The independent Swiss online comparison service moneyland.ch conducted a representative online survey of the use of credit cards and prepaid cards in Switzerland and customer satisfaction with specific cards and issuers. A total of 1500 residents between the ages of 18 and 74 years old across both French-speaking and German-speaking Switzerland participated in the survey.
Customer satisfaction is generally high
Participants in the moneyland.ch survey were asked how satisfied they are with their credit cards and prepaid cards. Participants rated their satisfaction on a scale of 1 (completely unsatisfied) to 10 (very satisfied).
“The survey results show that Swiss consumers are satisfied with their credit cards,” concludes moneyland.ch CEO Benjamin Manz. On average, Swiss card users rate their credit cards and prepaid cards with 8 out of 10 points, an excellent customer satisfaction rating.
The average rating for customer satisfaction with the friendliness of credit card issuer employees is 8.1 points. The average rating for customer support with resolving issues is 8 points, the rating for clarity of information provided is 7.9 points and the value-for-money rating is 7.8 points, on average.
“But while customer satisfaction may be high, this is not a good time for Swiss card issuers to rest on their laurels. Foreign card issuers like Revolut are rapidly gaining ground in the Swiss payment card market,” states moneyland.ch credit card expert Daniel Dreier. Although Revolut’s customer satisfaction is slightly below average, it received the highest value-for-money ratings.
The most popular credit cards in Switzerland
A high 17.1% of consumers between the ages of 18 and 74 use the Migros Cumulus Mastercard issued by Cembra Money Bank in partnership with the Migros retail group. That makes it the most widely-used credit card in Switzerland.
17.2% use a credit card or prepaid card from a cantonal bank (issued primarily by Viseca), 16% have a credit card or prepaid card from PostFinance, 15.2% use cards from UBS, 9.9% use cards from Raiffeisen (issued primarily by Viseca), 7.8% use cards from Cornèrcard, and 6.9% use the new Coop Supercard issued by TopCard in partnership with the Coop retail group.
6.1% of consumers do not use either credit cards or prepaid cards.
Foreign card issuers are gaining in popularity
The survey shows that payment cards from UK financial services provider are now used by 3.7% of consumers in Switzerland. Revolut is more popular in German-speaking Switzerland than in French-speaking Switzerland. It is also more popular among men than women, among urban residents than rural residents, and among young adults than older adults. Cards from TransferWise – another UK financial services provider – are also used by some residents, but are not currently as popular as those from Revolut.
Cards with excellent customer satisfaction ratings
These credit cards and prepaid cards have the highest customer satisfaction ratings in 2020: The Migros Cumulus Mastercard from Cembra Money Bank with a weighted average rating of 8.4 out of 10 points; Viseca cards from Raiffeisen (8.3 points); cards from Cornèrcard, Migros Bank and UBS (8.2 points each).
American Express cards (issued by Swisscard) and cards from Cembra Money Bank in general also have high customers satisfaction ratings (8.1 points each), as do cards from Swisscard in general (8 points).
Cards with good customer satisfaction ratings
Cards which received good average customer satisfaction ratings include the Swisscard Cashback credit cards, cards from PostFinance and Revolut cards (7.9 points each). These are followed by cards from Credit Suisse and Viseca cards in general (7.8 points each) and cards from Bonuscard and Swiss Bankers (7.7 points each).
The new Coop Supercard issued by UBS subsidiary TopCard received lower ratings, with an average rating of 7.5 points. “The new Coop Supercard is regularly the subject of critical comments in the moneyland.ch forum,” says Benjamin Manz.
All customer satisfaction ratings are clearly shown in the interactive Swiss credit card and prepaid card comparison on moneyland.ch.
Young adults are less satisfied with their credit cards
Card users in French-speaking Switzerland are somewhat less satisfied than those in German-speaking Switzerland. “Women are somewhat more satisfied with their payment cards than men, and rural residents are more content than city dwellers,” states Daniel Dreier.
Age-based differences are also notable. The average credit card customer satisfaction rating among adults between the ages of 50 and 74 years old is 8.3 out of 10 points. Adults between the ages of 18 and 25 years old are less satisfied, with an average rating of 7.9 points.
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