Swiss Satisfaction Survey 2021

Residents of Switzerland are dissatisfied with their financial situations. That is just one of the results shown by a survey of 1500 residents aimed at gauging satisfaction with different aspects of life in Switzerland. On average, participants gave their financial situations a low 6 out of 10 points, putting finances below the average of 6.9 points for all factors combined. Salaries (6.1 points) and employers (6.8 points) also have plenty of room for improvement according to many survey participants.

Residents with 100,000 francs are as content as millionaires

Wealth plays a significant role: Residents with more assets are more content with their financial situation, their job, their employer and their salary. But the correlation between wealth and satisfaction dwindles above certain thresholds. For example, residents with up to 20,000 francs of wealth rate their satisfaction with their jobs at just 6.3 points, on average. The average job-satisfaction rating for residents with 100,000 francs or more of assets is 7.4 points – more than one full point higher. However, job satisfaction does not greatly increase above that wealth threshold: Millionaires too rated their job satisfaction at 7.4 points, on average.

Wealthier people also tend to be more content in other areas of life too. “Perhaps money really does bring happiness – even if only to a certain degree,” observes moneyland.ch analyst Raphael Knecht.

Age also tends to bring more satisfaction with one’s financial state. Residents between the ages of 50- and 74-years old rate their satisfaction with their finances substantially higher (6.7 points) than adults aged 18 to 25 (just 5.5 points). The difference is also identical for satisfaction with employers. But older adults are not only more satisfied with their jobs and finances. Satisfaction ratings from adults above the age of 50 are 0.5 points higher, on average, than those from other age groups.

Politicians get the worst ratings

Finances may be a source of dissatisfaction for Swiss, but it is politicians that take the bottom end. Residents rate their satisfaction with Swiss politicians at just 5.4 out of 10 points. Satisfaction with the Federal Council and politics during the coronavirus crisis is also low, at just 5.9 out of 10 points.

Aside from politics, satisfaction with churches is also below-average at 5.7 points, with only very small differences between age groups, genders, and regions. Only around half of participants rated their satisfaction with their churches, while the rest abstained. “That result is somewhat surprising, seeing that churches benefited from some privileges during the lockdowns. Still, residents are collectively less satisfied with their churches than with restaurants and hotels, for example,” says Knecht.

Good ratings for children and parents

Families, on the other hand, take the high-end of the satisfaction ladder. Residents of Switzerland are the most satisfied with their children (8.4 points) and parents (8 points). Children are a particularly high source of satisfaction to women, with a high 8.7-point satisfaction rating.

“The results continue to reflect the pandemic,” observes Knecht from moneyland.ch. “Politicians are responsible for unpopular changes, and the family provides a solid base which many people can rely on.” The only exception are adults in the 18- to 25-year-old age group, which show below-average satisfaction with their children (6.6 points).

Another area related to the pandemic is personal health. Interestingly, residents are generally satisfied with their health situation, with this factor receiving an above-average rating of 7.3 out of 10 points. The results show that for the majority of residents, poor health is not on the list of major concerns.

Lower satisfaction in French-speaking Switzerland

French-speaking Switzerland tends to be less satisfied, as a whole, than German-speaking Switzerland. Banks, insurance companies, telecom service providers, and public transportation all receive lower satisfaction ratings on the western side of the linguistic divide. German-speaking Swiss are somewhat more satisfied with the SBB/CFF, the postal bus system, and public transportation in general than their French-speaking counterparts, although ratings are still below average. “This may be a reflection of the recurring, pandemic-related limitations placed on the public transportation systems over the past year, and the requirement to wear masks,” presumes Knecht. “These factors may still be a source of annoyance to some customers.”

But there are also areas with which residents of French-speaking Switzerland are more content than residents of German-speaking Switzerland. With 8.1 points, satisfaction with one’s education is around half-a-point higher in French-speaking Switzerland.

High satisfaction with banks, insurance companies and telecom services

In contrast to political establishments and public transportation, companies received relatively high satisfaction ratings. Banks (7.3 points), insurance companies (7 points), and telecom service providers (6.9 points) received average or above-average ratings. Men are generally more satisfied with these service providers than women.

Interesting: The richest residents are the least satisfied with their banks. The average rating from people with 500,000 francs or more in personal wealth was a lower 7 points. However, that rating is still high on a scale of 1 to 10. As a whole, even high-net-worth residents are very satisfied with the financial sector.

Swiss are not big complainers

The survey results show that residents of Switzerland generally do not have much to complain about. Overall satisfaction with one’s life sits at 7.6 out of 10 points – a good score. Here too, wealthier and elder residents are somewhat more content than other adults.

Even the lowest average satisfaction ratings are above 5 out of 10 points. The average satisfaction rating across all areas is 6.9 points. So residents of Switzerland are generally more satisfied than dissatisfied.

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