Most homes in Switzerland have no more than two residents

Most homes in Switzerland have no more than two residents.

Only one or two people live in more than half of the homes in Switzerland.

At the end of 2024, the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) counted a total of 1.8 million buildings used for residential purposes, with a total of 4.84 million dwellings. Over a million of all buildings were single-family homes, and 55% of them were occupied by just one or two people, according to the FSO.

The average living space per person in Switzerland in 2024 was therefore 46.6 square meters. According to the FSO, this figure increased steadily until 2021 and has remained stable since then.

Reliance on oil heating systems

Around 35% of buildings were heated with heating oil. This means that oil is still the most widely used source of heating energy in Switzerland, writes swissinfo. However, according to the FSO, this proportion has been falling steadily over the past 40 years, reports albinfo.ch.

However, the proportion of buildings heated with a heat pump has increased significantly. In 2024, 23% of all buildings were equipped with one. This is a fivefold increase since 2000. Gas heating was installed in 17% of all buildings, 12% of buildings were heated with wood and 7% with electricity.

If you look at individual households instead of buildings, the situation looks somewhat different according to the FSO data. In 2024, 60% of households were heated with fossil fuels (35% heating oil, 25% gas) and 20% of households were in a building with a heat pump.