Convert EUR to CHF Euro ↔ Swiss franc Free Online Secure
Type an amount in Euro and read it in Swiss franc at once. The page uses the European Central Bank's reference rate, and tells you which day that rate is from.
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Common amounts — Convert EUR to CHF (Euro ↔ Swiss franc)
| EUR | CHF |
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| 1 | |
| 5 | |
| 10 | |
| 20 | |
| 50 | |
| 100 | |
| 250 | |
| 500 | |
| 1000 | |
| 5000 |
The last thirty days
Where these codes and rates come from
The three letters in EUR, USD or JPY are not an abbreviation someone invented for a website: they are ISO 4217, a standard in which the first two letters are the country's own code and the third is usually the initial of the currency. The figures on this page come from the European Central Bank, which publishes one set of reference rates each working day, around 16:00 Central European time, agreed between the central banks of the Eurosystem. They are a daily snapshot meant for statistics and accounting, not a live trading feed — which is exactly why they are the same number for everyone, rather than whatever one bank happened to quote at one moment.
Where you meet an exchange rate
You meet an exchange rate four or five times a year without thinking about it: booking a trip, paying an invoice issued abroad, buying from a foreign shop, reading a salary offer in another currency, or checking what a card charge really cost. In all of these the reference rate is the honest middle, and the price you actually pay sits a little to one side of it. Knowing the middle is what lets you see how wide that margin is.
Questions people ask
Is this the rate my bank will give me?
No, and no page can promise one. This is the European Central Bank's reference rate: the midpoint published once a day for statistics. A bank, a card scheme or an exchange office adds its own margin on top — usually between half a percent and three percent, sometimes more at an airport counter. Use this figure to judge the offer you are given, not to predict it.
How often does the figure change, and what happens at weekends?
The European Central Bank publishes once each working day, in the afternoon, Central European time. There is no publication on Saturdays, Sundays or TARGET holidays, so on those days the page shows the last working day's rate and says which day it belongs to. The chart alongside is one year of the same daily series.
Is the answer exact?
Where both units are defined in terms of one another by whole numbers, yes — the page says so above the figure, and the only rounding is in how many digits are shown. Where the ratio has no finite decimal, the page shows twelve significant digits and says the relation is approximate rather than pretending otherwise.
Does anything I type leave my device?
No. The arithmetic runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded and there is no server to upload it to. Load the page once and it keeps working with the network switched off.
The franc, the euro and the neighbour that never joined
Switzerland sits in the middle of the continent, surrounded on every side by countries that use the euro, and keeps a currency of its own. Every day, hundreds of thousands of people cross the border to work, shop or holiday, and every one of them eventually has to Convert EUR to CHF or the other way round. A German family heads for the Alps and finds the prices in francs. A French worker commutes to Geneva and is paid in francs but pays rent in euros. A company in Milan buys precision parts from Jura and receives an invoice in a currency that has surprised its treasurers more than once in the past fifteen years.
This page converts euros into Swiss francs with the European Central Bank's daily reference rate and shows the date of that rate. The explanation that follows is specific to this pair: why the franc is so often called a safe haven, what happened when the Swiss National Bank tied the franc to the euro and then let go, how cross-border workers and shoppers deal with the rate, and how to avoid paying more than necessary when you change money. Your amount stays in your browser throughout.
Using the converter
One field, one date
Each time you Convert EUR to CHF here, read the date first: it tells you how old the figure is.
Type the amount in euros. The page multiplies it by the published rate, which states how many francs one euro buys, and shows the result in francs alongside the date of the rate. On Saturday and Sunday, and on public holidays, the rate is the last one published, and the page says so instead of putting today's date on an older number.
The table and the line
For someone who must Convert EUR to CHF several times a day, the table saves retyping the same amounts.
Beneath the converter you will find a table of common amounts, from one euro to five thousand, and a line showing the last thirty days of rates. The table is handy in a shop or restaurant where you want to read off a price at a glance. The line shows whether the franc has been calm or lively, which matters if you have a large payment to make.
Going the other way
When you have francs and want euros, for example at the end of a holiday or when an invoice arrives from a Swiss supplier, Convert CHF to EUR uses the same published rate in the opposite direction.
