Quick Facts
- Swiss residents considering YouTube Premium
- Families looking to share subscription costs
- Heavy YouTube users tired of ads
- Switzerland has the world's highest YouTube Premium prices at 17.90 CHF/month for individual plans
- Family Plan (33.90 CHF) split 6 ways reduces cost to just 5.65 CHF per person
- YouTube now enforces strict same-address residency rules for Family Plans with location verification
- Standalone YouTube Music at 13.90 CHF is poor value - full Premium costs only 4 CHF more
For Swiss users, the Family Plan is the only cost-effective option if you can share with 5 household members at the same address. Solo subscribers should weigh whether saving 2+ hours monthly from ads justifies the premium price.
If you live in Switzerland, you are officially paying the highest “YouTube tax” on the planet. While other markets pay pennies, Swiss residents face the steepest subscription fees globally. But with ads becoming longer and unskippable, the question isn’t just about the priceit’s about how much you value your time.
We have analyzed the latest verified data for late 2025 to give you the raw numbers. Forget the rumors; here is exactly what YouTube Premium costs in Switzerland right now and whether the Family Plan is still the smart loophole it used to be.
The World’s Most Expensive Subscription: 2025/2026 Pricing
Let’s rip the band aid off. As of December 2025, Switzerland retains its title as the most expensive market for YouTube Premium, surpassing Denmark and Norway. While the service offers a standard 1-month free trial for new users, the recurring costs are significant.
Here is the current pricing structure verified for the Swiss market:
- Individual Plan: 17.90 CHF per month.
- Family Plan: 33.90 CHF per month (Up to 6 accounts).
- Student Plan: 11.90 CHF per month (Requires annual verification).
- YouTube Music Only: 13.90 CHF per month (No video benefits).
If these prices make you blink, you aren’t alone. Smart shopping in Switzerland often means looking for alternatives or bulk deals, similar to how we approach importing goods via Alibaba to avoid local markups.
The Family Plan: A Mathematical Loophole (With a Catch)
The Family Plan at 33.90 CHF sounds steepit’s nearly double the individual rate. However, it remains the most practical way to lower your individual cost. If you split this between six people (you + 5 members), the cost drops to roughly 5.65 CHF per person. That transforms the service from a luxury to a bargain.
The 2025 Household Crackdown
Here is the friction point that many users miss. In late 2025, YouTube began aggressively enforcing its residency rules. You can no longer share a Family Plan with friends living across different cantons.
The platform now uses electronic check ins and location data to verify that all family members live at the same residential address. If a member is flagged as living elsewhere, they receive a 14-day warning before their benefits are paused. If you are planning to share this with friends to save money, be warned: the system is much smarter now.
Is the “Music Premium” Option Worth It?
At 13.90 CHF/month, the standalone YouTube Music Premium subscription is an awkward middle child. It competes directly with Spotify and Apple Music but lacks the ad free video benefits of the full Premium plan.
Our advice: Skip the standalone music plan. For just 4 CHF more (17.90 CHF total), you get the full video experience. If you are already paying for Spotify, canceling it and switching to full YouTube Premium effectively gets you ad free videos for free. It’s a similar value proposition to comparing PlayStation hardware bundles—the package deal usually wins.
What You Actually Get (Beyond “No Ads”)
1. Time Reclamation
The primary asset isn’t the content; it’s your time. YouTube has increased the frequency of unskippable 15-second ads. If you watch an hour of content daily, you are likely losing 3-5 minutes to ads. Over a month, that’s two hours of your life sold to advertisers. Premium buys that time back.
2. Background Play & Downloads
This is essential for commuters. Background play allows you to lock your phone while listening to long form video essays or podcasts, saving significant battery life. Offline downloads are equally crucial if you have a capped data plan or travel frequently.
3. Forget About “Originals”
In the past, YouTube sold Premium on the promise of exclusive “Cobra Kai” style shows. That era is over. YouTube Originals was shut down in 2022. Do not subscribe expecting exclusive Hollywood tier productions; most legacy Originals are now free to watch with ads anyway. In 2026, you are paying for utility, not exclusive content.
The Verdict: Luxury or Essential?
Paying 17.90 CHF a month just to avoid ads is painful, especially when you compare it to the cost of living savings found just across the border in Germany. However, for heavy users, the math works out.
If you are a student, the 11.90 CHF rate is a no brainer. For families in the same household, the 33.90 CHF plan is excellent value. But for a single user? It comes down to how much you hate interruptions. If you can tolerate the ads, keep your 17.90 CHF. If you value seamless consumption, this is the most expensive, yet most effective, utility subscription you will own this year.
