12 Must-have Apps for Expats Living in Switzerland
The apps on our phones make our lives easier in many ways. From paying for your morning coffee to getting from A to B or staying on top of the important stuff, we reveal the essential downloads that will make navigating your life in Switzerland a breeze. Whether new arrival or not, these apps are useful to just about everyone, and we hope you discover one or the other app completely new to you. So, without further delay, here it goes…
Thanks to FAIRTIQ, you’ll never have to worry about buying a ticket for public transport again. Valid across Switzerland and on any journey by train, bus, tram and/or boat, simply activate the app before boarding and stop the trip once you have arrived at your destination. FAIRTIQ will then compute the best available fare for your route, changeovers and all included, and charge it straight to your chosen payment method.
TWINT is Switzerland’s most popular digital payment app, which allows you to make convenient and secure payments with your smartphone. In the supermarket, at the parking meter, at the farmer’s market or online, TWINT is accepted almost anywhere. Besides that, you can send money to your contacts, split amounts between friends, donate to charities, access various products and deals, and more.
Nowadays, the fewest of us carry spare change. Parkingpay is the easy way to pay for parking using your smartphone and is supported across more than 650 locations. In addition, we highly recommend getting the Parkingpay card, which can be used to drive in and out of parking garages.
The SBB Mobile app is jam-packed with everything you need when it comes to getting around by public transport. View timetables, follow live travel updates, purchase tickets including supersaver and group tickets, store your travelcards and more.
Managed by federal and cantonal authorities, Alertswiss provides information and advice on how to behave and what precautions to take during extreme conditions, disasters and emergencies. Although such occurrences are thankfully scarce in Switzerland, it’s an app worthwhile having. Set your location to receive relevant alerts and prepare your personal emergency plan.
Thanks to Too Good To Go you save food from going to waste and bag a rare bargain at the same time. The concept is simple – search for unsold food near you, reserve and collect it at the specified time.
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The eZug app currently provided by the municipalities Zug, Cham and Steinhausen, has many functions, mainly of an administrative nature. Request official documents, use electronic identification, communicate with your children’s school, store your library card and more.
Recycling is an integral part of waste disposal in Switzerland but can be hard to get to grips with at first. Recycling Map has recorded more than 12,000 collection points across Switzerland and the types of waste accepted at each one. Long story short, you’ll be a recycling superstar in no time.
Make the most of your new home as a winter wonderland. The Swiss Snow app by Switzerland Tourism is great for checking snow and weather conditions, webcams and lift operating times across your favourite ski resorts.
Running out of ideas what to do with the kids? Discover more than 1,000 family-friendly outings in the Family Trips app powered by Switzerland Tourism. Various categories and filters allow you to cut through the noise and find offers relevant to you.
Stay in the loop. SWI plus is your daily briefing on Switzerland, providing you with a quick overview of the most important news in English and further 9 languages. Although originally tailored to Swiss nationals living abroad, the app is just as valuable for expats residing in Switzerland.
It may not be the first to come to mind but let us not forget the all-important food delivery app and your mealtime saviour after a busy day! Just Eat is one of the region’s leading providers, although we will say, especially to those folks coming from metropolitan cities, that the choice can feel limited depending on where you live.