Why the franc is called a safe haven
Stability as a policy
That is why anyone who needs to Convert EUR to CHF in a nervous week should expect more movement than usual.
Switzerland has low public debt, a large trade surplus, a stable political system and a central bank that has kept inflation low for decades. When investors fear a crisis, they sell riskier assets and buy francs, which pushes the rate up. The pattern has repeated in the financial crisis of 2008, in the euro-area troubles of 2010 to 2012, and in many smaller scares since.
The cost of being safe
A strong franc is a mixed blessing. It makes imports cheaper for the Swiss and holidays abroad a bargain, but it makes Swiss watches, machinery and chocolate dearer for foreign buyers. Exporters complain, tourism suffers, and the central bank has intervened to stop the rise when it threatened the economy.
The franc in numbers
The Swiss National Bank holds large reserves of foreign currency and gold, accumulated partly through those interventions. For ordinary users, the practical result is that the rate between the franc and the euro moves in broad swings rather than in a steady trend, so the thirty-day line is worth a glance before any large conversion.
The floor of 2011 and the shock of 2015
A line drawn at one euro twenty
In September 2011, with the euro-area debt crisis at its height and the franc soaring, the Swiss National Bank announced that it would not allow the euro to fall below 1.20 francs and would buy any quantity of euros needed to defend that level. For more than three years the rate hardly moved, and cross-border commuters, shoppers and companies planned accordingly.
The day the floor was removed
On 15 January 2015 the bank abandoned the floor without warning. The franc jumped by about a fifth within minutes, some brokers failed, and Swiss shops suddenly looked very expensive to foreigners. The rate settled below its previous level and has never again been held artificially. The episode taught every business that deals with Switzerland that the rate is not guaranteed.
What the episode means for you
If you have to Convert EUR to CHF for a payment months from now, remember that the rate can move sharply, and consider asking your bank for a forward contract, or splitting the conversion into parts.
Negative interest and afterwards
For several years the Swiss National Bank charged banks a negative interest rate on deposits, a policy designed to make holding francs less attractive. It ended in 2022 as the bank raised rates against inflation. The episode left a lasting impression on how people think about the franc.
Commuters across the border
Four hundred thousand daily travellers
Roughly four hundred thousand people live in France, Germany, Italy or Austria and work in Switzerland, many of them in Basel, Geneva and Ticino. They are paid in francs and spend a mixture of francs and euros. For them the rate decides how much of their pay is really worth, and a ten per cent shift in a year is a pay rise or a pay cut.
How commuters manage the rate
A commuter who has to Convert EUR to CHF monthly for rent or taxes usually sets a standing rule for the day of the month.
Many keep an account in each currency and convert only the amount they need for local spending in euros. Others use a transfer service that gives a rate close to the reference one. They all learn to compare each quote with the figure on a page like this.
Taxes and social contributions
Tax rules for cross-border workers depend on the countries involved and on bilateral agreements. Salaries are usually taxed in Switzerland at source, with credits at home, and the conversion into euros for declaration follows the rate of the tax authority. Ask a tax adviser; the reference rate here is only a guide.
Shopping, tourism and the price of Switzerland
Why Swiss prices shock visitors
Wages in Switzerland are among the highest in the world, and so are rents and the cost of services. A coffee at a station costs the equivalent of four or five euros, a modest lunch twenty, and a night in a mid-range hotel over a hundred and fifty. Convert EUR to CHF for a few such figures before you go, and a Swiss menu will stop looking like a typing error.
Shopping across the line
Swiss residents near the border drive to Konstanz, Lörrach, Annemasse and Como to shop for food, fuel and furniture at euro prices, a habit called Einkaufstourismus. Visitors from outside the European Union can claim back Swiss VAT on larger purchases at the border, provided they ask the shop for the right form.
Mountains, trains and altitude
Swiss timetables and signs use metres for altitude and kilometres for distance. A mountain station at 3,454 metres is high enough to feel the thin air, and a tourist who wants to compare with an American peak can Convert M to FT to see that the figure is 11,332 feet. Forecasts are in Celsius, so there is nothing to convert for temperature.
Paying and exchanging well
Cards and cash
Before you Convert EUR to CHF in cash, check whether your bank machine card avoids the fee altogether.
