Swiss Fibre Coverage Improves Significantly in European Comparison

Home
Swiss Fibre Coverage Improves Significantly in European Comparison

20.05.2026 | from Swiss Fibre Net AG

Reading time: 2 minutes

20.05.2026, Bern - The latest figures from the FTTH Council Europe show that Switzerland made further progress in fibre optic expansion in 2025, gaining on the European average. With FTTH coverage of 72% (out of 4.1 million households according to BFS), Switzerland still lags slightly behind the European average of 79%. If coverage is measured based on 5.5 million homes and businesses, it amounts to 54%.

The utilisation rate of fibre connections (take-up rate) is 51%, which represents a slight decline (-3%) compared to 2024. This is due to the many new connections that have yet to be fully utilised.

Swiss Fibre Net AG (SFN AG) welcomes the progress, especially since Switzerland has caught up to the European average.

Switzerland in the European Comparison:

FTTH Coverage: 72% (EU39 average: 79%), with 5.5 million households/businesses 54% Take-up Rate: 51% (EU39 average: 54%) Penetration Rate: 37% (EU39 average: 43%)

These figures show that Switzerland has made significant progress. However, other countries like the UK (coverage 80%) or Germany (coverage 56%) have also improved.

Further Action Required:

SFN AG still sees the need to further accelerate fibre optic expansion. The current plans of the Federal Council to provide funding from 2028 with a broadband promotion law come rather late. The digital transformation requires continuous investments in infrastructure to ensure Switzerland's competitiveness and to bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas.

Andreas Waber, CEO of Swiss Fibre Net AG, adds: "The latest figures regarding fibre coverage in Switzerland are good news. We have caught up with our European neighbours. However, with 54% coverage of homes and businesses, many areas, especially rural ones, are still not connected with fibre optics, and there is still a need for action in the coming years. Strong and intact infrastructure competition is the foundation for this."

FTTH Fibre Networks as a Sustainable Solution:

FTTH networks are not only the fastest but also the most environmentally sustainable technology for communication networks. Compared to copper and cable networks, fibre optic networks consume significantly less energy, thus contributing to improving the ESG balance (Environmental, Social, Governance). SFN AG is committed to pushing forward the expansion of FTTH networks and the decommissioning of disused copper and cable networks.

Press Contact:

Andreas Waber
CEO Swiss Fibre Net AG
+41 79 668 90 78
andreas.waber@swissfibrenet.ch
https://www.swissfibrenet.ch/news/

Editor's note: Image rights belong to the respective publisher.

Conclusion of this article: « Swiss Fibre Coverage Improves Significantly in European Comparison »

Swiss Fibre Net AG

Switzerland needs nationwide FTTH networks to meet the growing bandwidth demands and to remain at the forefront of international location competition.

Economically, it makes sense to build and operate a single FTTH network that is non-discriminatorily accessible to all telecom providers. This creates fair competition among telecom providers, providing end customers with the best performance at the lowest cost.

Swiss Fibre Net AG is a joint venture of local energy suppliers and cable network operators in Switzerland. It connects the local fibre optic networks of its network partners into a large-scale, homogeneous, and open "Swiss Fibre Net" and offers this to nationally active telecom providers for use on a non-discriminatory basis. Thus, Swiss Fibre Net AG is a guarantor of competition in the telecommunications market.

Note: The "About Us" text is taken from public sources or from the company profile on HELP.ch.

Source: Swiss Fibre Net AG, Press release

Original article published on: Schweizer Glasfaserabdeckung verbessert sich stark im europäischen Vergleich

Home

Next Article LHH Global Report: AI Transforms ...