Pillar 3a interest: the current bank comparison

1. How high is Pillar 3a interest at the moment?

Around 0.25 percent on average across all Swiss 3a accounts. On a balance of CHF 50'000 that is CHF 125 of interest a year.

The average, however, hides a wide spread:

The highest rates currently come from smaller regional and private banks, the lowest from the major banks. With one, the same balance brings CHF 325 of interest a year, with another CHF 25. Some now pay no interest at all.

We deliberately name no names here. Providers adjust their rates several times a year, and a ranking in a text would be out of date before you read it. Which 3a solution is on what terms today belongs in a comparison, not in an advice article.

The rate is not promised in any case. Pillar 3a has no fixed adjustment dates, and your provider can change the rate at any time. With an existing insurance policy, also check the effective net return, because costs reduce the interest a second time there.

2. How has Pillar 3a interest developed?

Around 15 years ago, 2 to 3 percent on 3a accounts was normal. With the low-interest phase after the 2008 financial crisis, rates fell step by step towards zero.

The movement continues, downwards as well: last year the market average fell again. Anyone leaving their capital on the same account for years therefore quietly loses ground. The rate of back then is not the rate of today.

3. Why is Pillar 3a interest so low?

The rate follows the policy rate of the Swiss National Bank (SNB). Through it, the SNB steers the terms on which banks obtain money. When the policy rate falls, the banks pass the lower terms on to pension savers. After years of zero and negative rates, 3a accounts have therefore stayed poorly remunerated.

More of a problem than the low rate is inflation. If it sits above the interest rate, your capital loses real purchasing power even though the balance grows in nominal terms. At 0.25 percent interest and 1 percent inflation, your money shrinks every year without you seeing it on the statement.

In exchange, the account offers two things that securities do not:

• No market losses: your balance can never fall. 3a capital is not covered by the general deposit insurance, but does enjoy a bankruptcy privilege of up to CHF 100'000 per pension holder and foundation.
• No tax during the term: neither income nor wealth tax applies to the capital or the interest. Only on withdrawal is the bill settled, separately from your other income and at a reduced special rate.

The account does not beat inflation with this. A securities solution can: over long periods, the return there sits above inflation. The money is invested in investment funds or ETFs. In exchange, the value fluctuates.

What retirement capital grows out of interest and what out of return is shown by the wealth calculator for your contribution and your investment period.

4. Conclusion: how much does the interest really bring?

Over thirty years: around CHF 20'000. The overview calculates with the maximum amount of CHF 7'258, paid into a 3a account every year:

That a few tenths of a percent turn into a five-figure amount is down to the compound interest effect. The switch to another bank takes a few weeks. The banks charge no fees for it.

A high interest rate alone, however, does not make a good provider. Anyone putting the same CHF 7'258 into a securities solution for thirty years instead of into the account arrives at around CHF 407'000 rather than CHF 226'000, at a 4 percent return.

The difference is CHF 180'000, nine times as much as the best possible bank switch can ever bring. Your order is therefore set: first comes the choice between account and securities, then the choice of bank. Anyone who has made the first and wants to stay with the account still gets CHF 20'000 out of the right provider.

This article was first published on 06/05/2026