Cards are accepted almost everywhere, though smaller mountain huts and farm shops prefer cash. Swiss coins include a five-franc piece, and cash payments are rounded to the nearest five centimes, so you do not need small change.
Euros in Swiss shops
Many shops near the border and at tourist sites accept euros, often giving change in francs and always at a rate that favours the shop. A tourist who pays a fifty-euro bill with euros may lose several francs in the conversion. Use francs, or pay by card in francs.
Cash machines
Bank machines in Switzerland give a rate close to the network's and charge a fixed fee, depending on your bank. When a machine asks whether you want your own currency, say no and choose francs.
The margin ladder
On a thousand euros, a good transfer costs five to ten euros, a card payment about twenty, a high-street counter thirty and an airport kiosk fifty or more. Check each quote against the reference on this page before you agree.
When borrowers in Eastern Europe owed francs
The franc mortgage boom
In the years before 2008, banks in Poland, Hungary, Romania and Croatia sold mortgages denominated in Swiss francs, because Swiss interest rates were far lower than local ones. A monthly instalment looked small, and hundreds of thousands of households signed up. The loans were repaid in local money, but their size was fixed in francs, so any rise of the franc against the local currency made the debt larger in real terms.
When the franc surged after 2011 and again in January 2015, families found that their instalments and their outstanding balances had jumped by a third or more. In Poland the problem reached the courts, which have ruled in many cases that the contract terms were unfair. In Hungary and Croatia the governments forced banks to convert the loans. The history is a reminder that a currency risk that looks tiny when rates are calm can become the largest expense of a household.
Why euros still matter in that story
Most of those borrowers earned in their own currency, not in euros, but the euro was the usual yardstick: the franc's rise against it explains the size of their losses. Anyone studying such a loan can use the pages Convert CHF to PLN, Convert CHF to HUF or Convert CHF to RON to see what a franc is worth in a local currency today, and then Convert EUR to CHF to see how the franc compares with the euro on the same day.
A lesson for any foreign-currency contract
Before you sign any contract that fixes a price or a debt in a currency other than the one in which you earn, ask the bank to show you what the instalment would be if the rate moved by twenty per cent. If the answer frightens you, choose another currency.
A business trip from Frankfurt to Zurich
Counting the costs in two currencies
When you Convert EUR to CHF for an expense report, write the rate and its date in the margin of the claim.
A consultant flying from Frankfurt to Zurich for two days will find that hotels in the Swiss city cost more than in Germany, that taxis are dear, and that meals in a business district are priced in francs with no obvious euro equivalent. The easiest way to prepare a travel expense claim is to note each cost in francs, convert the daily total at the reference rate and attach a printout showing the date of the rate. Accountants like a rate they can verify, and the reference rate of the European Central Bank is one of the easiest to verify.
Cards and receipts
A corporate card will convert each payment into euros at the issuer's rate, so the statement amount differs from the receipt. Keep receipts in francs, because tax authorities generally accept the difference if you can show the original and the rate applied. In most companies the policy is to claim the euro amount actually charged, which makes the reference rate a check rather than the basis of the claim.
Time and travel
Switzerland shares the Central European time zone with Germany, so there are no clock changes to manage. Trains are punctual and are the best way to travel between cities. If you also plan to visit American colleagues afterwards, Convert CET to EST shows how far ahead your hosts in New York will be.
Watches, chocolate and the foreign buyer
A franc price on a luxury watch
Swiss watches are priced in francs, and most of the world buys them in other currencies. A watch with a price of CHF 4,500 may cost a euro-area buyer anything from 4,000 to 4,800 euros, depending on the rate and the shop. When the franc rises, shops outside Switzerland adjust their prices upward after some delay, and buyers who spot the gap sometimes travel to buy in Switzerland and reclaim the VAT at the border.
Why exporters care
About half of all Swiss watches are sold in Asia, but Europe remains a major market. A strong franc cuts the margins of manufacturers who price in euros. The bigger groups hedge their currency exposure with forward contracts, and the smaller ones simply raise prices once or twice a year.
