice.
🟢 Cheap: Costs (TER) often under 0.3% per year. Actively managed funds charge 1–2%.
🟢 Simple: No stock-picking, no timing. You buy "the market."
🟢 Transparent: You can see exactly what's inside and what it costs at any time.
Active, Passive, or Quality? The Three Paths
Passive Investing (Index ETFs)
You buy "the whole market" — e.g. the 500 largest US companies (S&P 500) or 1,500 companies globally (MSCI World). No manager decides what goes in or out — the index determines that. Cheap, broad, simple.
Downside: You buy everything — the good and the bad companies. The index is weighted by market capitalisation, so you own more of the biggest (and often already most expensive) firms.
Active Investing (Fund Managers)
A manager picks which stocks they think will perform well. Goal: beat the market. Cost: 1–2% per year.
Downside: Over 90% of active funds fail to beat their benchmark index long-term. The fees eat the performance.
Quality Investing (Quality Companies)
A more concentrated portfolio of carefully selected quality companies — firms with strong brands, high margins, low debt, and stable cash flows. Not the whole market, but the best 30–50 companies.
Downside: Less diversified than a world ETF. Requires conviction and patience.
Honest Take
For absolute beginners, a broadly diversified ETF (e.g. MSCI World or FTSE All-World) is the simplest, most solid starting point. If you want to go one step further, you can invest a portion in quality companies — that's the arvy approach. Both are better than not investing.
The Swiss Advantage: Why Investing Pays Off Even More Here
Capital Gains = Tax-Free
In Switzerland, private capital gains are tax-free. You buy a stock for CHF 100, sell it for CHF 200 → CHF 100 profit, zero taxes. In Germany, the US, or the UK, you'd pay 25–40% tax on that gain. This is an enormous advantage — use it. (→ Tax Guide)
What IS taxed: Dividends (as income) and your total wealth (wealth tax). That's why accumulating (reinvesting) funds can be more tax-efficient than distributing ones. And: the 35% withholding tax (Verrechnungssteuer) on Swiss dividends is refunded when you correctly declare everything in your tax return.
The Order of Operations: What Comes First?
1
Pay off debt (except mortgage)
2
Emergency fund: 6 months of expenses in a savings account
3
Pillar 3a: Max it out (CHF 7,258/year) — in an investment app, not a savings account (→ 3a Guide)
4
Check PK buy-in: If you have a gap and terms are good (→ PK Guide)
5
Free investing: Everything beyond — long-term, in quality
"Step 3 is the most important. The 3a contribution saves you taxes immediately AND builds wealth. It's the only investment that's partially funded by the government."
What to Expect (And What Not To)
Yes, Your Portfolio Will Sometimes Be Red
Every decade has at least one major crash: 2000 (Dotcom: –45%), 2008 (Financial crisis: –55%), 2020 (Covid: –34%), 2022 (Inflation/rate hikes: –20%). Every time, the market recovered — and reached new highs.
What CHF 10,000 Invested in 2005 Would Be Worth Today
MSCI World (global): ~CHF 38,000 (through the financial crisis, Covid, Ukraine war)
Savings account (1% interest): ~CHF 12,200
Under the mattress: CHF 10,000 nominal, ~CHF 7,500 in purchasing power
No, You Won't Get Rich Overnight
Investing is not a get-rich-quick scheme. It's a slow, steady process. The first years feel frustrating. Compound interest needs 10–15 years before it becomes truly visible. Patience is an investor's most important quality.
No, You Don't Need to "Time" the Market
"Should I get in now or wait for a crash?" — The honest answer: nobody knows when the next crash will come. Studies show that investing regularly (the same amount every month, regardless of what the market does) outperforms trying to find the "perfect moment" in most cases.
The 7 Biggest Beginner Mistakes
1. Never starting at all. The most expensive mistake. Every year you wait costs you thousands in missed returns.
2. Betting everything on one horse. "My colleague gave me this one hot stock tip…" — Individual stocks are dangerous for beginners. Diversify.
3. Paying too much in fees. 1.5% sounds like nothing. Over 30 years, it costs you ~30% of your final wealth. Keep total costs below 0.5%.
4. Panic selling during drops. This is the single greatest wealth destroyer. Anyone who sold in panic in March 2020 missed the fastest recovery in history.
5. Starting with crypto or meme stocks. That's not investing — it's speculation. Fine with money you can afford to lose, not with money you need.
6. Forgetting the 3a. If you invest without maxing out your 3a first, you're leaving CHF 1,500–4,000 per year in tax savings on the table. (→ Tax Guide)
7. Reading too much, doing too little. The best time to invest was 10 years ago. The second best time is today.
Your Start Plan: From Savings Account to Investor in 4 Weeks
Week 1: Check Your Budget
How much can you invest monthly? (→ Budget Guide) Emergency fund in place? Debts paid off? If yes: move to Week 2.
Week 2: Open a 3a and Set Up a Standing Order
Choose an investment app for 3a (not a savings account!). Strategy: high equity allocation (80–100%) if you have 10+ years. Standing order: CHF 605/month (= CHF 7,258/year).
Week 3: Start Free Investing
Choose an investment app or broker. Set up a standing order: whatever remains after 3a, emergency fund, and expenses. Even CHF 100/month is a perfect start.
Week 4: Forget About It and Live Your Life
Seriously. The standing orders are running. Don't check your portfolio every day. Once a quarter is enough. Your job now is: be patient.
Your Beginner Checklist
☐ Debts paid off (except mortgage)?
☐ Emergency fund: 6 months of expenses in savings account?
☐ Monthly investment budget set?
☐ Pillar 3a opened (investment app, not savings account)?
☐ 3a standing order set up (CHF 605/month)?
☐ Free investing started (even if just CHF 100/month)?
☐ Strategy chosen (broadly diversified, long-term)?
☐ Understood: market drops are normal, don't sell?
☐ Portfolio check no more than once per quarter?
Ready? Start With arvy.
Pillar 3a and free investing in one place. No minimum, no hidden fees. You invest in quality companies — alongside experienced investors who put their own money in the same way. And if you have questions: we're here.
Disclaimer: This article is for general information purposes and does not constitute personal investment advice. Historical returns are not a guarantee of future results. Investments in securities involve risks, including possible loss of invested capital. arvy is a FINMA-regulated asset manager. As of February 2026.