Chocolate, cheese and everyday goods
Swiss chocolate and cheese cost more abroad than at home, partly because of transport and partly because of the franc. In cross-border shops in Germany and France, Swiss products are priced in euros at a rate set by the importer. That rate is rarely the reference rate, so the same bar can differ in price by a few per cent between neighbouring towns.
Living and studying in Switzerland
Rent and the cost of a room
Parents who Convert EUR to CHF for a student's first term often forget the deposit, usually one to three months of rent.
A student room in Zurich or Geneva costs from CHF 700 to CHF 1,200 a month. Convert EUR to CHF for the whole budget at the start of the term, and leave a margin of five per cent. Many students open a Swiss account to receive stipends and to avoid card fees.
Health insurance and compulsory costs
Residents of Switzerland must take out health insurance, and premiums are paid monthly in francs. A family moving from the euro area should include this cost from the start, because it is a fixed charge that does not depend on the exchange rate but looks very different in euros.
Banking for newcomers
Opening an account is straightforward for residents, and many banks offer a package with a debit card, online banking and a savings account. Foreign workers often ask for a salary to be paid directly into the Swiss account and then transfer a fixed amount to a home account in euros each month.
Leaving Switzerland: practical advice
Spend or change the last francs
Coins of Swiss francs cannot be exchanged in most countries, and banks abroad charge high fees for changing notes. Spend the last coins at the airport or on the train, and change only notes you really need.
Checking the receipt
If you changed money at a counter, look at the receipt and divide the francs by the euros. Compare the result with the reference rate on this page; a difference over four per cent means you paid for convenience.
Companies that trade with Switzerland
Invoices in francs or in euros
Swiss exporters often quote in euros to their European customers, taking the exchange risk themselves, and add a premium for it. Others insist on francs. When you negotiate, find out in which currency the price is fixed, and who bears the risk if the rate moves between order and payment.
Hedging and forwards
Finance directors who Convert EUR to CHF in large amounts treat the forward quote as a second benchmark beside the reference rate.
A firm that buys machinery for CHF 500,000 can fix the rate with a forward contract. If the franc rises by five per cent before payment, the unhedged firm pays CHF-equivalent of twenty-five thousand more. The price of a forward is the difference in interest rates between the two currencies, which has historically been small for this pair.
Time and logistics
Switzerland shares the Central European time zone with Germany, France and Italy, so there is no clock difference to worry about. Business hours are usually early, so a call at eight in the morning is not unusual.
Mistakes when you Convert EUR to CHF
Mixing up the symbol
CHF is written before or after the number, depending on the language of the document. 100 CHF and CHF 100 are the same. A Swiss price may also be written with an apostrophe as a thousands mark, as in 1'250.
Forgetting the rounding
Cash totals are rounded to five centimes, so a bill of CHF 24.97 may become 25.00. Card payments are exact.
Assuming a stable rate
The years of the floor are over, and any quote older than a week should be refreshed before use.
Changing twice
Changing euros into francs at home and the leftover back into euros at the airport loses two margins. Plan your cash, or use a card.
Related conversions
Neighbours in the same family
If your trip continues to Britain, use Convert EUR to GBP, and for the dollar side of Swiss business there is Convert USD to CHF. The euro-dollar pair itself is covered by Convert EUR to USD.
For hikers and skiers
Pistes and trails are described in metres of altitude, while snow depth is in centimetres. To compare with American resorts, Convert CM to IN turns a snowfall report into inches.
Short answers
How do I Convert EUR to CHF here?
Enter the euros in the first field. The page shows the francs at the latest reference rate, with the date.
Is this the rate a Swiss bank gives?
No. Banks add a margin. Use this as a benchmark.
Why is the rate not updated on weekends?
The central bank publishes only on working days. On a weekend the page shows Friday's rate.
Is my amount stored?
No. Only the table of rates is fetched.
Your amount stays with you
The number you type never leaves your browser, and no account is needed. It is a calm way to Convert EUR to CHF without telling anyone what you plan to buy.
In short
To Convert EUR to CHF, type the euros and read the francs at the European Central Bank's latest reference rate, shown with its date. It is the middle of the market, and the franc has a history of sudden moves, so allow a margin for any payment made later. Use francs in Swiss shops, decline the terminal's offer to charge you in euros, and compare every quote with the reference.